Performance: Clarkston's Foster Loyer
February 5, 2017
Foster Loyer
Clarkston junior – Basketball
The Wolves’ junior point guard has been making good on high expectations since entering high school, and in one way he didn’t miss for nearly a year. Starting with last season’s regular-season finale against West Bloomfield, Loyer put together an MHSAA record streak of 119 straight made free throws to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week” for Jan. 23-29.
Loyer’s streak came to an end when he missed his first free throw in a 59-39 win over North Farmington on Jan. 24. His record surpassed by 17 the former milestone set by Frankenmuth’s Brad Redford during the 2007-08 season and will rank second in the national record book when submitted after this season. Loyer joined the Clarkston varsity as a highly-touted freshmen two years ago and this winter has led the Wolves to a 13-0 start averaging 25.2 points, six assists and 4.4 rebounds per game, making 44 percent of his 3-point attempts and 95.6 percent of his tries from the free throw line.
Some of the high expectations for Loyer rise from legacy; his dad John has been an assistant for four NBA teams including the Detroit Pistons, whom he led as interim head coach at the end of the 2013-14 season. Foster also has learned under the tutelage of longtime Clarkston coach Dan Fife, who took over the program in 1983 and is the fourth-winningest in MHSAA boys hoops history. Loyer – who also played baseball for a season at Clarkston – has committed to sign this fall with Michigan State University. A strong student as well, he’s looking to study business management with an eye on working in sports once his playing days are done. But first, he’ll try to lead Clarkston its first MHSAA championship after the team fell in overtime in a Class A Regional Semifinal last season to eventual semifinalist Macomb Dakota, and also by two in 2015 in a Quarterfinal to Detroit U-D Jesuit.
Coach Dan Fife said: “He shoots every day, and when he shoots, he shoots with a purpose. He’s a hard worker, he puts a lot of time in, and all the time he puts in really shows in the way he plays. … His court IQ is just incredible. He sees the game ahead of time. He has a great floor sense, where people are. As a freshman he was the same way, and one of the bigger things is when he gets upset, he doesn’t show a lot of anger when he makes a mistake. Mistakes don’t lead to two mistakes with him. He doesn’t get caught up in that stuff, he doesn’t get caught up in who he is; he just keeps his focus. And as good a player as he is, he’s just as good a kid. In the hallways, you wouldn’t know (he’s a basketball standout); he doesn’t walk like that. He’s just one of the kids.”
Performance Point: “Going into this year, I knew I’d made a bunch in a row but I had no idea what number I was at,” Loyer said of his free throws. “I didn’t pay much attention, but I think when I passed 100 some of my teammates started messing with me, letting me hear it when I missed one in practice. … I approach every free throw the same, and when the shot (that broke the streak) left my hand, I had no thought going through my mind that it wasn’t going to go in. It rolled in and out pretty bad, and when it came off the front of the rim, the thought definitely went through my head and I heard the rest of the crowd knew about it. They took a loud gasp, and that’s pretty much how I felt about it. I was definitely disappointed, but when something like that comes to an end, you move on and go on to the next play.”
Part of the arsenal: “I would consider free throw shooting a serious weapon, especially being the point guard in an end-of-game situation. At the end of the game, being able to hit free throws, especially in high school where there’s no shot clock, the game is over in my mind. I’m confident in myself and my teammates to be able to go and knock free throws down. Just being in the gym every day, it’s something you practice every day, day in and day out. It’s called a free throw for a reason; in my mind, you’re supposed to make them.”
Thanks Dad: “If we’re watching film or being in the gym every day, my dad has been a positive influence in my life and basketball career. Just being able to take the things he says, and build off of them to make myself a better player. Every time we watch film, normally you should look not only at what you did right but also what you did wrong and can improve on. That’s been the biggest part of the game my dad has helped me improve.”
Win one for Coach: “(A Class A title) would mean the world to us guys as players, as a team, with the brotherhood we’ve built. But not only that, it would mean the world for us to win Coach Fife that state championship. Coach Fife doesn’t talk much about how much that means to him, but he’s had some difficult losses, and I think in the back of our minds it would solidify his legacy, solidify our legacy as a team, that we came in here and made our mark.”
Leading the way: “Day in and day out at practice, I pride myself in doing so, bringing leadership to the team, making sure guys are working as hard as they should be. As a leader and a point guard on a basketball team, you have to push guys not only to do what they should be doing, but it’s more than that. Going into March, we had a lot of guys in the locker room after (last season’s Regional loss), and we have a lot of guys who know what that feeling is like, and that’s a feeling we never want to go through again.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2016-17 school year, Second Half and the Michigan National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2016-17 honorees:
Jan. 26: Nick Jenkins, Detroit Catholic Central wrestling – Read
Jan. 19: Eileene Naniseni, Mancelona basketball – Read
Jan. 12: Rory Anderson, Calumet hockey – Read
Dec. 15: Demetri Martin, Big Rapids basketball – Read
Dec. 1: Rodney Hall, Detroit Cass Tech football – Read
Nov. 24: Ally Cummings, Novi volleyball – Read
Nov. 17: Chloe Idoni, Fenton volleyball – Read
Nov. 10: Adelyn Ackley, Hart cross country – Read
Nov. 3: Casey Kirkbride, Mattawan soccer – Read
Oct. 27: Colton Yesney, Negaunee cross country – Read
Oct. 20: Varun Shanker, Midland Dow tennis – Read
Oct. 13: Anne Forsyth, Ann Arbor Pioneer cross country – Read
Oct. 6: Shuaib Aljabaly, Coldwater cross country – Read
Sept. 29: Taylor Seaman, Brighton swimming & diving – Read
Sept. 22: Maggie Farrell, Battle Creek Lakeview cross country – Read
Sept. 15: Franki Strefling, Buchanan volleyball – Read
Sept. 8: Noah Jacobs, Corunna cross country – Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Clarkston's Foster Loyer brings the ball upcourt during a game this season. (Middle) Loyer attempts a free throw; he recently capped an MHSAA record streak of 119 straight makes. (Photos by Larry Wright/WrightActionPix.com.)
