Onsted: Scholars, Athletes, Contenders
By
Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
February 19, 2016
By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
ONSTED – The Onsted boys basketball team, undefeated at 16-0 and ranked No. 2 in the latest Associated Press Class B poll, can beat an opponent in a number of ways.
Want to run with the Wildcats in a high-scoring game? Coach Brad Maska welcomes it.
“The first time we play teams, we get up and down the floor, and they don’t expect us to do that,” he said.
Want to slow it down, and turn it into a half-court game? Maska welcomes that, too.
“The second time we play, they are trying to slow the game down, and it makes it more like a half-court possession game. That’s fine, too. We can play it both ways.”
However, the most inadvisable way to challenge the Wildcats might not even be on the basketball court. It’s in the classroom, where the basketball team has three of the top 10 students in the school and one of eight student-athletes to win the MHSAA-Farm Bureau Insurance Class B Scholar-Athlete Award, plus a second who was one of 32 finalists.
“Top to bottom, last year we were top 10 in GPA I believe, and we have to be on an average of 3.6 of 3.7 this year,” Maska said.
Top scholars
Senior point guard Dallas Heidbreder carries a near-perfect 3.95 GPA, and somehow he is third on the team in that category. Senior forward Austin Thompson is off the charts with a 4.29 GPA, while senior center Austin Davis checks in at an incredible 4.15.
Thompson was one of the Class B Scholar-Athlete Award winners, and although he is not a starter on the team, he has a huge influence and is quite aware of the basketball history at Onsted. No team had won a District championship since 1983 – a team that compiled a perfect regular season, something Onsted is shooting to duplicate this year.
“It’s an excellent feeling to make a mark for Onsted,” Thompson said. “We’ve talked about 1983, and we’re aware of it. They made it to the Quarterfinals, and that team had guys like the Hubbards and Greg Worker.”
Thompson plans to attend the University of Michigan, where he will major in actuarial mathematics, which he explained is, “using probability and statistics and risk factor. Most likely I will work for an insurance agency calculating insurance rates based on all the risks.”
Davis also is headed to Michigan, and while his intelligence is impressive too, he will as concerned with putting up numbers as charting them. He was the first signee of Michigan’s basketball recruiting class of 2016.
He refuses to take much credit for his academic success, though.
“My parents put a huge emphasis on academics, and they never accepted anything less than my best,” he said. “I’ve been around a great group of people. Our teachers are great here at Onsted, and the community has raised us right.”
Davis said he plans to go into the math or science field after college, unless, of course, playing basketball professionally is an option.
Heidbreder plans to pursue a career in real estate, but unlike Thomson and Davis, he expects to do it at Michigan State University. He’ll likely be wearing green and white in the Izzone at Breslin Center when Davis and the Wolverines visit next year.
“I’ll probably cheer for him a little bit,” Heidbreder said.
Heidbreder’s intelligence and maturity is showing up on the court, too.
“I’ve learned to keep my composure during the game,” he said. “It’s a lot with the refs, too, not to talk or even show any emotion if they make a bad call or anything. You just have to put that aside and keep playing the game.
“Last year I would lose my temper and maybe argue about some calls, and I think I’ve gotten a lot better this year, and it really helps the relationship between the refs and you.”
Really, though, the Wildcats haven’t needed much help from the refs this season.
Special group
Maska is an elementary physical education teacher in Onsted, and he saw this group from the start. An immediate impression was made.
“I had these guys all the way up,” he said. “I do recall going over to the RAC (Rando Activity Center) in Jackson and watching this group play. They probably were sixth or seventh grade, and they were doing really well. They are a group that has always fit well together. They all respect each other and work hard together. It’s a really neat group.
“The thing about this group is they were always good in middle school football, they were good in baseball, they were good in all these sports. Winning was already in the environment with these guys all the way up, so they knew nothing else but winning.”
Winning in basketball had not been a habit at Onsted. After claiming a Class C Regional title in 1983, Onsted did not win another District championship until last year – a span of 31 seasons.
