Portage Central Invitational Takeaways
One of the best tournaments you can find in the state took place on Saturday in the 12-team Portage Central Invitational. The event featured a number of ranked teams and the eight quarterfinalists all could be contenders in 2018. Here’s…
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Continue ReadingOne of the best tournaments you can find in the state took place on Saturday in the 12-team Portage Central Invitational. The event featured a number of ranked teams and the eight quarterfinalists all could be contenders in 2018. Here’s our takeaways on the eight quarterfinalists.
Grand Rapids Christian
The Eagles certainly have the potential to come away with a Division 2 state championship this season, but they also showed some lulls that had coach Tiffannie Gates concerned. It will be interesting to see if the Eagles can show more consistency by playoff time. Their stacked hitting behind the likes of Maria Bos, Addie VanderWeider, Ayva Kooistra, Evelyn Doezma and Olivia Nedd will make them tough for anyone to stop. Jordyn Gates (Arkansas) knows how to feed them all consistently and keep opponents guessing. If their defense and passing holds up, they will give teams like Notre Dame Prep and North Branch all they can handle.
Lake Orion
An injury to Sydney Smith in the semifinal didn’t help the Dragons against GRC, but Lake Orion had a strong day prior. The team was without sophomore middle Kendall Robertson last week when it lost to Northville in the finals of the Novi Invitational. With her back this week, Lake Orion was stronger at the net on offense and defense. Wren Macaulay (New Hampshire) continues to do a little bit of everything and is a complete player, more than just a setter.
Rockford
A team comprised of all juniors and seniors, the Rams want to get back to Battle Creek after being the 2016 Class A runner-up. Currently No. 3 in our Division 1 rankings, Rockford poses a threat to anyone its steps on the court against. Lindsay Taylor (Miami Ohio) is a top talent in the state on the outside. Along with her powerful attacks, she is very consistent on her serve receive and her passing. She is aided at the net by middles Emmy Webb (Davenport) and Claire Phillips. Emile Karelse (Charleston Southern) is able to set them all up and is a strong server for the Rams. Rockford will definitely be a factor come the postseason.
Portage Central
Ranked No. 14 in our D1 rankings, Portage Central reached the semifinals of their tournament this weekend before falling to No. 4 Lake Orion. The Mustangs earned a win over No. 12 DeWitt in the quarterfinals to show they are right in the mix in the state picture. Size won’t be on Portage Central’s side much this year, especially come the postseason, so fundamentals in passing and serving will be crucial to their success. Only two on the roster stand 6 foot or taller and their top attacker is 5-7 Ryan Jaqua (Quinnipiac). Jaqua certainly plays well above her size, but the Mustangs are still trying to develop other consistent attackers to become less predictable and take some of the pressure off of her to finish rallies. Ola Buss had a nice showing this weekend in the middle to give Portage Central something to build on. Mehl Hansen, a freshman, was brought up to varsity this weekend and showed a lot of promise in aiding the Mustangs in ball control.
DeWitt
The Panthers showed why they can be a force in Division 1 this weekend, earning a three-set win over Rockford, but also showed why they aren’t quite at the top of the rankings in their inability to finish off close sets against Portage Central. Part of the reason for the struggles was setter Kaitlyn Bangs being out with an injured hand. Libero Grace Marshall played well against some tough hitters this weekend and Sydney Mills was a great compliment on the outside to Miss Volleyball finalist, Desiree Becker (Northwestern) in the middle. Serving issues and passing issues kept the Panthers from beating Portage Central in the quarterfinals and those will be the keys for the Panthers come the playoffs.
Schoolcraft
Our third-ranked team in Division 3, Schoolcraft, had a great showing in this stacked tournament. The Eagles earned a win over Portage Central in pool play and was competitive with Rockford in the quarterfinals. Schoolcraft played well in serve receive and blocking to allow it to not get overwhelmed by the bigger opponents and stay in system. Andelyn Simkins (Western Michigan) is the go-to player for Schoolcraft and she really raised her game during the weekend to prove she can play with anyone in any division.
Gull Lake
17th-ranked Gull Lake had a good day considering it was without right side Lauren Esman. The Blue Devils had competitive matches with Lake Orion and East Grand Rapids in pool play and gave Grand Rapids Christian a scare in both of their quarterfinal sets. Gull Lake just couldn’t quite finish things off as they didn’t have the hitting to match the opposition. The Blue Devils had a great defensive effort in the tournament, led by libero Maddie Corstange. On the attack, sophomore Ireland Watts stepped up with Esman out and senior Kenzy Corstange (Davenport) performed well despite battling an illness.
East Grand Rapids
Like Gull Lake, East Grand Rapids played well and just couldn’t get over the hump of beating one of the upper-echelon teams in the tournament. In pool play, the Pioneers defeated Gull Lake and played Lake Orion very tight. Come the quarterfinals, EGR was just out-classed by the Dragons. Still, it was a positive day for East Grand Rapids and coach Tyler VanHeukelom felt it may have been the best collective performance of his squad this year. Senior Kyra Allen was lead the Pioneers with her passing, serve receive and serving while sophomore Stephanie Stewart was a consistent force on the outside.