East Vs. West All-Tournament Team Selections

<!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><em>Be sure to follow&nbsp;@lshotvb&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/lshotvb/">Instagram</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@lshotvb?is_from_webapp=1&amp;sender_device=pc">Tik Tok&nbsp;</a>and&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/LineShotVBall">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for all things volleyball!</em></h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><em><a href="https://prepdig.com/top-250-expos/">The 2024 Expo Season is here</a>! Sign up for this year's Top 250 Expo using the code <strong>LSHOTExpo2024</strong> for $$ off!</em></h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>–</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Only the best of the best were up for the challenge!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you take some of the heaviest of heavy weights in Michigan Volleyball and throw them all into one gym, you get some insanely fun volleyball. The Legacy Center in Brighton played host to almost an entire field of ranked squads. With 8 of the top ten ranked squads in Division 1 and a top ten ranked Division 2 squad in the field, these match-ups were marquee. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In an intriguing format, this was truly an East vs. West showdown. Rather than a typical tournament of one team coming out victorious, this tournament was for taking the glory of which side of the state is best. East teams only competed against West teams and vice versa. Once you combine all of the victories throughout the day, that determined which side won the challenge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In a tight race, the East would be crowned the victorious side of the Mitten. But it was a tight brawl. With a victory of 14-10; East's big push past the west side came down to the last few games of the day to secure the dub.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With all the great volleyball in the gym, the Legacy Center not only crowned a victorious side but a slew of All-Tournament team selections. Take a look at who made the East Vs. West All-Tournament squads.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":666351,"width":"297px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"right"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/09/DSC02022.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-666351" style="width:297px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='156313' first='Marie' last='Laurio']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">East All-Tournament </h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Clarkston</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='442995' first='Marlie' last='Smith'] / [player_tooltip player_id='156319' first='Addison' last='Newblatt']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Mercy</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='156295' first='Campbell' last='Flynn'] / [player_tooltip player_id='226875' first='Ella' last='Andrews']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Marian</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='226885' first='Allie' last='Davison'] / [player_tooltip player_id='553151' first='Ashlyn' last='Pelon']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Northville</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='156326' first='Mallory' last='Reck'] / [player_tooltip player_id='537079' first='Kaylyn' last='Tuck']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>North Branch</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='226888' first='Aubree' last='Deshetsky'] / <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='732246' first='Ella' last='Swoish']</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Saline</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='156313' first='Marie' last='Laurio'] / <strong>Ellie Greener</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the East side, there was a lot of highlight plays en route to the ultimate victory. Leading the way in wins, Mercy came out atop with 4 victories. Taking the initiative, [player_tooltip player_id='156295' first='Campbell' last='Flynn'] (Nebraska) and [player_tooltip player_id='226875' first='Ella' last='Andrews'] were producing all throughout the day. Between their block to their offensive production, the two do so much for this Mercy squad that managed to escape a near upset at the hands of Rockford early in the day. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Other key players to note making waves were a pair of underclassman in [player_tooltip player_id='442995' first='Marlie' last='Smith'] and [player_tooltip player_id='553151' first='Ashlyn' last='Pelon']. Smith is coming off of a huge summer and has shown zero signs of slowing down. As the main QB for this Clarkston offense, she has this group running at an extremely efficient level. After a tough loss in the tournament opener, Smith turned things into high gear to shift the tides. For Pelon, she is the one and only freshman to grace either all-tournament team, and deservedly so. As the Mustangs' starting libero, Pelon is passing and defending well beyond what her young age would suggest. She is keeping Marian in the mix for the big matches.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of players keeping their squads in big matches, you have to take a look at [player_tooltip player_id='156319' first='Addison' last='Newblatt'], [player_tooltip player_id='226888' first='Aubree' last='Deshetsky'], and [player_tooltip player_id='156313' first='Marie' last='Laurio']. These three are all so instrumental for their respective teams' successes. All three, playing six rotations, are carrying such heavy loads. From the first contact, to the third contact. They're relied so heavily upon by their teams to keep the ball in play, while putting a high volume of balls away. All three were difference makers on Saturday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":666338,"width":"290px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"right"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/09/DSC02099.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-666338" style="width:290px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='226900' first='Liv' last='Hosford']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">West All-Tournament</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Forest Hills Northern</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='586437' first='Madalin' last='Hersman'] / [player_tooltip player_id='226936' first='Lexie' last='Stotenbur']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Grand Haven</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='462086' first='Mallory' last='Woiteshek'] / [player_tooltip player_id='481384' first='Nadia' last='Prieditis']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Hudsonville</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='288948' first='Lexi' last='Armstrong'] / [player_tooltip player_id='502207' first='Lauren' last='Bower']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Jenison</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='464378' first='Ava' last='Bush-Nelson'] / [player_tooltip player_id='467951' first='Rylee' last='Paddock']</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Northview</strong> - <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='732260' first='Vanessa' last='Walker']</strong> / <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='490351' first='Quinn' last='Hanna']</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Rockford</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='226900' first='Liv' last='Hosford'] / <strong>Ellie Goad</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>To the West side, there is still a lot of good things to unpack here despite the loss in this year's challenge. Two of the strongest teams to come out of the challenge were both Jenison and Rockford.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jenison was headed up by the beast of [player_tooltip player_id='464378' first='Ava' last='Bush-Nelson'] in the middle. A player that can score from just about anywhere along the net. ABN also owned the net as one of the strongest blockers in the field. She was accompanied by the two headed beast on the left side that was [player_tooltip player_id='467951' first='Rylee' last='Paddock'] and [player_tooltip player_id='226882' first='Karis' last='Chatfield'] (ETSU). Paddock, named to the All-Tournament squad was truly an unsung hero. Between her back court skills to her craftiness at the net, she carried this Jenison squad past some serious big names and almost led them to a 4-0 day. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Rockford, the Rams had the entire gym's attention when they went toe-to-toe with the beast that is Mercy. After losing the first set in a tight 23-25 decision, Rockford stepped on the gas and tied the match up 25-11 in the second. At this point, all other games had concluded and all eyes were on court 1 for set 3. A back and forth affair it went, going into overtime, the Marlins would just narrowly escape the Rams by a score of 14-16. Despite this loss, and another to Northville, the Rams showed that they have something incredibly exciting cooking up. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Rams were led by the duo of [player_tooltip player_id='226900' first='Liv' last='Hosford'] and <strong>Ellie Goad</strong>. Hosford was an offensive powerhouse all throughout the challenge. No shot was unavailable and no swing was coming in gently. For Goad, this is a player that truly had herself a day with her defensive play. Speaking from the Mercy match alone, Goad was all over the court. Her anticipation was top notch and ability to absorbed the hardest of swings was admirable. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Other notable performances from the west to key on came from [player_tooltip player_id='288948' first='Lexi' last='Armstrong'], <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='732260' first='Vanessa' last='Walker']</strong>, and [player_tooltip player_id='462086' first='Mallory' last='Woiteshek']. There were a plethora of impressive liberos in the gym on Saturday, but none quite caught the eye like Armstrong. She's a player who really makes a quiet impact on the court. Between her anticipation for the ball, her control of the court and steadiness; Armstrong is a crucial piece for Hudsonville. Walker for Northview was also a pivotal player for Northview. An HM team coming in, Northview made some statements with huge wins over the likes of Marian. This setter can not only dish the ball extremely well, but she is blocking, defending and scoring so well. For Grand Haven, Woiteshek continues to impress. The 6'3 slugger on the left pin is such an efficient scorer no matter where she is on the court.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->