That’s hard to fathom, considering this season’s success so far.
The signature wins this season came against Hillsdale, a team that has been dominant and a nemesis for Onsted. On Jan. 8, Onsted won an up-tempo game 66-62 at Hillsdale. Four weeks later, Onsted survived a different type of game, claiming a 45-34 victory and displaying its ability to win against different styles of play.
Sweeping Hillsdale was huge for the Wildcats.
“For me, I had never beaten Hillsdale ever before, so those two wins – especially the first one – that really boosted our confidence,” Heidbreder said. “It was an amazing feeling playing in front of so many people in the big games like Hillsdale. The stands are packed, and it’s just an awesome feeling.”
Heidbreder has his coach’s trust on the court, too.
“Dallas is a great kid, very cerebral,” Maska said. “He is like having myself on the court. I say something to him, and he knows exactly what I am talking about, and he gets us in the right sets when he needs to. He is playing like a senior point guard should.”
The team is packed with players who do things right, as Maska notes.
“Skyler Lipinski is a 6-6 floor man with unique skills stepping out and hitting shots, so he makes it difficult for teams to double-team Austin (Davis) because he can finish at the rim and do some nice things for us,” Maska said.
“James Deitrich is a sophomore guard who is out with an ankle (injury). We’ve been without him the last three games, so we’re finding ways to win without him. He’s a kid who can slash and get to the rim, and he is a phenomenal defender.
“One of our other guards is Gabe Richardson. He’s a junior who has been up since his freshman year, so he’s had a lot of experience as well. He does a good job defensively, and he’s able to knock down the 3-point shot when called upon, and he does a really nice job for us.
“Patrick Iott has been inserted in the starting lineup as of late. He’s a 3-point shooter, and he’s able to knock down shots when they sag and help, and he’s been able to pick up his defensive effort.
“Isaac Henry is another post player we bring off the bench for us. He’s about 6-3, 6-4, a really athletic kid. Austin Thompson, Josh Jeffords, Kyle Smiths, Brendan Black, we have lots of other guys who we might need for three or four minutes, and they do a tremendous job, and that’s what has been really neat about this group. They’re not worried about points or minutes, they are worried about us winning.”
And the biggest key to Onsted winning? Of course, it’s Davis, the 6-10, 230-pound senior center.
Road to Michigan
Rural schools like Onsted are not breeding grounds for Division I college basketball players, especially for Big Ten Conference schools. But Michigan could not pass on Davis, who began to blossom after playing on a senior-laden summer team after his freshman year in high school. Although he did not get a lot of playing time, it was a beneficial experience.
“That’s when it started to turn for him,” Maska said “He realized he could be pretty special, and he dedicated himself that summer. He had a great year his sophomore year.”
As word spread, Michigan assistant coach LaVall Jordan made the trip to Onsted to see Davis for himself. But Maska was a little concerned about the timing as Onsted was due to play two games in two nights, and Jordan was going to be on hand for the second game.
“I said, ‘I don’t know, it’s going to be a tougher game, but you are more than welcome to come,’” Maska remembers telling Jordan.
Maska won’t forget what Jordan told him after the game.
“It was really funny at the end of the game – it was a close, back-and-forth game – and LaVall just said, ‘51,’ and I said, ‘Yea, No. 51, that’s who you came to look at.’ And he’s like, ‘No, he had 51 points.’ I didn’t even realize that at the time. They were very impressed with his skill level.”
Davis, who wears uniform No. 51, had scored a career-high 51 points in front of a Michigan assistant coach.
Word was out on Davis, and while it was an exciting time at Onsted, it also was a stressful time for Maska.
“It was hard; I’m not going to say it wasn’t,” he said. “Last year we’re in the locker room after a big game, and I get a phone call from Coach (Fran) McCaffery from Iowa, and he wants us to have a practice on Sunday.
“You look at the team – we don’t normally practice on Sundays – and say, ‘Guys, this guy wants to come look at Austin, and he wants us to go full-court five-on-five,’ and without even questioning it, they were like, ‘Let’s do it, coach.’ They jumped right in.”
