Tri-Captains Pace Striving Spring Lake
February 8, 2018
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
Things are looking up for the Spring Lake boys basketball team.
The Lakers have raised the bar in recent years, making their mark on the statewide level with two appearances in the MHSAA Class B Quarterfinals over the last three seasons.
This winter, led by a trio of tall, versatile and extremely intelligent captains in Sam Johnson (6-foot-8), Griffin Lorimer (6-4) and Jack VanWingen (6-2), Spring Lake has stepped up its schedule and its game in its quest to get back to the quarters – and perhaps further.
“When it gets to tournament time, it comes down to playing your best basketball of the year and making a run,” said Johnson, who scored a game-high 16 points on Wednesday as Spring Lake doubled up host Sparta, 50-25, for an Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue win.
“A big key in March is experience and leadership, and we definitely have plenty of that.”
Spring Lake (12-3, 6-2 in the O-K Blue), which hosts Allendale on Friday night in another conference game, showed it was going to be a force to be reckoned with early this year when it posted back-to-back tight wins over a pair of bigger schools in Rockford (48-46) and rival Grand Haven (69-66 in double overtime).
Bill Core, in his 17th year as Spring Lake’s head coach, said that in addition to good height on the front line, this may also be the smartest team he’s ever coached. Core said that intelligence helps this team make adjustments on the fly and smart decisions when the game is on the line.
“Those three captains are all 4.0 kids, and they’re great role models,” said Core, who is assisted by Randy White. “They have high basketball IQs, and I trust them to make decisions and figure things out.”
Johnson is the player who draws the most attention from opposing teams at 6-8, with the ability to post up and step out and knock down mid-range jump shots.
Johnson, who plans to play basketball next year at Claremont McKenna College in California, leads the Lakers with 12 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. And don’t try to hack him and send him to the free-throw line. Johnson is shooting a team-best 80 percent on free throws.
The most versatile of the three captains is Lorimer, who is hard to miss with his curly blonde hair and red shoes. He creates matchup problems with his inside-outside game, and currently averages 10 points and seven rebounds per contest.
Johnson and Lorimer are a 1-2 punch up front that most teams can’t match.
“We know one of the strengths of this team is that we’re deep in the post, and that makes it hard for teams to just focus on one guy,” explained Lorimer. “It’s good to have that balance. Plus, we’ve played together so long that we just know where the other guys are going to be.”
Lorimer’s versatility was perhaps best displayed last year at team camp in Rockford, where he was assigned to guard one of the state’s best big men in 6-9 Xavier Tillman (now at Michigan State) one day, then came back the next day and had to check standout guard Matt Beachler (now at Central Michigan).
But the most important of Spring Lake’s three captains might be VanWingen, a slasher who is the team’s best at breaking down defenses. VanWingen is adept at finding Johnson and Lorimer inside as well as kicking the ball back out to the arc to shooters Ben Arteaga, Kyle Wiersma and sophomore Cayden Ball.
“I think we’re a very well-balanced team,” said VanWingen, the top returning scorer off last year’s who is currently averaging 11.2 points, five rebounds and three assists per game. “Our big guys get a lot of attention, but we also have guards who can shoot it. It’s important that we trust each other and know that everyone is going to do their job.”
Spring Lake’s senior trio has been too much for almost everybody to handle, with the main exception being conference rival and possible Regional opponent Grand Rapids Catholic Central, which is ranked No. 6 in Class B.
The two teams met on Jan. 5 at Spring Lake in a much-anticipated showdown, but the Cougars swarmed the hosts in a lopsided 80-39 victory. The Lakers were much more competitive when the two teams played last week in Grand Rapids, but still lost, 59-40.
“We improved by 22 points the second game, and if we improve by another 22 points in the next game, we’ll win by three,” quipped Core, who knows his team will be a huge underdog if it’s fortunate enough to win the District it is hosting next month and possibly get another shot at GRCC in the Class B Regional opener at Grand Rapids West Catholic.
