Class D Preview: New Champ to Emerge
March 14, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
For two straight seasons, Pittsford didn’t lose a game.
But the Wildcats ended up in Class C this school year, and that means we’ll have a new champion in D this weekend – with a mix of familiar and new faces making the charge.
Waterford Our Lady and Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart are regulars for the final weekend of the season, and both have won Class D titles this decade. Adrian Lenawee Christian and Chassell have far less experience at this level – in fact, this is Chassell’s first trip to the Semifinals – but between them they are a combined 49-2 this winter.
Semifinals and Finals this weekend will be played at Calvin College’s Van Noord Arena in Grand Rapids.
Class D Semifinals – Thursday
Chassell (25-1) vs. Waterford Our Lady (20-4), 5:30 p.m.
Adrian Lenawee Christian (24-1) vs. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (25-0), 7:30 p.m.
Class D Final – Saturday, 10 a.m.
Tickets cost $10 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session (Class D and Class A). 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 Go! 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.)
ADRIAN LENAWEE CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 24-1, No. 3
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Jamie Salenbien, first season (24-1)
Championship history: Class D runner-up 2010.
Best wins: 62-31 over honorable mention Athens in Quarterfinal, 63-33 (District Semifinal) and 61-42 over honorable mention Morenci, 63-47 over Ida, 52-38 over Dexter.
Players to watch: Bree Salenbien, 6-2 fr. F (21.3 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 3.5 spg, 3.1 bpg); Dani Salenbien, 5-9 soph. G (13.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 4.7 apg, 3.8 spg, 46 3-pointers).
Outlook: Lenawee Christian is nine wins better than a year ago and will play its first Semifinal since 2010 under Jamie Salenbien, who formerly led Onsted to league titles all three of his seasons as head coach from 2011-13. This team has just one senior and seven underclassmen, with Bree Salenbien one of the most intriguing freshmen in the state. She followed her sister Dani with 37 3-pointers entering this week, and sophomore guard Libby Miller had 33. The schedule was filled with larger teams – the lone loss came by a point to Class A Monroe, while Class B Ida was a league champion and Dexter pulled off one of the biggest District upsets in Class A.
CHASSELL
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 6
League finish: First in Copper Mountain Conference Copper Country
Coach: Brandi Hainault, sixth season (79-57)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 58-41 over No. 4 Gaylord St. Mary in Quarterfinal, 52-46 over No. 2 Munising in Regional Semifinal, 58-55 (OT) over Bark-River Harris in Regional Final, 62-35 over Ewen-Trout Creek.
Players to watch: Milly Allen, 5-3 sr. G (15.5 ppg, 3.7 apg, 4.0 spg); Sydney Danison, 6-1 sr. C (13.8 ppg, 9.3 rpg).
Outlook: Chassell won its first Regional title last week, and after going 5-16 in 2014-15 has upped its win total for the third successive season. The Panthers have eliminated two top-five teams over the last two weeks and sandwiched the close win over Bark River-Harris (18-6) between them. They haven’t lost since opening night to Class C L’Anse. Junior guard Jenna Pietila adds another 9.6 points and 4.2 assists per game in helping to lead the veteran group.
MOUNT PLEASANT SACRED HEART
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 1
League finish: First in Mid-State Activities Conference.
Coach: Damon Brown (10th season (204-41)
Championship history: Class D champion 2014, runner-up 2016 and 2008.
Best wins: 49-29 over Bellaire in Quarterfinal, 37-20 over Fruitport Calvary Christian in Regional Final, 57-43 over Beaverton, 39-30 and 53-13 over Carson City-Crystal.
Players to watch: Scout Nelson, 5-9 jr. G (13.8 ppg, 5.1 apg, 4.7 spg, 4.2 rpg); Sophia Ruggles, 6-0 sr. F (15.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg).
Outlook: The Irish have made the Semifinals for the third straight season returning their entire starting five from last year’s loss to eventual champion Pittsford – seniors Grace Reetz (7.8 ppg), Haydn Terwilliger (6.8) and Megan Nowak (6.1) join Nelson and Ruggles. Terwilliger, Nelson and Ruggles also started for the 2015-16 team. Although Sacred Heart doesn’t have wins over any opponents ranked at the end of the regular season, they saw their share of strong competition. Class C Carson City-Crystal finished 19-4, while Class C Beaverton and Calvary Christian were league champions and Bellaire finished 21-4.
WATERFORD OUR LADY
Record/rank: 19-4, No. 8 (tie)
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League A North
Coach: Steve Robak, 11th season (204-65)
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2012), runner-up 2013.
Best wins: 42-28 over No. 5 Kingston in Quarterfinal, 51-22 over Marine City Cardinal Mooney in Regional Final, 47-39 over Allen Park Cabrini, 41-40 over Royal Oak Shrine, 51-47 over Bloomfield Hills.
Players to watch: Tiffany Senerius, 5-8 sr. F (14 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 41 3-pointers), Isabelle Kline, 5-8 soph. G (10.5 ppg, 25 3-pointers).