Eventually, Michigan coach John Beilein made his way to see Davis play in person, and Maska, a big Michigan fan, felt somewhat overwhelmed.
“It was kind of surreal for me when Coach Beilein came to a practice,” Maska said. “I had my practice plan, and I made a copy and said, ‘Here Coach, here’s my practice plan.’ For me, giving Coach my practice plan and having him look it over and say, ‘You have some good stuff here,’ it was pretty neat for me.
“It’s Austin’s process, but I’ve had a blast through it and met some really good coaches. It’s been just an awesome ride.”
As Davis and the Wildcats have plowed through the schedule, he has been treated somewhat as a friend and a foe at the same time. When asked what he hears more on the court from opposing players, ‘Go Blue’ or ‘Sparty On,’ he smiled and said, ‘The second one.’ ”
Yet, after the game, the opponents seek him out. The cheerleaders from Erie-Mason asked to have their photo taken with him, and a player from Blissfield went over to shake his hand and said, “I can’t wait to watch you on TV. Go Blue.”
Davis takes it all in stride, focusing on the task at hand.
“I’ve had a little bit of fun with it,” he said. “It’s definitely a great opportunity, but I’m going to enjoy this year while I can. I’ve grown up with everybody on the team for the most part. I got to play three, four years of basketball with them in high school and many more in our younger years.
“I’m just enjoying it right now. We’re having a great year and want to keep it going and prepare for what’s ahead and not overlook what’s happening now.”
Davis said one of his biggest challenges playing for Michigan will be adapting to the style of play. The Wolverines love to put up the 3-pointer, something that was not his strength a few years ago.
“It’s something that I have incorporated into my game the last few years,” he said. “My freshmen and sophomore year, I was a plodder, that’s what they called me, and I’ve had to expand it to play out on the perimeter. It’s definitely something I need to work on and acclimate a little more to it, but I’m very excited to learn every aspect of the game.”
Taska said that has made Davis a much better high school player as well.
“He can shoot it, and with his workouts and such, that was what was so impressive to those guys is he could go out and make seven out of 10 3-pointers,” Maska said. “Do I ask him to do that? I’d be called crazy if I asked Austin to shoot 3s when there is a 5-8 post player out there.
“He’s very skilled, and the one thing Coach Beilein really liked about him was his skill level, being able to pass, catch and shoot it, because in that system you have to be able to do everything. You have to be able to make great passes, you have to be able to catch the ball, and you have to knock down open shots when you get the opportunity.
“Many thought he was just a big kid, but we knew the skill level – we knew it was a tremendous fit for him at Michigan.”
End game
A team can’t be 16-0 and ranked No. 2 in the state and not be thinking about winning an MHSAA championship. But Maska stopped short of saying this was a “state championship or bust” situation.
“There is a lot of pressure, and we talk about that as a team,” he said. “There is pressure, and there is stress. Stress you want to get rid of as much as possible. Pressure is good, and if you are prepared, we love that kind of pressure and opportunity.
“As a coach, you want it to be one of the most enjoyable seasons, but there is a lot of pressure every game.”
Maska, in his ninth season as basketball coach at Onsted, is a tireless worker, a devoted teacher in practice and a respected leader.
“He cares about this team a lot,” Heidbreder said. “He spends countless hours breaking down film to try to make our team better. He focuses on what aspects in each game we need to work on. If we give up some offensive rebounds, we’ll spend the whole next day boxing out. If we look tired, we’ll start running, and if we’re not shooting well, we’ll start shooting.
“He knows what to do for us. He’s the best coach I’ve ever had in building a relationship with the players.”
Davis, about to step onto a much larger stage, will leave Onsted with a lot of respect for Maska and the coaching staff.
“He puts in so much time outside of practice breaking down film, scouting other teams and looking at what we need to do to get better,” Davis said. “He’s amazing in that aspect. We also have amazing assistant coaches, and our whole staff varsity through freshmen is amazing. They’ve pushed us through our entire careers here, and I’m very honored to have played for them.”
