Breslin Bound: Girls C-D Semis Preview
March 12, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There will be some who arrive for the MHSAA Class C and D Semifinals on Thursday already quite familiar with the Breslin Center.
Reigning Class D champion St. Ignace is back, this time in Class C. The reigning runner-up from that class, Saginaw Nouvel, also returns. So too does Athens, a Class D Semifinalist a year ago as well.
But the most discussed player will be the one preparing to make herself most at home. Crystal Falls Forest Park is back for the second time in three seasons and features Miss Basketball winner Alexis Gussert, who has signed with Michigan State University for next season.
All four Class C and D Semifinals will be played Thursday, with all four championship games Saturday.
Semifinals - Thursday
Class C
Saginaw Nouvel (20-4) vs. Gobles (26-0), 1 p.m.
Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett (20-3) vs. St. Ignace (23-2), 2:50 p.m.
Class D
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (20-5) vs. Marine City Cardinal Mooney (19-5), 6 p.m.
Crystal Falls Forest Park (25-0) vs. Athens (22-3), 7:50 p.m.
Finals - Saturday
Class A - Noon
Class B - 6 pm
Class C - 4 pm
Class D - 10 am
Tickets cost $8 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session. All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.TV on a pay-per-view basis. All four Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit, the Class D and A title games on FOX Sports Detroit's primary channel and the Class C and B games on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
And now, a look at the Semifinalists in Class C and D.
Class C
GOBLES
Record/rank: 26-0, No. 6
League finish: First in Southwest Athletic Conference North
Coach: John Curtis, 12th season (183-91)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 49-40 (Quarterfinal) and 39-35 over honorable mention Mendon, 56-52 over New Buffalo in Regional Final, 44-40 over Otsego.
Players to watch: Michaela DeKilder, 5-10 sr. F (15.2 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 3.2 spg); Ellen Doyle, 5-10 soph. G (12 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 5.3 apg).
Outlook: Gobles is making its first trip to the MHSAA Semifinals after its second Quarterfinal ever Tuesday. The Tigers dominated the SAC North, winning all of their league games by double digits. Gobles is 46-3 combined over the last two seasons, and DeKilder has been a force throughout. But she has plenty of help – all five starters average at least seven points per game.
GROSSE POINTE WOODS UNIVERSITY LIGGETT
Record/rank: 20-3, unranked
League finish: First in Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue
Coach: Omar Ahart, second season (42-6)
Championship history: Class C runner-up 2012 and 2011.
Best wins: 50-47 over No. 1 Blissfield in Quarterfinal, 48-25 over Class D No. 8 Birmingham Roeper.
Players to watch: Jessica Rotzoll, 5-8 jr. F (13.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg). Nia Ahart, 5-7 fr. G (11.6 ppg, 4.6 apg); Lauren Ristovski, 5-9 jr. G (9.8 ppg, 3.9 apg).
Outlook: Three starters return to Breslin after also playing on the 2012 team that finished runner-up, including the team’s lone senior, guard Angelina Evangelista. Sophomore forward Kendall McConico adds another 10.6 points per game to make this lineup full of scoring threats, especially from the perimeter as only one player is taller than 5-9. Rotzoll also had made 40 3-pointers heading into this week.
ST. IGNACE
Record/rank: 23-2, No. 9
League finish: First in Straits Area Conference
Coach: Dorene Ingalls, 15th season (314-59)
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2013), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 54-37 over honorable mention McBain in Quarterfinal, 68-34 over Class D No. 10 Brimley, 58-52 over Detroit Renaissance.
Players to watch: Kelley Wright, 5-10 sr. G (16.2 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 4.2 apg, 6.7 spg); Abbey Ostman, 5-9 soph. F (12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 3.2 spg).
Outlook: The Saints are making their fifth straight trip to Breslin Center and are back in Class C after a one-season hiatus to Class D – where St. Ignace won last season’s championship. Wright was a starter the last two trips to East Lansing as well, and Ostman and senior guards Emily Hinsman (9.1 ppg) and Morgan LaVake (5.3 ppg) also started in that 2013 title game win. Wright is a returning all-stater.
SAGINAW NOUVEL
Record/rank: 20-4, No. 10
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Mary Jo Skiendziel, first season (8-0)
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recent 2008), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 49-43 and 51-40 (Regional Semifinal) over No. 3 Reese, 47-35 over No. 5 Sandusky in Regional Final, 47-40 over honorable mention St. Louis in Quarterfinal, 57-37 over Class B No. 5 Clare, 53-47 over Class B No. 8 Flint Powers Catholic.
