Holland Christian volleyball claims district title; Chix held off by No. 7 Hudsonville

JENISON - The Zeeland East volleyball team knew it could hang with No. 7 Hudsonville with a district championship on the line.In the second set, the Chix and Eagles went back-and-forth, neither team leading by more than two the entire set.Tied at 22, the Chix hit one into the net, then Hudsonville's Whitney Swiercz launched a rocket serve right into the top of the net, but its power pushed it over the net where it ended up on the floor for an ace setting up set point.Zeeland East's Lizzie Risdon put down a kill to pull the Chix within on but a kill from Hudsonville's Megan Glass closed the set out and propelled Hudsonville to a 25-18, 25-23, 25-17 win for the Division 1 district title on Thursday, Nov. 5, at Jenison High School.More: Zeeland East volleyball stages epic comeback to top West Ottawa in 5; HC, Fennville winMore: Nothing small about the play of Zeeland East's undersized middle hitter, who heads to Calvin"They are a really good team and we played them really well through the first to sets, and a good portion of the third," Zeeland East coach Jake Szetela said. "A quarter inch higher you are cheering. We try not to get too caught up in quarter inches, but sometimes the ball just doesn't go your way."The Chix finished the season 29-6, sharing the OK Black Conference title."This team is special. Our senior class is the best I have ever seen as a coach of over a decade," Szetela said. "Their legacy will be their (leadership) because that will carry with the next few groups coming through. It is a special group that we are really going to miss."The Eagles led 23-22 after an error, then got an ace from Whitney Swiercz that hit the net and went over to find the floor and make it 24-22. A Risdon kill made it 24-23 but a kill from Megan Glass closed it 25-23.The Chix trailed 6-1 in the third set as the momentum took a mental toll. But a timeout re-energized the Chix who put down some kills and two big blocks to tie it 8-8 with a huge crosscourt kill from Risdon, who finished with 13 kills. Bri Cole added seven.An ace and a tip kill pushed the Eagles lead to 14-9. A diving dig from Emmy Poll led to a huge point, then another ace made it 16-9 and Hudsonville went on to a sweep."Zeeland is a great team. It was important for us to continue working hard through all three sets. We were able to finish strong in all three," Hudsonville coach Stephanie Chenlo said. "We are an aggressive serving team. They have a great setter and outside and Kyla (Kuiper) moves the ball around really well. They are a great team."DIVISION 2Holland Christian 3, South Christian 1The Maroons won the Division 2 district championship with an 18-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-22 win over Grand Rapids South Christian on Thursday, Nov. 5, at Hopkins.Holland Christian advanced to the Division 2 regional semifinals where they will face the Edwardsburg-Niles winner at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 10, at Plainwell.This is a developing story and more information will be added as it becomes available. Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports. This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland Christian volleyball claims district title; Chix held off by No. 7 Hudsonville