Brains and brawn have mixed well for the Onsted basketball team.
“It comes from home,” Maska said. “These kids are tremendous kids who have great parents at home. They have goals – they’re very goal-orientated – and it allows me not to worry about other things. I don’t have to look at that eligibility sheet to see who is ineligible or who is struggling in class.
“It does make us more cerebral, although basketball knowledge and academic knowledge don’t always mix well, but with this group it does. They are very smart in the classroom, and they know basketball. They know the game, and it allows me to maybe add three or four more plays that we wouldn’t normally do with other groups.
“They just click in that sense as they are very intelligent.”
Intelligent … and undefeated.
Chip Mundy served as sports editor at the Brooklyn Exponent and Albion Recorder from 1980-86, and then as a reporter and later copy editor at the Jackson Citizen-Patriot from 1986-2011. He also co-authored Michigan Sports Trivia. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Onsted's boys basketball team lines up for the national anthem before their game against Dundee on Feb. 2. (Middle) Guard Austin Thompson drives for a layup against Hudson on Jan. 12. (Middle below) Point guard Dallas Heidbreder sets the offense against Hillsdale on Feb. 5. (Below) Center Austin Davis dunks home two points against Blissfield on Feb. 11. (Photos courtesy of the Onsted boys basketball program.)
Unearthed Recording Will Soon Allow All to Recall Memorable 1971 CHSL Matchup
By
Ron Pesch
MHSAA historian
January 17, 2025
The box, labeled “Property of CC Athletic Department,” sat in the front closet of the Blackwells’ Detroit home for decades.
Contained within was an open reel of tape – unlabeled. Morris Blackwell has no recollection of how he ended up with it. But the lore that surrounds the content has been relayed countless times within the Blackwell family and likely among families with the last names Moreno, Rojas, Simpson, Williams, and Miller.
The details, from a game played on a Sunday night at the University of Detroit in February 1971, also may have even been discussed among those with the surname Tanana, Jonca, LeGarde, Rzonca, Bluitt, and Mei, but the memories may not have been as positive.
Now, thanks to a transfer of the tape, the complete game between Detroit Catholic Central and Detroit Holy Redeemer – a legendary battle for a Detroit Catholic League’s First Division title – can soon be watched by all.
The game was recorded using the EIAJ format – a black and white reel-to-reel standard created in 1969 for early video tape recorders by Japanese electronic manufactures. The high expense of EIJA units meant broadcast organizations and educational institutions primarily owned units. Extremely few individuals owned recorders at home, as cartridge tape systems like Beta and VHS did not come along until the mid-1970s. Hence, the family mostly ignored the box and its likely content.
“It’s pretty cool,” noted Ben Blackwell, Morris’ son, who, after a few failed attempts to transfer the unusual format, tracked down a company in Florida to move what was captured to modern-day media. ”Not perfect, but cool nonetheless.”
Detroit’s Catholic High School League
Organized for baseball in the spring of the 1925-26 school year, the “Greater Detroit Catholic High School League” played for a first league football championship in the fall of 1926, then opened its first basketball season with 12 city and suburban parochial schools participating. Since the league’s creation nearly a century ago, more than 125 schools have been members of the CHSL at one time or another.
That year, Detroit St. Leo and Wyandotte St. Patrick ended the “regular scheduled season tied for first place with identical 9-1 records,” hence a championship game was scheduled to determine a titleholder. Scheduled to start at 8:30 at the University of Detroit gym, according to the Detroit Times, “the largest crowd that ever witnessed a Catholic league game was on hand” for the title game, won by St. Leo, 13-5.
For the 1929-30 season, 25 schools made up what was briefly called the Southern Michigan Catholic High School Basketball League. “This year finds the league almost double its ’29 size when the league was divided into two divisions. A post-season game was held between the two division winners to decide the league championship. … This year a trophy will be awarded to … four divisional winners and a post-season series may be played to decide the city title,” stated the Detroit News.