The Lakers can gain confidence by looking back to last year, when they lost to GR Catholic twice during the regular season, then stunned the Cougars in the Regional championship game. That win put Spring Lake in the Quarterfinals for the second time in three years, after it made a surprise run to the school’s first-ever boys basketball Quarterfinals appearance in 2015.
Lorimer believes this year’s team has the potential to make it three Quarterfinal appearances in four years.
“I really do think we have another level we haven’t reached yet,” said Lorimer, who plans to play next year at Trine University in Angola, Ind. “We may have for short stretches, but we haven’t strung it together for a whole game. That’s what we’re working on.”
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) Spring Lake senior Griffin Lorimer battles along the baseline in a victory earlier this season against Muskegon Reeths-Puffer. (Middle) Spring Lake senior Jack VanWingen glides in for a bucket in a victory over Muskegon Reeths-Puffer. (Below) Spring Lake senior Sam Johnson goes up for a shot during the Lakers' thrilling double-overtime win over neighboring rival Grand Haven earlier this season. (Photos by Tim Reilly.)
Gorham Twins Setting Scoring Pace as Mendon Climbs Into League, District Contention
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
February 10, 2026
MENDON – After another stellar football season, Mendon is making some big waves on the basketball court as well this winter.
As the 2025-26 regular season winds down, and coming off a run to the 8-Player Football Regional Finals with some of the same players leading the way, the Hornets are enjoying their finest season on the hardwood in many years. Under second-year head coach Matt Gorham, they are 16-1 overall, with a 10-0 record in the Southern Central Athletic Association West following an 84-40 win Monday in a divisional contest at Bellevue.
Mendon, which hosts its Division 4 District later this month, is looking to win its first league title in boys hoops since 2014 and raise its first District trophy in the sport since 2015.
Two of the biggest catalysts in Mendon's pursuit of those two goals are senior guards and twin brothers Ryder Gorham and Owen Gorham. Both four-year varsity letterwinners went over the 1,000-point mark for their respective careers this winter and are the sons of the Hornets' head coach.
Ryder and Owen have experienced both the good and lean times during their careers. During their freshman season, Mendon finished with an 11-14 record before attaining back-to-back winning seasons as sophomores (12-11) and juniors (14-9).
"Mendon has always had good athletes. When I got here, I wanted to bring a professional look to the program in terms of preparing for teams, practicing hard and teaching life skills so that when they get out of here they are better people with a competitive nature," said Matt Gorham, who is employed as an agent for State Farm Insurance in Battle Creek and brought more than 25 years of coaching experience from Vicksburg, Portage Central, Portage Northern, Mattawan, Schoolcraft and Kalamazoo Valley Community College.
Gorham, who previously owned a business training athletes, got involved last spring as an assistant track & field coach at Mendon. That helped him build a better rapport with his current players.
"The kids have gotten to know me, and having two kids myself in the school helps,” he said. “I give last year's seniors that we had on the team a great deal of credit. They helped set the tone for the kids we had coming back. This year it was a matter of rinse and repeat, let's get a bit more focused and prepare better.”
Team speed and unselfishness are two of Mendon's biggest weapons.
Ryder Gorham, the Hornets' point guard, is averaging 24.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 4.6 steals per game.
"Having been on varsity four years really helps. The pace of the game is much faster. I've always played against older and bigger guys, so it just helps the game come to me more naturally,' Ryder Gorham said.
Mendon is averaging 69.6 points per game and owns a pair of overtime wins over divisional rival Colon (80-75 and 80-73). The Hornets' lone loss came 78-65 in another overtime thriller against Hillsdale Academy. Those two schools could meet again in the Division 4 Quarterfinals.
"Our defense generates most of our offense most of the time. We like to just get out and run,” Ryder Gorham said. “This team can set up plays, but we prefer to score a majority of our points in transition because most of the teams we play are bigger than us."
