Future Becomes Now as Freshman Oliver Pulls Douglass Past Dollar Bay
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 12, 2026
EAST LANSING — Judging by the Detroit Douglass and Dollar Bay rosters Thursday, one thing is for certain:
The day’s first Division 4 Semifinal might not be the last time those two schools – located 553 miles apart on opposite ends of the state – hook up at the Breslin Center over the next few seasons.
In a matchup between teams with rosters dominated by underclassmen, Douglass had a little too much on this occasion, advancing to the Division 4 championship game for the first time since winning it all in 2021 with a 58-47 win.
Douglass head coach Pierre Brooks had high praise after the game for Dollar Bay head coach Jesse Kentala and how he prepared his team, and knows the Hurricanes could be running into the Blue Bolts again.
“I heard about the young guys they have on their team,” Brooks said. “I think Coach told me they were here in 18 or 19. So hey, I wouldn’t mind seeing them again.”
One advantage Douglass had Thursday – and will if they meet again in the near future – is freshman Damani Oliver.
Entering the game leading his team in scoring at over 22 points a game, Oliver played like someone beyond his years, scoring 17 of his 21 points during the second half to help Douglass pull away.
“I (didn’t) see too many (Detroit) Lions games this year because every Sunday, he’s calling me to get into the gym,” Brooks said. “He’s definitely put in the work and I’m glad in the second half he decided to really pick it up.”
Holding a 22-17 lead at halftime, Oliver started the third quarter with a four-point play and finished the third with 10 points to help Douglass take a 40-35 lead into the fourth.
The Hurricanes put the game away from there, going up 51-38 with 3:44 remaining on a basket by sophomore Quinn Davis.
He also scored 14 points for Douglass, which didn’t shoot the ball well from the perimeter. Douglass was just 4 of 20 from 3-point range, but made that up a bit with a 30-22 rebounding advantage.
Junior Baron Colbert scored a game-high 23 points for Dollar Bay (24-3), which was making its first Semifinal appearance since 2019. With just three seniors, three freshmen and two eighth graders on the roster, Dollar Bay should be heard from again.
Kentala just hopes that if his team returns next year or beyond, the weather will be a little better.
Many of the school and community’s fans couldn’t make it down to the game as expected because the Mackinac Bridge was closed due to a winter storm.
“It’s been a great ride,” Kentala said, talking about his team’s tournament run. “I thought our plan was right. I thought these guys executed it just beautifully. I thought we did everything in our power. I thought we kept them guessing. We mixed up our zone and man pressure. I thought we attacked, I thought we were fearless, I thought we were tough. Sometimes the shots don’t fall, and (Oliver) really stuck a few key shots. A really nice player.”
PHOTOS (Top) Detroit Douglass’ Kamari Howard (12) gets a shot up over Dollar Bay’s Liam Tourtillott (20) during Thursday’s first Division 4 Semifinal at Breslin Center. (Middle) Tourtillot makes a move into the lane while guarded by Douglass’ Dimauvion Smith-Powe (35). (Photos by Adam Sheehan/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Sizable Fremont Has Big-Time Aspirations
December 5, 2018
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
Fremont is synonymous with babies, as the founding home of Gerber Products and host of the National Baby Food Festival each July.
Some of those babies grow up to be giants – as evidenced by this year’s Fremont Packers boys basketball team.
Senior Logan Karnemaat (6-foot-10) and junior Tristan Campbell (6-8) are the twin towers whose presence sets the tone on both ends of the court for the Packers, who are off to a 2-0 start and have high hopes for the rest of the season.
“I guess you could say we ate all of our baby food, and someone must have put some Miracle-Gro in there, too,” Karnemaat said with a laugh.
Karnemaat knows all about fertilizer as a third-generation farmer. He spends much of his time when he’s not in school or playing basketball working on his family’s 3,000-acre farm operation, which includes crops and livestock.
His life goal has always been to get a business degree and return to run the family farm, with playing basketball almost an afterthought.
When pressed on the subject, he said that both Grace Christian and Calvin College in Grand Rapids have shown interest in him, then quickly added: “There are two more I can’t think of off the top of my head.”
Karnemaat is clearly more focused on making the most out of his senior basketball season, which shows signs of great promise after an impressive 45-35 win Tuesday night at Ludington, which made it all the way to the MHSAA Class B Final in 2017.
“I’d say that was our biggest road win in 10-12 years,” said Fremont coach Peter Zerfas, who is now in his 19th year. “It was how we did it. Ludington is a very good team, but we came out with confidence and we were the more aggressive team.”
The scorebook does not tell the true story of the game, as Campbell scored only seven points and Karnemaat just five. The real story was the rebounding and shot-blocking of the twin towers – Karnemaat finished with 10 rebounds and Campbell had five blocked shots, with both of them altering and contesting countless others.
As a result of their presence, Ludington suffered through one of its worst offensive nights in recent memory, scoring just 18 total points over the first three quarters. Senior standout Josh Laman, who nailed the memorable 3-pointer in the Class B Semifinals two seasons ago to send the Orioles to the championship game, had no field goals in the first half and just 10 total points.
Fremont senior forwards Calvin Miller (11 points) and Julian Echavarria, who also have good size at 6-5 and 6-3, respectively, also contributed on both ends of the court.
Zerfas said the key to the big win was the play of his young guards, particularly junior starters Carter Moon (13 points) and Jaxx Miller, who held up under Ludington’s relentless full-court pressure during the second half.
“We have four young guards, and how well they develop will be the key for us this season,” said Zerfas, whose youngest son, sophomore Joshua Zerfas, is one of those young backcourt players. “We have the size and we have some depth, so if those guards keep coming like they are, we have a chance to be really good.”
Zerfas has the Packers competing at a championship level after back-to-back down years in 2015-16 (6-16) and 2016-17 (13-8). Basketball is a big deal in this small town, which has had some great runs in cross country but for the most part is known for baby food, farming and hoops.
Fremont has won a pack of conference and District championships, but Regionals has generally been the end of the road. In fact, the last time Fremont won a Regional championship was 1956, before losing to Stephenson that winter in the Class B Quarterfinals.
Shortly after Zerfas took over as coach in 2000, Fremont had a string of five consecutive District titles, with longtime nemesis Muskegon Heights ending the Packers’ run at the regional level in four of those five years.
Fremont fought its way back to Regionals last winter, before being humbled by Grand Rapids South Christian and finishing with a 17-7 record.
The Packers feel like they have even more pieces in place this winter and are eager to start work towards their first goal, a Central States Activities Association Gold championship, when they open league play Friday night at Reed City.
Karnemaat, who led Fremont with 14 points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots per game last season, can’t wait for back-to-back home games next week against Montague and Sparta.
While he spends much of his time working in relative solitude on the family farm, there’s nothing he enjoys more than the contrast of playing basketball in front of a rowdy home crowd.
“Our students and our community come out and supports us, and it really helps,” Karnemaat said. “We have a good team, but then to have 2,000 fans behind you and get you going, I love it.”
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Fremont 6-10 senior center Logan Karnemaat holds the ball up high, well out of the reach of two Shelby defenders, during a 75-50 season-opening win Nov. 27. (Middle) Fremont sophomore Braiden McDonald, one of the contributors off the Packers' deep bench, drives to the basket. (Photos by Russell Tindall.)