Indeed, at the end of the season, winners of the Divisions 1 and 2 and Divisions 3 and 4 squared off in a “knockout” round. In the title game Detroit St. Theresa – the Division 1 titleholder and the league’s reigning champion – downed Division 4 victor Royal Oak St. Mary.
Between the 1930-31 and 1954-55 school years, using a post-regular-season playoff format, the league acknowledged champions across three divisions. For several years, playoffs were hosted at the Detroit Naval Armory – home of the University of Detroit’s cage team.
In May 1952, the University opened a new facility on campus – dedicated as the Memorial Building – and hosted its first basketball game at the facility in December of that year. In February 1953, the impressive arena served as a fantastic host for its first Detroit Catholic League triple-header championship. A crowd of 5,860 attended. Today, everyone knows the place as Calihan Hall, named in honor of the late Bob Calihan – athletic director, coach, and the Titans’ first basketball All-American – but that christening didn’t come until the autumn of 1977.
The Catholic League continued to swell in size, with 59 teams sponsoring basketball squads in 1956, broken into eight geographic sections spanning the three divisions built around enrollment and athletic success. Between 1956 and 1962 the league opted to move to a four-round playoff designed to name just one league champion regardless of regular-season Division.
By 1963, population growth, shifts to the suburbs, and hence, distance between schools, were altering makeup of the largest high school league in the country, now totaling 79 teams. The First Division included 32 squads split between four sections (Central, East, West, and AA ), 29 teams spread over four sections in the Second Division (East, West, Northwest, and Southwest), and 18 teams divided into two sections – the Third Division and the Macomb League division, according to the Detroit Free Press. At the beginning of that season, a decision was made to identify First and Second Division basketball champions – via a 16-team, three-round playoff that involved Division and section champions and various runners-up across the four divisions. (Two CHSL titlists have been determined annually through the 2022-23 school year.)
Unforgettable Seasons
By the 1970-71 school year, with closures and consolidations, the CHSL was down to a competitive and still impressive 44 teams. By the first of January, Detroit Catholic Central stood out amongst that crowd. Free Press prep guru Hal Schram had the team ranked No. 1 in his first weekly Class A rankings. Coach Bill Foley, who graduated from DCC in 1942, and who had guided the basketball team since 1952, was happy with the choice.
“Certainly we realize we’re on the spot … everyone will be shooting at us,” Foley said, talking about his Shamrocks, undefeated across five games, “but I’m certain I’ve got a squad that can live up to such a responsibility.
One day later, DCC dropped an 84-83 thriller to Detroit De La Salle on the Shamrocks’ home court. The Pilots had been quarterfinalists in the MHSAA Class B Tournament that past March. Because of the loss, the Shamrocks had fallen to No. 4 in Schram’s weekly rankings by early February. But the Detroit writer’s confidence in the squad was undeterred.
“The question you hear from all outstate precincts,” he wrote, “‘Who’s the team from Detroit who’ll give us the most trouble in the (MHSAA) March tournament?’” With the Catholic League playoffs about to tip off, Schram stated, “The answer in February remains the same as it was in December.” Detroit Catholic Central now donned a 10-1 record.
“The Shamrocks have height to burn” and remained “the best team in metropolitan Detroit,” according to Schram. “If he chooses, Foley can floor four youngsters 6-foot-7 or better. But only two of these schoolboy giants, 6-foot-8 Chris Rzonca and 6-foot-7 Rick Mei, start. ‘I doubt if any squad has two better guards than Frank Tanana and Ben Bluitt,’ Foley tells you. … Tanana has to be the best ball handler in our league.”
Foley’s Shamrocks had previously won an MHSAA Finals title in 1961, advanced to the MHSAA Semifinals in 1967, and won Catholic League First Division titles under Foley in 1952, 1961, and 1968. Most recently, the Shamrocks finished as league runners-up in 1970.
