Breslin Bound: Girls Report Week 2
December 14, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
League schedules have started for some girls basketball teams already this winter, and with them the usual speculation of which contenders will lead the chase.
But we’re also keeping an eye out for a few more that are breaking into those conversations after showing early sparks.
Each week during the regular season, we’ll glance at four teams from each class that have caught our attention. Results and records below are based on schedules posted at MHSAA.com.
Class A
Alpena (3-0) – The Wildcats are seeking their first winning record in at least five seasons and possibly could be in line for more with only two more wins needed to equal last season’s total.
Jackson (4-0) – The Vikings lately have been only a slight factor in the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue race, with two fourth-place finishes over the last four seasons. But they could be in the thick of a competitive group after a 48-45 win over East Lansing on Friday gave them four wins, only two fewer than last year.
Midland (3-1) – A loss Friday to Class B power Bay City John Glenn aside, Midland is gearing up for another Saginaw Valley League run. The Chemics have handed the only losses so far to Freeland, St. Johns and Bay City Western.
Port Huron Northern (3-0) – The Huskies will again be a team to watch after going 21-4 a year ago; they have won their first three games by 19, 31 and 37 points, respectively, after a similar start last December.
Class B
Ada Forest Hills Eastern (3-0) – The Hawks were 15-7 a year ago so another nice start isn’t a surprise, but beating Lowell 57-50 last week is a bonus after they lost to the Red Arrows by seven last December.
Birch Run (3-0) – The Panthers can circle Jan. 13 on their calendars; beating Millington 56-50 last week could mean Birch Run will again be the main contender with Frankenmuth, the opponent that night, for the Tri-Valley Conference East title (although Otisville LakeVille on Wednesday also will be a challenge).
Fowlerville (4-0) – Two of the first four wins have come by three points apiece and a third was by only six, but Fowlerville will take them gladly; the Gladiators have equaled their total of a year ago, when they finished 4-17.
Grand Rapids South Christian (4-0) – Former assistant Kim Legge took over this season for longtime successful coach Jim DeBruyn, and the Sailors haven’t missed a beat. Friday’s 46-45 win over rival Grand Rapids Christian kept them perfect so far.
Class C
Bath (4-0) – Winning 12 games each of the last two seasons, the Bees have been on the verge. They might be taking that next step this winter, with an early 51-31 win over Portland St. Patrick possibly making a difference in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference race.
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian (4-0) – The Chargers needed to bounce back from a 1-3 start last year to get back to .500, but things are off on a much better note with wins over Sparta (55-19) and Hudsonville Unity Christian (46-40) avenging December losses of a year ago.
Sand Creek (3-0) – The Aggies quietly improved from five wins two seasons ago to 14 last winter, and have continued the surge with last week’s 49-45 win over Adrian Lenawee Christian avenging one of last winter’s losses.
Traverse City St. Francis (2-1) – The Gladiators have sandwiched two nice wins around a first-week loss to Manistee; they kicked off the season beating Gaylord by seven, and edged Class D contender Frankfort last week 76-72.
Class D
Eben Junction Superior Central (3-2) – The Cougars went from 20 wins two seasons ago to 2-19 last winter, but are on their way back up again; Friday’s 49-33 victory over Rapid River put Superior Central already ahead of last winter’s squad.
Fulton-Middleton (2-0) – The Pirates were only 7-14 a year ago, but already have an impressive win – 49-40 over Fowler, a team featured in this report a week ago after its 2-0 start.
Lake Linden-Hubbell (4-0) – The Lakes are halfway to last season’s win total and looking for their first winning season in three after downing Watersmeet and Ewen-Trout Creek on back-to-back nights.
Wolverine (2-2) – The Wildcats earned their second win of the young season last week, 50-21. They won only four games total in 2014-15, not earning their second victory until Jan. 12.
PHOTO: Shepherd, in white, picked up its first win of the season last week against Sanford Meridian. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Miss Basketball Answers Call as Rockford Makes Good on Season-Long Goal
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
March 21, 2025
EAST LANSING – Rockford’s Anna Wypych showed during Friday’s Division 1 Semifinal why she was more than deserving of winning this season’s Miss Basketball Award.
The senior standout put the Rams on her back and carried them to a 61-32 victory over Wayne Memorial at the Breslin Center.
Wypych scored a game-high 30 points to propel Rockford (27-1) into Saturday’s 12:15 p.m. Division 1 Final against Belleville.
“A great player, an absolutely great player,” Wayne Memorial coach Jarvis Mitchell said. “We had a gameplan, but she had a gameplan as well and her gameplan was just a little better than ours. She’s a tough-minded kid with a refuse-to-lose attitude and just the way she bounced around out there. She’s been here before.”
Wypych, a 6-foot point guard who has signed with Butler, connected on her first eight shots of the game and made 4-of-5 from behind the 3-point line.
She was a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line.
“She’s just a winner and such a competitor, and you saw that tonight in the game,” Rams coach Brad Wilson said. “She has a big target on her back, and everyone wants to go at her and give her their best shot. But Anna never flinched the whole game.
“She’s confident when she’s open, and she does what’s best for the team. She’s the best player I ever coached, and I’m so proud of her, but the job is not done. We know we are going to need her tomorrow.”
Wypych, the school’s all-time leading scorer, tweaked an ankle during the first quarter, but it didn’t slow her down as she had 16 first-half points and was perfect from the field.
“I just kind of fell on my ankle, but I knew if I tightened up my shoes a little tighter then I would be good,” Wypych said. “Our team is so deep, and it was my teammates that gave me good looks so I credit them a lot. You can try to stop one of us, but you can’t stop all of us, and that’s why we are a very special team.”
The Rams held a slim 12-10 lead after the first quarter, and it swelled to 27-14 during the second quarter after another Wypych 3-pointer. But Wayne Memorial ended the half with an 8-0 surge to trim the deficit to 27-22.
“That’s who we are,” Mitchell said. “We play fast, our shooters make shots and we attack. I was very happy at the end of the second quarter, but Rockford is a very tough team and a very experienced team, and you have to play next-to-perfect to beat them.”
The third quarter was all Rockford as it outscored the Zebras 20-10 to pull away. The Rams built a 47-30 lead over the final minute of the period after a lay-in by Audrey Muterspaugh.
Rockford will play in its second Final over the last three years.
“We’ve been fortunate enough to make it over here four years in a row, and our theme this year was ‘the return’ and the goal was to get back here – and everything we did was with that in mind,” Wilson said.
Muterspaugh, a junior, added 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds for Rockford.
“She’s been our energy bug all season long, and she goes in and does the little things that don’t show up in the stat book,” Wilson said. “Every year we have different players that step up in March, and she’s one of those. She picked up big rebounds and helped us win the game.”
Colleena Bryant, a Miss Basketball finalist, led Wayne Memorial with 15 points.
It was the Zebras’ fourth appearance in the Semifinals over the last seven years and first since 2021.
PHOTOS (Top) Rockford’s Anna Wypych works to get past Wayne Memorial’s Zoe Hightower during their Semifinal on Friday. (Middle) Addison Wypych (14) brings the ball upcourt for the Rams. (Photos by Keionna Banks/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)