Looking Ahead: Potential 2021 Miss Volleyball Finalists

<p>There aren’t many honors in the state of Michigan greater than being named Miss Volleyball.</p> <p>An award that is based on a four-year prep career, Miss Volleyball truly reflects the best of the best.</p> <p>Recent winners include <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="14163" first="Julia" last="Bishop"] </strong>(2020), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="14089" first="Jess" last="Mruzik"] </strong>(2019) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="13904" first="Madeline" last="Chinn"] </strong>(2018).</p> <p>Each year, 10 players are put up as Miss Volleyball finalists. Being a finalist is quite an honor itself.</p> <p>It’s not easy to predict all 10 finalists, but here are some players I expect to see among the field next fall (in alphabetical order).</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24840" first="Braelyn" last="Berry"], Morley Stanwood OH: </strong>Predicting Miss Volleyball finalists from Division 3 and Division 4 isn’t easy, but it’s hard to ignore Berry. She is the only Division 3 player to earn All-State honors each of her first three years of play. She was Third Team All-State in D3 as a freshman, Second Team as a sophomore and First Team as a junior. Berry has over 850 kills and 1,250 digs in her career, and is approaching 200 aces.</p> [caption id="attachment_119843" align="alignright" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-119843" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/12/ND-vs-DCD-VB-16-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="24844" first="Alyssa" last="Borellis"][/caption] <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24844" first="Alyssa" last="Borellis"], S/OH/MH Notre Dame Prep: </strong>The Irish are no stranger to the Miss Volleyball Award and Borellis definitely should be in the running next year. The do-everything standout has the Irish as a D2 quarterfinalist this season and she has been First Team All-State the last two seasons, while earning Third Team honors as a freshman in 2018. You’ll be hard to find a player in this class with more overall production than Borellis. She has over 1,900 assists, 1,300 kills, 1,000 digs, 200 aces and 200 blocks over her three-year prep career.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24846" first="Ava" last="Brizard"], OH Marian: </strong>Brizard has been a key piece to the Mustangs since joining the varsity squad as a freshman in 2018. She has Marian as a D1 quarterfinalist this season and is approaching 1,500 kills for her career while hitting .351 over her three seasons with Marian. As a freshman, she was Honorable Mention All-State in Division 1. She moved up to Second Team All-State in 2019 and was First Team All-State this fall.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24853" first="Evelyn" last="Doezema"], OH Grand Rapids Christian: </strong>Doezema has made a lot of strides during her three seasons with the Eagles. Starting as a limited middle, Doezema has developed into a great all-around player. Doezema was a First Team All-State pick in 2019 and a Second Team All-State honoree in 2020. Already a two-time state champion, she has GRC as a D2 quarterfinalist this season. Doezema has over 800 kills and 250 digs in her prep career, while also approaching 200 blocks.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24854" first="Brooke" last="Dzwik"], Battle Creek St. Philip: </strong>St. Philip has produced a lot of great talent over its proud history and Dzwik is the next in line. She has been a featured piece of the team the last three seasons and was Second Team All-State in Division 4 as a freshman and sophomore, while earning First Team honors this fall. Dzwik has St. Philip as a D4 quarterfinalist this year. Her footwork and instincts are on par with the best in the state.</p> [caption id="attachment_112621" align="alignright" width="254"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-112621" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/10/Byron-Center-Taylor-Humphrey-254x300.jpg" alt="" width="254" height="300" /> [player_tooltip player_id="24859" first="Taylor" last="Humphrey"][/caption] <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24859" first="Taylor" last="Humphrey"], OH Byron Center: </strong>Humphrey has been a top hitter for the Bulldogs the last two seasons and had Byron Center as one of the top teams in Division 1 throughout the 2020 campaign. She has had over 400 kills each of the last two years and was Third Team All-State in 2019 and First Team All-State in 2020.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24870" first="Serena" last="Nyambio"], MH Detroit Country Day: </strong>They don’t get much more explosive at the net than Nyambio. The 6’2” Nyambio plays well above the net and also is a dominant blocker on defense. If not for facing Notre Dame Prep in district play, the Yellowjackets would be a top D2 contender the past few years. Nyambio was Second Team All-State in 2019 and First Team All-State this fall. She’s added a lot of new wrinkles to her game and has proven herself to be more than just a power arm.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24871" first="Maradith" last="O’Gorman"], OPP Lakewood: </strong>The Vikings have had the luxury of having Maradith, along with her 2021 sister Aubrey, on the roster for years. Aubrey was a finalist for the 2020 Miss Volleyball and Maradith seems like a lock to be a finalist in 2021. She is the only member of the Class of 2022 to be named First Team All-State all three years of her prep career thus far. O’Gorman has vastly improved her all-around games over the last three years and she has Lakewood as a D2 quarterfinalist this year.</p> <p><strong>Other contenders: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id="24835" first="Kendyl" last="Andrews"], Flushing; [player_tooltip player_id="24839" first="Carlina" last="Bender"], [player_tooltip player_id="24842" first="Josie" last="Bloom"], Notre Dame Prep; Hudsonville; [player_tooltip player_id="24845" first="Renee" last="Brines"], Cadillac; [player_tooltip player_id="24847" first="Audrey" last="Brown"], Birmingham Seaholm; Brooklyn Conner, Forest Hills Central; [player_tooltip player_id="91610" first="Seiler" last="Hruska"], Marquette; [player_tooltip player_id="24862" first="Morgan" last="Lockhart"], Detroit Country Day; [player_tooltip player_id="24866" first="Emma" last="Mirabelli"], Traverse City Christian; [player_tooltip player_id="24876" first="Emily" last="Struckmeyer"], Lowell; [player_tooltip player_id="24877" first="Sarah" last="Sylvester"], Marian; [player_tooltip player_id="60835" first="Kyla" last="Wiersema"], Western Michigan Christian.</p>