Other Catholic League entries scattered within Schram’s weekly ratings, each unbeaten, were De La Salle, No. 8 in Class A; Detroit Holy Redeemer at No. 8 in Class B, and Hamtramck St. Ladislaus, No. 6 in Class C. (Redeemer would see its 11-game win streak end on the night those rankings appeared in print, with a 69-67 loss to Detroit Benedictine, then drop another just days before the Catholic League playoffs to Detroit East Catholic. St. Ladislaus, unbeaten in regular-season action, was stunned by Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in the opening round of the Second Division tournament on Sunday, Feb. 7.)
Semifinal Trials
An unexpected crowd of 7,460 showed up for the four-game opening round of the 1971 First Division Catholic playoff, hosted at Memorial the following Sunday. Three of the four contests were blowouts, with 20+ point margins. Only Royal Oak Shrine’s come-from-behind triumph over Redford St. Mary, 65-59 in overtime, provided true excitement.
During Thursday’s semifinal round, DCC survived a major scare in its game with those same Shrine Knights, who held a 9-6 win-loss record. Trailing by seven points in the second quarter, Shrine knotted the game at 32-32 by halftime, and again, 45-45, on a Mickey Evans basket with two seconds remaining in the third quarter. Despite the significant height advantage, the Shamrocks were out-rebounded by Shrine. But Tanana, DCC’s all-state guard, ripped off 12 of his game-high 22 points over the final four minutes of the contest as Catholic Central finished with a 65-57 win over the Knights.
“Before the Shrine collapse in the waning minutes,” stated Detroit News staff writer Ken Williams, “Tanana had shared the applause of 4,233 spectators with rival Mickey Evans, who finished with 18 points.”
On the other side of the bracket, De La Salle was 14-1 on the year, with its only loss delivered by DCC in their regular-season rematch, and the Pilots were favored in their game with Holy Redeemer. The Lions, however, opened an 11-0 lead, and were up by 12 points, 35-23, at the half. The Pilots bounced back, outscoring Redeemer, 20-9, in the third quarter to pull within a point, 44-43, but could not close it out as the Lions held on for a 61-57 victory to advance to the title game.
The Sunday Finale
The First Division championship game between 15-1 Catholic Central and 14-2 Holy Redeemer was scheduled for 8:30 p.m. In that evening’s opening contest, staged at 7 p.m., Orchard Lake St. Mary’s downed previously-unbeaten Hamtramck St. Florian, 57-53, for the League’s Second Division title. St. Mary’s, powered by five juniors, had twice lost to the Lancers during the regular season. The win was the school’s first boys Catholic League tournament championship since the 1943-44 season.
In the First Division title game, significantly smaller in enrollment – and height – Redeemer struggled with Catholic Central. As most expected, DCC quickly opened a 16-4 lead in the first quarter, and according to the Free Press, “with two minutes left in the period it appeared the Shamrocks would chase Redeemer off the court.”
Yet Catholic Central still struggled on the boards, and by the half, the game was tied, 27-27. Nevertheless, by the end of the third quarter, the Shamrocks had opened a five-point advantage. The final frame was an all-out battle, with five ties and four lead changes. In the stretch, “Redeemer tied the score twice, (first) at 57-57 on Morris Blackwell’s field goal with 2:11 to go, and again at the 1:47 mark at 59-59 on a basket by Brigido Rojas. A (Tony) Moreno field goal and Rojas’ free throw eventually gave Redeemer a 62-59 lead,” stated the News.
“Then the pressure built up in the final 30 seconds. CC’s Ben Bluitt cut the deficit to 62-61 on a basket and Mike Miller countered with a free throw for Redeemer at the 16-second mark.”
A fifth personal foul pulled the Lions’ starting forward, Jim Williams, from the game with 11 seconds to play. Bluitt sank both free throws to tie things up, 63-63. That set the stage for a dramatic Hollywood ending.
