Division 2 Player And Coach Of The Year

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Division 2 may have been the division with the toughest choice for Player of the Year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This season featured a lot of top contenders, including many from the championship squad of North Branch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ultimately, defense wins championships.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>D2 Player Of The Year: [player_tooltip player_id='110301' first='Hailey' last='Green'], North Branch Jr. Libero</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":259339,"width":180,"height":229,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/12/4-Hailey-Green.jpg?w=803" alt="" class="wp-image-259339" width="180" height="229" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='110301' first='Hailey' last='Green']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Branch had a number of players that could be candidates for this honor, but it was Green that really allowed the Broncos to utilize their tremendous depth all season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The junior libero was one of the best players in the state collectively this season, making the toughest digs look quite easy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That allowed the North Branch offense to stay in-system in big matches and get the ball to their array of talented hitters.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the season, Green tallied 663 digs with 52 aces. She's approaching 2,000 digs in her prep career with the Broncos.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In Battle Creek, Green tallied 19 digs in North Branch's semifinal win over South Christian, then 25 digs in the final win over Cadillac.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other finalists: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='110314' first='Carissa' last='Musta'], Cadillac; [player_tooltip player_id='110302' first='Adrienne' last='Greschaw'], North Branch; [player_tooltip player_id='140493' first='Grace' last='Wenaas'], Notre Dame Prep</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>D2 Coach Of The Year: Jim Pender, Mt. Morris</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":259340,"width":266,"height":209,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/12/Team-2.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-259340" width="266" height="209" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Division 2 had a lot of the prominent coaches have another strong season, but we are giving this year's honor to Pender.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mt. Morris won its first regional championship this season before falling to the eventual champion, North Branch, in the quarterfinals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers also did so with just a roster of eight players which included four sophomores.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pender was able to find the right formula with a small team to make a deep playoff run that included a regional final win over Frankenmuth.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not only did Mt. Morris have postseason success, but it totaled over 50 wins on the year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other finalists: </strong>Jim Fish, North Branch; Betty Wroubel, Notre Dame Prep; Michelle Brines, Cadillac</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->