Bucs Earn Shot at Grand Finale
March 15, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Grand Haven’s girls basketball players toppled over each other on the Breslin Center floor Friday afternoon just as they did in celebrating their first Class A championship here a year before.
But the Buccaneers also realized they have one more game to win to finish one of the finest seasons in MHSAA girls basketball history.
Grand Haven earned that opportunity by coming back to defeat Westland John Glenn 55-46 after trailing in the Semifinal with a quarter to play.
The Bucs might not have been expected to put this run together after graduating most of last season’s team. But led by senior Abby Cole – who had a triple-double before the end of Thursday’s third quarter – they not only are in position to repeat, but also to finish undefeated this winter.
“Especially for the seniors, everyone wanted to come back and do what the seniors did for us last year,” Bucs senior Hannah Wilkerson said. “For the juniors now on the team, we wanted them to experience it. It’s still the best memory I have, ever.”
Grand Haven (27-0) will face No. 2 Grosse Pointe South at noon Saturday. The Bucs edged South 54-53 in last season’s Class A Final and have won 50 straight games.
John Glenn came into Thursday with similar credentials to Grand Haven a year ago – carrying only one loss and seeking its first championship game berth. The No. 6 Rockets (24-2) actually were undefeated in Michigan, with their only loss to Toledo Rogers from Ohio.
Pressuring and fastbreaking, John Glenn jumped to a 14-10 lead to end the first quarter after forcing Grand Haven into most of its 10 turnovers in the period and scoring 10 points off the fastbreak.
But Cole was just getting started on a performance that will be remembered among the best of her all-state career.
The 6-foot-5 center finished with 23 points, 19 rebounds and 12 blocked shots, and even hit the first 3-pointer of her career – she had air-balled her only other attempt, earlier this season.
Cole finished third in the Miss Basketball voting on Monday after finishing second in the Miss Volleyball voting at the end of the fall. She was named Class A basketball Player of the Year by The Associated Press, and will play volleyball at the University of Michigan next season.
“She’s the biggest impact player in the state,” Grand Haven coach Katie Kowalczyk-Fulmer said. “Just with her ability to block shots, rebound and score around the rim, and she makes everybody on our team better.”
But the Bucs likely wouldn’t have moved on without some help. Junior forward Taylor Craymer scored 20 points, with half of those coming during the fourth quarter including the final go-ahead basket with 5:21 to play. Sophomore guard Amanda Merz had seven assists as the team steadied itself after the early Rockets rush.
John Glenn senior guard Raven Bankston – who with sister Raine has signed with Delaware State – filled the stat sheet with 23 points, five rebounds, three assists and 11 steals, and senior guard Sha’Keya Graves scored 12 points. But although the Rockets launched 71 shots, they were able to connect on only 17 for the game and 2 of 18 shots during the fourth quarter.
“Bottom line, Abby Cole disrupted everything we wanted to do,” John Glenn coach Eric Kovatch said. “She’s one heck of a ballplayer, and I’m sure a lot of college coaches wish she was playing college basketball instead of volleyball.
“I think that got a little into our heads in the first half. Shots weren’t falling, and a lot of times this year those shots were falling. We want to put up a lot of shots. We just weren’t making as many as we usually do.”
Grand Haven entered the postseason ranked No. 3 in Class A, behind Detroit Martin Luther King and Grosse Pointe South.
Unlike a year ago, the Bucs were undefeated during the regular season after folding in a number of talented contributors from last season’s junior varsity team.
“We have such a good program at Grand Haven. We’re continually getting better, and the coaching staff is a huge part of it,” Cole said. “A lot of people doubted our team this year because we lost so many seniors. But I don’t know that many people knew we had an almost-undefeated team coming up from JV.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Westland John Glenn's Raine Bankston (1), attempts to drive past Grand Haven's Amanda Merz during Friday's Semifinal. (Middle) Merz pushes the ball upcourt during the 55-46 win (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photo.)
D2 Preview: Historic Opportunities Ahead
March 21, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
From the opening tip this season, Detroit Edison has been considered arguably the top high school girls basketball team in Michigan – and potentially on its way to being remembered as one of the best in this state all-time.
But this weekend’s three other semifinalists will do everything in their power to end the Pioneers’ two-season championship run – in hopes of carving out their place in history instead.
Haslett has beaten three ranked opponents since the start of the playoffs. Freeland annually is considered one of the best in formerly Class B, now Division 2. And unbeaten Hamilton has put together one of the state’s most impressive two-year runs on the way to the Semifinals for the first time.
Division 2 Semifinals – Friday
Freeland (23-2) vs. Hamilton (25-0), 5:30 p.m.
Haslett (19-6) vs. Detroit Edison (25-1), 7:30 p.m.