Adding value to the taped broadcast is play-by-play provided by a pair of unknown individuals, according to Ben Blackwell. The label on the box is a tip-off to bias gleaned from some of the recorded observations. Their comments, regardless of leaning, are extremely valuable when, “for the lack of better words,” tracking or skewing issues with the tape’s content blurs the image of exactly what is happening on the court.
“With 7,425 fans screaming in ecstasy,” penned the Free Press’ Schram, “Moreno dropped in a 15-foot jump shot with two seconds left to give Holy Redeemer a 65-63 victory over favored Catholic Central.”
Tanana led all scorers with 24 points for CC, followed by Mei with 17 and Bluitt with 16. Rojas paced the Lions’ balanced attack with 17, including making 7 of 9 at the free throw line. Blackwell added 11, Moreno and Mike Miller each finished with 10, followed by Ralph Simpson with nine and Williams with eight.
Redeemer had won its first First Division title in 1964 with coach Joe LaScola, and again in 1969 under the guidance of coach Bill McCartney, later an MHSAA basketball state championship coach at Dearborn Divine Child, then a football assistant coach under Bo Schembechler at the University of Michigan before guiding the University of Colorado to a national championship in football.
It was a sweet victory for Redeemer’s current coach Stan Wegrzynowicz, the school’s football and track coach who added basketball to his duties when McCartney departed for the job at Divine Child in 1969. Wegrzynowicz, who once advised Moreno that he should skip basketball to focus on track after he had run an impressively-fast mile as a freshman, was thrilled his stocky 5-foot-8 guard had ignored his suggestion.
“As of now, the only folks who have viewed this are myself and my father,” stated Ben Blackwell of the recording. “He was over the MOON watching this footage he never really knew existed.” As they watched, the elder Blackwell was telling his son what was about to happen on the screen – more than 50 years ago – before it happened.
Soon after, a message was sent by the Blackwells to Redeemer’s other starters, who are all still around. Within minutes, three responded, asking the Blackwells about setting up a watch party.
Once that happens, Ben’s plan is to share the video of what many consider one of the greatest upsets in Catholic League championship history publicly via YouTube.
Another Surprise that Spring
Adding to the legend that school year, Holy Redeemer downed previously unbeaten Catholic Central in the Catholic League First Division baseball final, 4-0 in extra innings, in a game played at Tiger Stadium that June. Tanana – whose Major League Baseball career would span six teams over 21 years – had struck out eight and walked two, handcuffing Redeemer through four innings, but back muscle pain and a sore arm forced him to switch to first base. Lions’ senior Craig Barlow struck out 12 and walked four while surrendering just five hits across eight innings.
The 1971 pitching matchup had attracted Major League scouts to the game. One year previous, Barlow had pitched a no-hitter as Holy Redeemer downed Harper Woods Bishop Gallagher in the Catholic league title game.
“If Tanana stayed in, we would still be playing,” Morris Blackwell told the Free Press back in 1999 when the paper recalled two prep “Corner Classics” played at Tiger Stadium. “I don’t know who would have gone longer – Craig or Frank.”
Blackwell went on to play football, basketball, and baseball at Wayne State. Beginning in 1974, he hooked up with the Detroit Parks and Recreation Department, coaching baseball and softball to kids in the summer, notably at Detroit’s Clark Park on the West Side. Over the years, he has coached all three sports at college, high school, and youth levels and is still instructing kids today.
Ben Blackwell guesses the tape was passed on to his dad somewhere during his coaching years. The basketball game’s magnetic existence makes him wonder if footage of the baseball game may also have been captured.
“Dad said he has been asked probably 40 times in the past if he played in that basketball game,” Ben Blackwell said. “When he responds, ‘Yes,’ the next question always is, ‘How did you beat them?’”
PHOTOS (Top) The 1970-71 Detroit Holy Redeemer boys basketball team pulled off one of the most memorable upsets in CHSL history in a championship matchup with Detroit Catholic Central that season. (Middle) DCC’s Frank Tanana (44) puts up a shot. (Below) A screen shot from the video of that championship game indicates the full crowd surrounding the court. (Photos gathered by Ron Pesch.)