Ryder Gorham poured in a game-high 36 points in Monday's win at Bellevue. That effort pushed his career total to 1,344 points, surpassing the school record of David Schrock, who previously held the mark with 1,320. Ryder also owns school records for career 3-point field goals made at 141 and steals with 236. Owen Gorham is second in career steals at Mendon with 226.
"It all starts with Ryder. He makes us go and is a special player when the ball is in his hands,” Matt Gorham said. “He's an extremely great passer and establishes the tempo for us. Our biggest trick was to get Ryder's outside shot going so he could get more 3s up. He can drive, finish well and get to the free-throw line too."
Ryder loves the chemistry he and his brother Owen have developed by playing together throughout their high school careers.
"It's awesome being on the same court with my brother. We've been playing together our entire lives. We have that chemistry and know when each of us is hitting their shots. Our dad sometimes jumps on us a little more, but that's the way it's supposed to be," Ryder Gorham said.
Owen Gorham, a shooting guard, is averaging 18 points, 8.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 4.2 steals per game.
"My job is just to try and score any way I can. I feel like I've improved my rebounding the most over last season, and outworking people," Owen Gorham said.
"Owen moves very well without the basketball and does a nice job getting rebounds for a 5-10 kid. He almost always averages a double-double," Matt Gorham said.
Also playing a vital role in Mendon's starting lineup is senior forward Carter Huston with norms of 11 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game.
"I'm usually a forward but they put me everywhere. I can reach around other people and get a lot of boards and get to my spots quickly," said Hutson, who hopes to continue his golf or baseball career in college and major in sports entertainment and marketing.
"We have more leadership, and the guys are more focused in practice this season. This group really works together well. That's why whenever we come out of a huddle we say, 'As a team.’ My position challenges me. I'm average size, but yet I'm tall enough that I can jump and get more rebounds. I'm trying to be more of a leader and communicate better on the floor. We have better team chemistry this season too."
Hustle points, rebounding and getting tip passes are Huston's forte.
"Carter has developed into a pretty good third scoring threat for us. He takes the ball to the bucket and is a pretty good free-throw shooter," Matt Gorham said.
Other key players for Mendon are junior forward Tristan Wood (4.1 points, 5.3 rebounds) and 6-foot-5 junior center Dante Goto (7.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 4.6 blocks).
"Dante is just a sponge. He soaks stuff in and has real good timing on rebounds and blocked shots. He's working on his mid-range shooting," Matt Gorham said. "Tristan is just an insane hard worker who does a lot of the dirty work for us by playing defense, getting loose balls, steals, rebounds and boxing out well. His hustle translates to points for us. You need those kind of guys."
Junior Kyron Truckey has been a sparkplug off the bench at a guard spot averaging 3.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and one steal per game.
"From last year to this season Ky might be our most improved player as far as not just his play, but his basketball mind and maturity. He works extremely hard, plays good defense, takes good care of the basketball and knows his role," Matt Gorham said.
Senior post player Jayden Haigh is a two-year varsity contributor making an impact.
"Jayden is a very physical player and a real good passer. He gets pumped up when he makes a great pass, and that just shows the unselfishness of this team," Matt Gorham said.
Mendon's loss to Hillsdale Academy also should make the Hornets stronger in the postseason.
"We watched film for over two hours straight after that loss. I know we are going to learn a great deal from the mistakes we made in that game,” Owen Gorham said. “We are hoping we see (Hillsdale Academy) again somewhere down the line after Districts.
“It’s great to see us building a legacy here that no has seen before. We just want to help put basketball on the map at Mendon.”
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) At left, Owen Gorham shows off a banner earlier this season identifying him as a 1,000-point scorer. At right, Ryder Gorham holds up a banner commemorating him as Mendon's all-time leading scorer with 1,344 points following Monday's 84-40 win at Bellevue. (Middle) Second-year Mendon varsity boys basketball coach Matt Gorham addresses his team during a recent home game against Athens. (Below) Mendon junior guard Kyron Truckey (2) drives inside for a layup and scores against Athens. (Top photos provided by Matt Gorham. Game photos by Scott Hassinger.)