Players to watch: Rachel McInerny, 6-2 sr. C (11.7 ppg), Laurel Jacqmain, 5-7 soph. G (12.4 ppg)
Outlook: There have been some big changes in the Nouvel program since its last trip to Breslin, but plenty has stayed the same as well. Assistant coach Skiendziel was promoted to head coach last month and has kept the team rolling with three starters back from last season’s five-point loss to Manchester in the championship game. McInerney can be a force in the post, while Jacqmain and junior forward Nicole Buckingham also played big parts as starters during last season’s run.
Class D
ATHENS
Record/rank: 22-3, No. 5
League finish: First in Big 8 Conference
Coach: Calvin Quist, ninth season (166-53)
Championship history: Class D runner-up 2012.
Best wins: 42-39 over honorable mention St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic in Regional Semifinal, 38-20 over honorable mention Wyoming Potter’s House Christian in Regional Final, 38-30 over Concord.
Players to watch: Audrey Oswalt, 5-9 sr. F (12.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 3.6 spg); Allison Fuller, 5-7 jr. G (13.5 ppg, 3.5 spg).
Outlook: Athens has become a regular at Finals weekend, with this its third straight trip emerging from a competitive Big 8 Conference. Fuller was named an all-state honorable mention Tuesday. Senior guard Allysha Beal (9.3 ppg) joined Oswalt and Fuller in the starting lineup for last season’s Semifinal loss to Waterford Our Lady, and all three were among that team’s top scorers as well.
CRYSTAL FALLS FOREST PARK
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 1
League finish: First in Skyline Conference
Coach: Jeff Syrjanen, ninth season (169-37)
Championship history: Class D runner-up 1995.
Best wins: 69-56 over No. 2 Posen in Quarterfinal, 69-52 over No. 4 Eben Junction Superior Central in Regional Final, 56-21 over honorable mention Dollar Bay in Regional Semifinal, 82-38 (District Semifinal) and 61-28 over honorable mention Watersmeet.
Players to watch: Alexis Gussert, 6-0 sr. F (29.4 ppg, 7.7 apg, 11.9 rpg, 1.6 bpg, 4.0 spg); Maria Stankewicz, 5-5 soph. G (7.6 ppg, 2.8 apg).
Outlook: Forest Park is making one more run at its first MHSAA championship with one of the leading scorers in MHSAA history in Gussert, who was named Associated Press Class D Player of the Year on Monday. Gussert – who also led the Trojans to the Semifinals as a sophomore – broke a single-season MHSAA record with her 101st 3-pointer in the Quarterfinal. Senior center Kendra Campbell and junior guard Sierra Robarge join Stankewicz in adding 7.5 points per game.
MARINE CITY CARDINAL MOONEY
Record/rank: 19-5, No. 9
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League East
Coach: Susan Everhart, 26th season (record N/A).
Championship history: Class D runner-up 2009.
Best wins: 39-20 over honorable mention Kingston in Regional Final, 43-34, 53-51 and 43-36 (Quarterfinal) over Clarkston Everest Collegiate, 49-34 over Class B No. 6 Ypsilanti Arbor Prep.
Players to watch: Katie Theut, 5-10 sr. G (20.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.4 bpg); Madison Southers, 6-0 sr. C (11 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 5.2 bpg).
Outlook: Cardinal Mooney is back at Breslin for the first time since that runner-up season of 2009 and with a starting lineup featuring four seniors. Theut was named all-state Tuesday and Southers received an honorable mention. The Cardinals feature further frontcourt strength with 5-9 senior forward Lauren Higgins, who averages 10.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Cardinal Mooney played a host of Class A, B and C schools as well, with four losses coming to those more sizable programs.
MOUNT PLEASANT SACRED HEART
Record/rank: 20-5, unranked
League finish: Tied for first in Mid-State Activities Conference
Coach: Damon Brown, sixth season (107-33)
Championship history: Class D runner-up 2008.
Best wins: 49-35 over No. 3 Frankfort in Quarterfinal, 55-40 and 46-34 (District Final) over honorable mention Big Rapids Crossroads Academy, 34-23 over Class C No. 8 Carson City-Crystal.
Players to watch: Sara Hansen, 5-6 sr. G (19.1 ppg, 3.1 apg, 5.4 spg); Averi Gamble, 6-3 soph. C (12.7 ppg 8.0 rpg, 2.3 bpg).
Outlook: The Irish were stopped in the Quarterfinals two of the last four seasons, but broke through with an upset Tuesday. Still, it can’t be considered a huge surprise, given Sacred Heart’s losses – one to Class C Quarterfinalist Saginaw Nouvel, another to Class C No. 8 Carson City Crystal and a third to Class B No. 5 Clare. Hansen is the lone senior, but gets additional help in the backcourt from junior Riley Terwilliger (9.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.7 apg.).
PHOTO: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart's Sara Hansen (2) will lead the Irish in its first MHSAA Semifinal since 2008.
