Divine Child Family Grows with New Season
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
December 11, 2015
DEARBORN – Last April, Dearborn Divine Child assistant girls basketball coach Julie Kaniewski received some news for which she was not prepared.
Kaniewski and head coach Mary Laney have been close friends most of their lives. They played basketball together at Divine Child, graduated the same year and played on two Class B championship teams (in 1993 and ’94). Kaniewski and Laney were putting a close on the season when Laney made a stunning announcement.
“We were working with the returning players,” Kaniewski said. “We were going over some stuff for the summer, and as we were ending things Mary said, ‘By the way, I’m pregnant.’ Being a math teacher, I put it all together. That put her due date near the start of the season. She said she’d be there for tryouts. I said, can you guarantee that?”
On Nov. 24, Laney gave birth to an 8-pound, 8-ounce boy, Owen Michael Laney. He’s the third child for Mary and her husband Chris Laney.
But Owen Michael was the first to be born during the basketball season. Their first child, Ellen, was born on Oct. 26, 2010, and their second, and first boy, Niall, was born Sept. 18, 2012.
The birth of Owen Michael added a little excitement for the Laneys on Thanksgiving, and a bit of consternation for Kaniewski.
“Some things are just out of my control,” Mary Laney said. “It made for a nice Thanksgiving. It was the best Thanksgiving ever. Things will be better when (Owen Michael) gets his days straightened out from his nights.”
Things are already better for Kaniewski. Her best friend is back on the bench and coaching. In fact – and to the relief of Kaniewski – Laney was back coaching Dec. 2, two days before the Falcons’ opener at Chelsea.
No question, it was stressful for both coaches. What helped alleviate some of the pressure is their friendship. There’s nothing Kaniewski wouldn’t do for Laney, and vice versa.
And laughter helped.
“I was a little nervous,” Kaniewski said. “I can joke with her. I told her you’ll be on epidural and I’ll be coaching.”
Their bond extends to their immediate families as well. Kaniewski has two children approximately the same age as Laney’s first two. Kaniewski’s oldest is Elizabeth, who will be 5 years old in May. Thomas will turn 3 in April. Elizabeth and Ellen Laney attend dance class together, and in late October the coaches came to pick up their children when Laney sounded an alarm.
“She said she was having contractions,” Kaniewski said. “I said, no, no, no. That can’t happen.”
It was a false alarm.
Laney did miss nine days with her team, including scrimmages. The preparation would have been a challenge even without the pregnancy. Divine Child was 20-6 last season but all five starters graduated. Add that two players suffered injuries, one a torn knee ligament, the other a concussion.
Formulating tryouts and making cuts tested Kaniewski’s resolve. Both Laney and Kaniewski had ideas on who their starters would be for some time, but things change. Players get better. Some don’t progress as quickly as others.
“That’s been the hard part,” Kaniewski said. “Then there was the parent meetings. I told Mary, no, no. I don’t want to do that alone.”
Laney, for the sake of both, moved the parent meeting up so they could tackle that together.
Then they received some outside help. Mary Lou Jansen, who coached those fine Divine Child teams during the early 1990s, offered her assistance. Kaniewski was grateful.
“She spent a few days with me,” Kaniewski said. “The kids were responsive. It’s just a different set of eyes.”
The lack of experience has forced the two to concentrate on the basics and not over-complicate things. Divine Child had opened 0-3 heading into Saturday night’s game against Saginaw Nouvel.
“Not many teams come back with no starters,” Laney said. “This group has been receptive. We’ve had five of six Division I players over the past several years. We don’t have that. We’re not worried about wins and losses. We want them to play hard and communicate.”
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Chris and Mary Laney hold their newborn, Owen. (Middle) The Laney children, Ellen, Niall and Owen, smile while wearing their Divine Child hats. (Photos courtesy of the Laney family.)
Breslin Bound: 2022-23 Girls Report Post-Break
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 9, 2023
School’s back in session, snow has mostly stayed away as of late, and basketball barely took a breather during another holiday break that saw several of the state’s best girls teams test themselves in preparation for the grind to come over the next two months.
Our post-break report below highlights some of the most intriguing action over the last three weeks – including a new record holder for career coaching wins – and previews games to keep an eye on this week as we get rolling into calendar year 2023.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Chelsea 59, Ypsilanti Arbor Prep 50 (OT) Just as most schools were getting out or preparing to do so Dec. 21, Chelsea (8-1) handed Arbor Prep (5-2) its first in-state loss since Feb. 18.
2. Sandusky 42, Unionville-Sebewaing 28 Sandusky improved to 8-2 as coach Al DeMott became the all-time winningest in MHSAA girls basketball history with 798 victories.
3. West Bloomfield 86, Chicago Kenwood Academy (Ill.) The Lakers (7-2) held on in overtime at the Motor City Roundball Classic against a top team from Illinois.
4. Northville 42, Traverse City Central 22 The Mustangs (8-1) highlighted their holiday showcase by handing the Trojans (7-1) their only loss this season.
