Zeeland East High School

The Chix ventured to Holland Christian for three competitive matchups, following a gritty week of practice. That grit would show up again on Thursday night as all three teams stormed to victory over the Maroons.  The Chix Freshman battled to a 2-0 win and JV came out strong in the second and third sets to rally to a 2-1 win. With the Chix rolling, it was varsity's turn to carry the torch. That torch would burn a little brighter on Thursday night with senior outside hitter, Lizzie Risdon, just four kills away from the 1000th of her career. She wouldn't have to wait long as she tooled off the block to give the Chix an 11-10 lead and notch her milestone swing into the Zeeland East leaderboards. From there, the Chix didn't slow down. Senior middle hitter, Bri Cole, led the way defensively at the net with 5 blocks and also added 7 kills. Junior opposite, Ava Geerlings, also finished with 7 kills and four blocks of her own. Senior setter, Kyla Kuiper got 27 assists and is now just 23 away from her 500th of the season. Kuiper's job was made easier thanks to the incredible efforts of Oli Valenzuela (2.04 serve receive, 10 digs) and Leah Keur (2.8 serve receive, 7 digs). Risdon, for her part, finished the night with 12 kills, 14 digs, 4 aces, 2.43 serve receive and 1 block in the win over the Maroons. Coach Szetela remarked on Risdon's accomplishment, "Lizzie is only the second Chix player in school history to achieve this milestone and while it is a testament to her skill as a player, it also highlights her dedication to excellence during those months that our community doesn't get to see. Thousands of reps during the offseason that make these things look like they just come to her naturally. Beyond all of that, this milestone speaks to the incredible trust and love she has built with her teammates over the years, and I'd wager that means more to her than the stats that make a night like tonight possible." The Chix improve their record to 17-2 and the Maroons slip to 9-8 after the 3-0 sweep. The Chix will meet a stellar Hamilton Hawkeyes (14-2, 4-0) team this Tuesday on the road with a chance to take control of sole ownership of first place in conference before returning home with a non-conference contest against Grand Rapids Catholic Central (15-4-1) on Thursday.