Baldwin's Back in Title Mix with High-Scoring Pair, Guided by Past Star Home Again
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
January 14, 2026
BALDWIN – Baldwin’s basketball team is off to its best start in years, thanks to a 1-2 backcourt punch that most teams can’t handle.
Senior Chase Dockery and junior Pierre “Pip” Johnson are lighting up the scoreboard for the Panthers, who are off to a 9-1 start at the regular-season halfway point and heading into Friday’s West Michigan D League showdown at Bear Lake.
“We realized this summer how special we could be,” said Dockery, a 6-foot-4 guard/forward who is averaging 19 points and 11 rebounds per game.
“Our secret is the way that we communicate and move the ball. We know that we can make a run this year.”
Baldwin, a small village in Lake County located on M-37, roughly between Grand Rapids and Traverse City, is known as a camping, fishing and hunting paradise for three seasons – with basketball taking center stage in the winter.
The community’s obsession with hoops is apparent when you check out the banners in Baldwin’s classic, old-school gym. One small section contains football, baseball and track banners, while the entire opposite wall is covered with boys basketball banners, highlighted by the Panthers’ Class D runner-up finish in 1959.
“Basketball is everything here; it’s all that we’ve got,” explained Johnson, the team’s leading scorer at 20 points per game.
Orchestrating the basketball resurgence is second-year coach Brandon Childress, one of the top athletes to ever come out of Baldwin and a first-team Class D all-state selection in both football and basketball during his senior year of 2014-2015. He also was named the state’s Division 4 Player of the Year in basketball as a senior.
Childress went on to play football, first at Central Michigan and later at Ferris State, then decided to return to his hometown to coach and also to work as Baldwin’s full-time college access and Promise Zone coordinator – helping kids prepare to go on to college and beyond.
“I come to school in the morning, and I’m a mentor and a coach to all of these kids all day long,” said Childress, 28, who also coaches baseball and football, the latter as an assistant to his younger brother, Braeden, the Panthers’ head varsity coach.
The old gym was rocking last Friday night, when Mesick rolled into town for a conference showdown.
Johnson, a lightning-quick, 6-0 point guard, was unstoppable driving to the basket, finishing with a game-high 28 points in the Panthers’ 61-50 win.
“My role is to be aggressive and to be able to go get a basket when we really need one,” said Johnson, who also averages six rebounds, three assists and three steals per game.
When Johnson does miss a shot, or is forced to give it up, Dockery is often there for a bucket.
The lanky lefty, who is equally comfortable shooting from behind the arc or battling inside, is a four-year varsity starter who leads the team in rebounding and also averages 2.7 steals and two assists per game. He was a key part of the Panthers’ conference and District championships as a freshman.
Baldwin finished 13-11 last year in its first under Childress, who took over from JJ Eads, who coached for five years and remains the school’s athletic director.
The Panthers returned all but one player from last year’s team, led by Johnson, a first-team all-conference choice, and Dockery, who was second-team all-league.
Childress said his team has already seen a variety of gimmick defenses designed to stop the Johnson and Dockery duo (with more to come), and he knows the key to his team making a postseason run will be the play of the supporting cast.
“With Pierre and Chance driving the basketball and drawing a lot of attention, our other guys will get open looks and we need them to knock those down,” said Childress, who made the Mid-American Conference all-academic team at CMU in 2016.
Junior Kyrce Cook (nine points) and sophomore Desafiar Lyons (eight points) both stepped up and took advantage of their opportunities against Mesick. Another key player is 6-4 senior Marcus Martin, who is returning from an injury and just getting back up to speed.
Baldwin’s only loss came against Blanchard Montabella (65-57) in the opening game of the Morley Stanwood Holiday Tournament on Jan. 2. The Panthers missed a staggering 13 free throws in the fourth quarter, but it was the team’s reaction to the loss which made an impression on their young coach.
“When we got back to Baldwin, they begged me to open the gym so that they could shoot free throws,” said Childress. “They shot free throws for two hours, then we went back the next day and played a much better game.”
Dockery and Johnson were the ringleaders of the night free-throw shooting session, and Childress said it’s their leadership and character which could push this team to the next level.
“Chance and Pip are both great individuals, nice kids and very good in the classroom,” said Childress. “They make my job a lot easier, because they hold everybody to a high standard.”
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) Baldwin’s Chance Dockery elevates to put up a shot against White Cloud during a 63-41 win Dec. 2. (Middle) Pierre Johnson grabs a rebound against Oscoda during a 52-41 victory on Jan. 3. (Photos courtesy of the Baldwin boys basketball program.)