5. Lowell 54, Redford Westfield Prep 50 The Red Arrows are 8-0 with a pair of four-point wins mixed in, including this one on Westfield Prep’s home court during the Motor City.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Detroit Renaissance (7-0) The Phoenix already have piled up notable wins under first-year coach Dashaun Wood, including 41-39 over Wayne Memorial early and more recently 66-54 over Detroit Country Day and 67-46 over East Kentwood. The Phoenix’s remaining schedule includes more intriguing nonleague matchups against Grand Blanc, Muskegon and East Grand Rapids plus a league meeting with Detroit Cass Tech.
Rockford (7-1) After reaching the Division 1 Semifinals and falling by just three points to eventual champion West Bloomfield last season, Rockford is off and running with its only loss to reigning Division 2 runner-up Grand Rapids West Catholic. The Rams opened this winter by handing Ada Forest Hills Eastern what remains its lone loss, and Rockford also has solid victories over Holland Christian, Byron Center and Detroit Country Day.
DIVISION 2
Frankenmuth (6-1) Only an opening-night loss to Lake Fenton (see below) has kept the Eagles from a perfect start, and wins over Grand Blanc and Imlay City have highlighted the ensuing run. Frankenmuth also kicked off Tri-Valley Conference 8 play Friday with a key 42-39 victory over Saginaw Swan Valley, which tied with Freeland for second behind the Eagles last season. The first Freeland matchup is this Friday.
Lake Fenton (8-0) Beginning with the 46-36 season-opening win over Frankenmuth, Lake Fenton has rolled to eight double-digit victories including also handing the only loss so far to Grosse Pointe North, 51-33 – and after GPN was one of just four teams to defeat Lake Fenton a year ago. Wins over Detroit Public School League contenders Mumford and Cass Tech also are impressive, and the Blue Devils can make another massive statement tonight hosting Arbor Prep.
DIVISION 3
Evart (8-1) The Wildcats also are undefeated since a season-opening loss, to Sanford Meridian, with the best wins 61-44 over McBain and 42-40 over Lake City after losing to them a combined five times last season including to McBain in their District Final. Evart is pacing the Highland Conference after finishing fourth a year ago, with its first matchup Wednesday against McBain Northern Michigan Christian – the only other team to defeat the Wildcats in 2021-22.
Sanford Meridian (8-1) The Mustangs are early co-leaders in the Jack Pine Conference, with a first matchup against the other first-place team Farwell coming up Friday. The early work has been exceptional; following the 60-52 win over Evart, Meridian took all of their next five games by at least 39 points and earned a rare win over Freeland 46-40. The only loss was 40-38 in overtime to Marysville at the SC4 Holiday Showcase.
DIVISION 4
Baraga (7-1) After reaching the Division 4 Semifinals last season, Baraga has been flawless aside from Friday’s 66-52 loss to highly-regarded Division 2 Houghton. The Vikings escaped their season opener against Ontonagon 42-38, but hadn’t won by fewer than 21 points since until that first defeat. That 21-point win was over Lake Linden-Hubbell, another Copper Mountain Conference team otherwise making some early noise in Division 4. Baraga hosts one-loss Calumet on Tuesday.
Mackinaw City (8-0) It’s even better than business as usual for the Comets, who are coming off an 18-4 season and already this winter have avenged two of those losses in downing Indian River Inland Lakes by 19 and Pickford by 32. The Inland Lakes win clinched Mackinaw City’s Christmas Tournament title, and the Comets also won an impressive early showdown with Cedarville and finished last week by handing the second defeat this winter to Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Monday – Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (5-2) at Lake Fenton (8-0) – Arbor Prep is No. 1 in Division 3 Michigan Power Rating (MPR) among teams with at least six games played, while Lake Fenton is No. 3 in Division 2.
Tuesday – Hudsonville (6-2) at Holland West Ottawa (9-0) – West Ottawa won its first 10 games last season before ending 15-8 after rolling through the tough Ottawa-Kent Conference Red. Reigning league champion Hudsonville may give the Panthers their best test yet.
Tuesday – Jackson Northwest (7-1) at Coldwater (8-0) – Coming off a 34-29 win over reigning Interstate 8 Athletic Conference champion Parma Western, Coldwater takes on another annual contender while enjoying its most impressive run since 2018-19.
Thursday – Maple City Glen Lake (5-0) at Traverse City Central (7-1) – This could be a major statement win for either, as Glen Lake made the Division 3 Semifinals last season and Central lost 49-28 in their regular-season matchup.
Friday – Hancock (8-0) at Escanaba (8-0) – The Eskymos have tough Great Northern Conference matchups Tuesday and Thursday but then end the week with a meeting of undefeated opponents. Escanaba defeated the Bulldogs 58-53 last season.
MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning 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. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO Marquette's Cora Anderson (32) is surrounded by Charlevoix's Abby Wright (5), Bayani Collins (21) and Karlee Easton (13) as she heads to the basket during Marquette’s 42-28 win Dec. 29. (Photo by Cara Kamps.)