Five must-see matches and events for the week of Oct. 21

Drew Ellis October 21, 2019 @ 11:18 AM

The 2019 regular season is winding down, with just two weeks remaining until postseason play. This week features some solid conference clashes and a lot of big meetings in Division 3 and Division 4. Here’s a closer look at five marquee matchups for this week. Kalamazoo Christian at Schoolcraft – Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. Top-ranked Schoolcraft (No. 1 D3) has a big match on Tuesday night when the Eagles host Kalamazoo Christian (No. 3 D3) for a battle of unbeatens in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. These two did meet in a weekend tournament early in the year, with Schoolcraft picking up a 25-11, 25-8 win, but the Comets have improved a lot since then and are eager to get another shot at Schoolcraft to see just how far they have come. Kalamazoo Christian hitters Carley Broekhuizen and Sarah Wenke will be eager to test themselves against the likes of Schoolcraft’s Andelyn Simkins in this matchup. Ann Arbor Skyline at Saline – Tuesday, 7 p.m. It’s a big matchup in the Southeastern Conference Red Division when Saline (No. 10 D1) plays host to Skyline (No. 8 D1). Skyline has a 1-point edge on Saline in the division standings coming into this meeting. These two met back on Aug. 26 as part of the SEC Jamboree, with Skyline winning a best-of-three by scores of 23-25, 25-19, 25-23. You should expect this best-of-five conference match to be just as competitive. Skyline has a great sister duo of Kendall Murray and Harper Murray, both of whom can be dominant at the net. Saline will need libero Hannah Blaney to be on her game so Julia Blaney and Josie Bero can keep the offense running. Ida at Onsted – Tuesday, 7 p.m. The Lenawee County Athletic Association has two of its best on display Tuesday night when Onsted (No. 11 D2) plays host to Ida (No. 7 D2). This is the first encounter between the two. Ida has been led by a pair of senior hitters in Taylor Wegener and Kadie Carsten. Onsted has a pair of hitters of their own in senior Kinsey Wagner and junior Mya Hiram. These two teams have just six losses between them, so there should be plenty of fireworks on Tuesday night. Lakewood vs. Mattawan vs. Schoolcraft – Thursday, 6 p.m. Fresh off the Beast of the East, both Mattawan (No. 4 D1) and Schoolcraft (No. 1 D3) get right back into the fire on Thursday when they travel to Lakewood (No. 5 D2) for a tri-match. This will be an impressive collection of talent from three schools, including Miss Volleyball finalists Andelyn Simkins of Schoolcraft and Allie Wiese of Mattawan. These should be three great matches to catch, as each team has the potential to win a state championship in their respective divisions. Oakland Christian at Southfield Christian – Thursday, 6:30 p.m. It will be the second meeting between two of the best in Division 4 and in the MIAC on Thursday as Southfield Christian (No. 2 D4) hosts Oakland Christian (No. 8 D4). These two met on Oct. 1 with the Eagles picking up a four-set win over the Lancers by scores of 21-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-15. It was the serving of Oakland Christian that gave the Eagles some trouble in the first set and throughout the match. Anna Frazee, Hailee Ide and Katie Hopkins served aggressively to try and keep Southfield Christian out-of-system. Eventually the Eagles were able to get on track and turn to their powerful outsides in Emily Van Dyke and Caitlin Warnshuis. It will be interesting to see if the Lancers can make the adjustments needed to stop the red-hot Eagles.