Class 4 District 1 & 2 Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 4 is being dominated by one team and one team only. St. Pius X has been my favorite all season to win the title, and they are on pace to do just that. Is anyone else stacked like Pius? Not on the East side of Missouri. West Plains and Farmington are my favorites for District 1. Here's my preview of Districts 1 and 2.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>District 1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true,"start":1} --> <ol start="1" class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>West Plains 25-11</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Farmington 21-11</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Cape Central 23-7-3</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Hillsboro 17-10-4</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Poplar Bluff 17-15</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>DeSoto 13-11-4</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Sikeston 8-17</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>North County 10-25-1</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ol> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Quarterfinals:</strong> West Plains sweeps North County, Farmington sweeps Sikeston, Hillsboro gets by Poplar Bluff, and Central wins in 5 over DeSoto.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Semifinal 1</strong>: <strong>West Plains</strong> vs. Hillsboro</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='485593' first='Jersey' last='Robinson'] leads the Hawks in kills with 302 and has 233 assists on the season. West Plains has two players with over 300+ kills: [player_tooltip player_id='468438' first='Lily' last='Wiedemann'], who has 372, and [player_tooltip player_id='459767' first='Mylea' last='Adams'], who has 356. Add in Ashlyn Tinsely, [player_tooltip player_id='676737' first='Violet' last='Hafer'], and <strong>Ella Orr</strong>, and you have a balanced attack with every start with over 100+ kills on the season. West Plains gets by the Hawks with more offense than Hillsboro can handle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Semifinal 2: Farmington</strong> vs. Cape Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cape Central and Farmington met two weeks ago, and Central won 25-16, 22-25, 25-19, and 25-18. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='737714' first='Piper' last='Underwood']</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='569675' first='Sydney' last='Miller'] finished with 33 kills. Farmington has six players with 113 kills or more, with <strong>Ava Cooper</strong> leading the team in 229 kills. I can't decide what pin she is better hitting, but when she's opposite, she is lethal. I will take redemption and give Farmington the 3-2 win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Finals: West Plains </strong>vs. Farmington</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams are solid all over the court, with every hitter having 100+ kills. The Zizzers have five players with 175+ digs, and [player_tooltip player_id='217597' first='Lucy' last='Hafer'] is a fantastic setter. Both teams play a 2028 player in [player_tooltip player_id='676737' first='Violet' last='Hafer'] for the Zizzers, and Farmington counters with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='778330' first='Lila' last='Roth']</strong>. I've said before that serving and passing will win this game. West Plains has a faster offense and should be able to pull out the 3-1 win to move one more win away from the final four.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>District 2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true,"start":1} --> <ol start="1" class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>St. Pius X 31-2-1</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Windsor 30-4</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>St. Joseph's Academy 12-13</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Festus 23-5-1</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Summit 7-11-1</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Visitation 11-20</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Lutheran South 8-17-2</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Webster Groves 6-13</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Affton 7-11</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ol> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Quarterfinals:</strong> St. Pius X sweeps Webster Groves, Windsor takes out Lutheran South, St. Joe sweeps Visitation, and Festus wins over Summit</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Semifinal 1: St. Pius X</strong> vs. Festus</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Semifinal one is a battle of Festus. Festus is hot right now. Since the Lutheran South tournament, they are 14-1, but they've yet to play a team like St. Pius. Pius is stacked and has only lost to St. Dominic and Mater Dei, IL. Since the loss to St. Dominic, they knocked off Lafayette and put a thumping on many teams. <strong>Jersey Latham</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='485629' first='Rylee' last='Lawrence'] will have their hands full to slow down Pius's big guns. [player_tooltip player_id='168037' first='Hannah' last='Leftridge'], [player_tooltip player_id='221230' first='Bennett' last='Raterman'], [player_tooltip player_id='475315' first='Anne' last='Makowski'], and [player_tooltip player_id='475322' first='Kate' last='Sherry'] carry a heavy load up front, and [player_tooltip player_id='221231' first='Elena' last='Ruble'] is one of the best setters in Class 4. St. Pius X gets the sweep to move to the finals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Semifinal 2:</strong> Windsor vs. <strong>St. Joseph's Academy</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Year in and year out, Windsor will battle for a district title, and to make it to that point, they will have to deal with the Angels. The names change at Windsor, but the level of play stays the same. <strong>Jordan Rosvall, Sara Wieberg</strong>, and <strong>Keira Dixon</strong> will lead the attack for the Owls. The Angels, I can't figure out. I watched them during the opening weekend, and I was impressed. [player_tooltip player_id='174403' first='Zoe' last='Baliva'] and <strong>Kat Teepe</strong> damage St. Joe. St. Joe is tall, and Windsor must be ready to cover their hitters. St. Joe doesn't have a flashy record, but the teams they play during the season prepared them for the playoffs. The Angels win, but dramatically, with a 3-1 victory. <strong>Update: Windsor was upset by Lutheran South.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Finals: St. Pius X</strong> vs. St. Joseph's Academy</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Pius X is on a mission, and that's the Class 4 championship, which will be another win and advance. The Lancers slapped the Angels in a 25-16, 25-21, 25-16 victory. St. Pius will have to battle St. Joe but will overwhelm the Angels on offense, and their defense will frustrate them into hitting errors. <strong>Harper Gass, Peyton Meyers</strong>, and <strong>Mady Bohnert</strong> play incredible defense and sweep St. Joe.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->