Outlook: After falling in a Quarterfinal last season, Our Lady is back for its third Semifinal in four seasons and seeking its fourth championship over the last nine. The Lakers have won 18 of their last 19 games after an opening stretch that included losses to reigning Class B champion Detroit Country Day and current Class C contender Ypsilanti Arbor Prep. Cardinal Mooney, Cabrini and Shrine ended the regular season unranked, but all three won league titles. Three more players average at least six points per game – seniors Catherine Weddle (6.5) and Kayla Sanders (7.9) and freshman Brooklyn Robak (8.0).
PHOTO: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart's Grace Reetz drives past a defender during her team's Regional championship win last week. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Breslin Bound: Girls Report Week 2
December 12, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Michigan’s best generally spend the first few weeks of basketball season testing themselves against other elites, including possible opponents for when the games matter much more in a few months.
That’s certainly been the case this winter, and last week especially in Class A, as we look back at some of those telling matchups and preview more to watch this weekend in our second Breslin Bound Girls Report – powered by MI Student Aid.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
Farmington Hills Mercy 44, Bloomfield Hills Marian 43 – Any meeting between these Detroit Catholic League Central rivals is bound to be one of the best in the state that night, and this evened the recent score some as Marian took two of three from Mercy last winter.
Bloomfield Hills Marian 37, Waterford Kettering 34 (OT) – Marian remains the gauge in Class A with both that loss above and another earlier to Canton, and this win over always-strong Kettering to go with an earlier victory over reigning MHSAA champion Warren Cousino.
Canton 50, Ann Arbor Huron 47 (OT) – Huron, a quarterfinalist a year ago, is another Class A team that’s lined up some tough early opponents; Canton added a second straight three-point win after beating Marian by the same margin.
DeWitt 59, East Lansing 58 – These annually are two of best in Class A in Lansing and statewide, and the Panthers came back to make it five straight over the Trojans.
Sault Ste. Marie 51, St. Ignace 44 – The Blue Devils beat their Straits Area Conference rival by 15 and lost by 26 last season, and will try for the sweep again this season with the next matchup versus the likely Class C contender set for Jan. 26.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
East Kentwood (3-1) – The Falcons were a solid 14-9 a year ago, but already have avenged three of those losses be beating Grand Rapids Christian (after losing to the Eagles in a District Final in March) and this week with wins over Grand Rapids South Christian and Forest Hills Central.
Okemos (3-0) – The Chieftains are 3-0 for the first time since 2008-09, thanks in part to a 63-35 win over Lansing Eastern on Friday keyed by standout sophomore Laya Hartman's 31 points after an earlier one-point win over Haslett.
CLASS B
Alma (2-0) – The Panthers already are on pace to improve on last season’s 11-11 finish after avenging a loss to Ionia in their opener and then two losses last season to Saginaw Swan Valley with a 34-30 win over the Vikings on Thursday.
Buchanan (1-0) – The Bucks are only one game in, but have a huge win; their 32-27 victory over Niles Brandywine on Thursday broke a 14-game losing streak to their rival and after two 20-point defeats by the Bobcats in 2015-16.
CLASS C
Bath (3-1) – The Bees had lost nine of their last 10 against Pewamo-Westphalia before Wednesday’s 48-36 win over the Pirates; the lone defeat this winter was to undefeated Class A Howell.
Galesburg-Augusta (3-0) – The Rams tied for second in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley last season with a split against eventual champion Kalamazoo Hackett, but earned the early step this time with a 33-25 win over the Fighting Irish to go with a 20-point win over Martin (13-7 last season).
CLASS D
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (3-0) – The reigning Class D runner-up surely will miss powerful center Averi Gamble, but defensively is holding strong giving up 10, 36 and 17 points, respectively, in its three games so far.
Pickford (3-0) – The Panthers’ wins are by 12, 22 and 15 points, respectively, as the team looks to build on last season’s District title.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Friday: DeWitt (4-0) at St. Johns (1-3) – Despite a slow start for 2015-16 Class A semifinalist St. Johns, these two combined with Haslett and Lansing Waverly should make the Capital Area Activities Conference Red again one of the strongest leagues statewide.
Friday: Canton (3-0) at Northville (1-1) – This will be a rematch of last season’s Class A District Final, a 44-38 win by the Mustangs.
Friday: Millington (2-1) at Frankenmuth (3-1) – The Eagles’ 97-game Tri-Valley Conference East winning streak is on the line against the third-place team from last season.
Saturday: Midland Dow (3-0) vs. Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (5-0) at Detroit Edison – Both have aspirations of finishing the season at the Breslin Center, Dow in Class A and Arbor Prep in B after winning Class C last season; this is part of the Best of Michigan Classic at Detroit Edison.
Saturday: Williamston (3-0) vs. Port Huron Northern (3-0) at Detroit Edison – This is another Best of Michigan Classic matchup of Breslin hopefuls, with Williamston looking to follow last year’s boys team in Class B and Northern building on last year’s Class A Quarterfinal run.
Second Half’s weekly “Breslin Bound” reports are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Student Financial Services Bureau located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information, including various student financial assistance programs to help make college more affordable for Michigan students. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 savings programs (MET/MESP) and eight additional aid programs within its Student Scholarships and Grants division. Click for more information and connect with MI Student Aid on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO: Marine City is another 3-0 team after starting out the season with a 10-point win over Croswell-Lexington. (Click for more from Varsity Monthly.)