Tradition-Rich Kingston Adding to Legacy
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
January 31, 2018
Camryn MacGuire remembers watching Kingston varsity basketball games and dreaming about the day she could be on the court.
Evan Neff enjoyed going to games so much as a kid, he kept coming back even after his family moved away for a few years while he was in middle school.
Now both are leading the way for the Cardinals on the court as the Kingston girls and boys basketball teams are inspiring another group of youngsters in their small town.
“I know a lot of little kids come to our games and are huge fans,” said Neff, a sophomore on the boys team. “I know I’ve talked to a couple eighth graders, and they say they can’t wait to play on varsity with me their sophomore year. I think a lot of the littler kids can’t wait to be a part of it.”
Basketball is king in Kingston, and this winter, Cardinals fans have plenty to cheer about. The girls team was 12-0 heading into Wednesday night’s game against Croswell-Lexington, and ranked No. 1 in Class D by the Detroit Free Press and No. 2 by The Associated Press.
The boys started the season on a nine-game winning streak, and are 11-2.
“I think it’s the same thing wherever you’re going to: if you’re winning, if you’re putting a good product out there, you’re going to see a lot of people there,” boys coach Dave Lester said. “In our little town, it seems like everybody is there for the girls games and guys games. We’ve got a great, great student body. Our home games are electric. It’s a fun atmosphere. It’s fun to coach, and it’s gotta be fun to play.
“It’s what high school sports are all about. I think that atmosphere attracts your younger athletes to want to be a part of it. If they’re there and seeing us win, that’s contagious.”
Lester and girls coach Jay Green have been part of it for the better part of the past three decades, first as players for Kingston and now as coaches.
They played together in the late 1980s, and in Green’s senior year, he helped the boys team reach the MHSAA Quarterfinals.
Green returned to coach the girls team and win four District titles in four years – along with his brother, Dave – during the late 90s. Lester took over the girls program in 2003 and coached the team to the Quarterfinal. The Greens came back to the program in 2011, and Lester took over the boys team midway through the 2013-14 season.
“I think there’s probably a little more passion toward what you do, and what you’re trying to instill into the girls and the boys because you are an alumni,” Jay Green said. “I think both of us could say we were successful alumni in the past. And we both learned under coach Leon Westover when we played, then developed our own ideas, and we have that pride of seeing both the boys and girls doing well.”
Green credits his team’s current success, in part, to the parents in the program, who have taken the time to get their girls to the gym for years and been supportive throughout.
MacGuire agreed.
“My parents, and a bunch of the girls on my team’s parents were always pushing us, and always getting us to play as much as we could,” the point guard said. “They were always telling us that big things were coming. Our starting five is all juniors, and we’ve been playing together since the fourth grade or third grade.”
Kingston’s girls aren’t focused too much on the rankings, or the record, but more on preparing themselves for the postseason. They’ve already scored a win against Class C power Sandusky, and the game against Cros-Lex will provide a test against a strong Class B program. A game against another Class B school, Yale, was postponed because of weather this past Monday.
“I love playing bigger schools,” MacGuire said. “It gives you more competition, and you get to push yourself even more; then it’s even better if you come out with the win. It’s going to benefit us in the tournament.”
Their classmates are providing plenty of support to both teams. MacGuire said there’s been a buzz in the hallways all season, and both she and Neff said their teams make sure to cheer each other on whenever their schedules allow.
“I never really watched girls basketball until seventh or eighth grade when we moved back to Kingston,” Neff said. “I remember watching those teams, and I was really impressed. My eighth grade year, they had like four or five freshmen on varsity, and I knew they were going to be outstanding. Those girls work really hard, and they’re great athletes.”
“We try to make it to as many (boys) games as we can, even the road games,” MacGuire said. “We support each other both ways. It’s a good atmosphere.”
No Kingston team has ever been beyond the Quarterfinals, but the conference and District championships have piled up through the years. And as dedicated players keep walking into the program, it could just be a matter of time before a group of them breaks through.
“It’s just a tradition here, and our kids know it,” Lester said. “When you walk into our gym, there’s tons and tons of basketball banners. We really talk about tradition and how it would be great to continue that tradition and put up more banners.
“Obviously, we would like to make a long run. At some point, you want to win a state championship, but it’s a process. We’ve got some kids who were playing a lot of basketball, putting a lot of time into it. They want to win, and they want to be a part of that tradition.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Kingston’s Carley Smith, left, pushes the ball upcourt while junior Nathan Cloyd, right, launches a shot. (Middle) Gerilyn Carpenter looks for open teammates during a game this season. (Below) Sophomore Evan Neff works to get around a Bad Axe defender. (Photos by Spot On By Shari.)