Division 2 Final – Saturday, 6:15 p.m.
Tickets cost $10 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session (Divisions 3 and 2). All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a pay-per-view basis. All four Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit and streamed live on FoxSportsDetroit.com and the FOX Sports app. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
Below is a glance at all four semifinalists. Click on the name of the school to see that team’s full schedule and results from this season. (Statistics are through teams' Regional Finals.)
DETROIT EDISON
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 1
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Monique Brown, eighth season (125-37)
Championship history: Class C champion 2018 & 2017.
Best wins: 79-49 over No. 9 Harper Woods Chandler Park in District Semifinal, 64-51 and 74-62 over Division 1 No. 6 Wayne Memorial, 57-51 over Division 1 No. 2 Bloomfield Hills Marian, 41-37 over Division 1 No. 3 Saginaw Heritage, 64-52 over Division 1 No. 10 Muskegon, 54-39 over Division 3 No. 1 Pewamo-Westphalia.
Players to watch: Rickea Jackson, 6-3 sr. G (22.1 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.1 bpg); Gabrielle Elliott, 5-10 jr. G (17.4 ppg, 2.9 apg, 2.8 spg).
Outlook: Edison opted up a division this winter after winning Class C the last two seasons and has beaten most of the best in Division 1 as well – the team’s only loss was to Ohio power Columbus Africentric. Jackson, who will play next at Mississippi State, was named Miss Basketball earlier this week, and Elliott and sophomore Damiya Hagemann (14 ppg, 8.1 apg, 4.1 spg) could very well be candidates for the award the next two seasons, respectively.
FREELAND
Record/rank: 23-2, No. 7
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference Central
Coach: Tom Zolinski, 12th season (243-49)
Championship history: Class C champion 1998.
Best wins: 59-51 over No. 3 Stanton Central Montcalm in Regional Final, 60-46 over honorable mention Corunna in Regional Semifinal, 58-38 over Goodrich, 61-57 over Bay City Western.
Players to watch: Kadyn Blanchard, 5-10 jr. F (14.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.8 spg); Alyssa Argyle, 5-9 sr. F (10.9 ppg, 51 3-pointers, 3.4 apg).
Outlook: Freeland is back at the Semifinals for the second time in three seasons and third time this decade after winning its eighth league, 11th District and fifth Regional titles under Zolinski’s leadership. The Falcons have won all of their games during this tournament run by at least eight points. Argyle earned an all-state honorable mention last season, and senior guard Lily Beyer adds 12.3 ppg and had 39 3-pointers entering the week.
HAMILTON
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 3 (tied)
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Green
Coach: Dan VanHekken, 16th season (225-129)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 60-39 over No. 2 Edwardsburg in Regional Semifinal, 42-40 over Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 48-43 over Comstock Park.
Players to watch: AJ Ediger, 6-2 soph. F (20.2 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 3.3 spg); Bria Schrotenboer, 5-10 sr. G (11.4 ppg, 4.0 apg, 2.9 spg).
Outlook: Hamilton made the Quarterfinals last season for the first time, and this weekend is making its first trip to the Semifinals. The Hawkeyes are up to 71-4 over the last three seasons with three league and three District titles as well during that time. Hamilton hasn’t played a single-digit game since the Comstock Park win Jan. 11. Schrotenboer earned an all-state honorable mention last season and is part of a deep lineup that after Ediger has five players averaging at least four points per game.
HASLETT
Record/rank: 19-6, unranked
League finish: Second in Capital Area Activities Conference Red
Coach: Ross Baker, third season (37-20)
Championship history: Class B runner-up 2015.
Best wins: 46-44 over No. 5 Chelsea in Quarterfinal, 51-43 over No. 8 Jackson Northwest in Regional Final, 44-42 over No. 6 Williamston in the District Final.
Players to watch: Ella McKinney, 5-10 sr. G (13.7 ppg. 7.2 rpg); Imania Baker, 6-2 jr. C (7.2 ppg, 5.9 rpg).
Outlook: At full strength for the postseason, the Vikings have soared – the win over Williamston avenged a pair of losses from the league season, and the win over Jackson Northwest avenged a third defeat. Baker had played in just 17 games and sophomore forward Skyla Nosek 15 heading into this week – Baker starts at center and Nosek (7.8 ppg) is the team’s second-leading scorer and comes off the bench. Junior forward Olivia Green (7.7) also augments a balanced lineup, and senior guard Hannah Homan is another top sub and added 6.7 ppg and had 52 3-pointers coming into this week.
PHOTO: Detroit Edison’s Ruby Whitehorn defends against Center Line during their Regional Final last week. (Photo courtesy of C&G Newspapers.)