Girls Basketball: It's the Final Countdown

March 14, 2012

Four months after the opening tip, girls basketball season will come to close this weekend at Michigan State's Breslin Center. 

All four reigning champions are back -- Inkster in Class A, Dearborn Divine Child in Class B, St. Ignace in Class C and Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes in Class D. But also arriving in East Lansing are nine teams that have never won an MHSAA girls basketball championship -- including Class B favorite Goodrich.

The schedule, ticket and broadcast information follows below, along with team-by-team looks at all 16 competing this weekend.

Semifinals - Thursday
Class C
Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett (22-4) vs. Concord (26-0) - 1 pm
St. Ignace (25-0) vs. Morley-Stanwood (26-0) - 2:50 pm
Class D

Portland St. Patrick (19-6) vs. Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes (21-4) - 6 pm
Athens (20-5) vs. Crystal Falls Forest Park  (21-5) - 7:50 pm

Semifinals - Friday
Class A

Grand Haven (25-1) vs. Inkster (21-5) - 1 pm
Ann Arbor Huron (21-5) vs. Grosse Pointe South (22-3) - 2:50 pm
Class B

Grand Rapids Catholic Central (23-3) vs. Freeland (22-3)- 6 pm
Goodrich (26-0) vs. Dearborn Divine Child (24-2) - 7:50 pm

Finals - Saturday
Class A - Noon
Class B - 6 pm
Class C - 4 pm
Class D - 10 am 

Tickets cost $8 per session for Semifinals and Finals. Parking at Breslin costs $5. All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.tv and FoxSportsDetroit.com. The Class D, C and A Finals will be broadcast on Fox Sports Detroit, with the Class B Final on Fox Sports Detroit Plus channels. 

And now, a look at the contenders:

Class A

ANN ARBOR HURON
Record/rank: 21-5, unranked
League finish: First in Southeastern Conference Red
Coach: Steve Vinson, ninth season (142-64)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 52-39 over Saginaw Arthur Hill (Quarterfinal), 58-34 and 51-41 over Temperance Bedford, 47-36 over Brighton (District Final), 48-40 over Hartland (Regional Final).
Players to watch: Devin Talley (5-8 sr. G – 10.6 ppg, 2.7 spg, 2.5 apg), Logan Sims (6-0 sr. C – 8.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg).
Outlook: Huron has won 18 straight games after a 3-5 start, but those losses – four came against Class A Semifinalists Detroit Pershing and Inkster and Class B powers Goodrich and Detroit Country Day – no doubt have made Huron more prepared for this weekend. The River Rats have been building toward this kind of run with three straight league titles and District championships three of the last four seasons.

GRAND HAVEN
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 1
League finish: First in O-K Red
Coach: Katie Kowalczyk-Fulmer, 14th season (219-109)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 42-40 (2 OT) over honorable mention East Lansing (Quarterfinal), 43-39 over No. 4 Detroit Martin Luther King, 45-36 over No. 6 East Kentwood,  44-35 over Class B No. 10 Grand Rapids Catholic Central.
Players to watch: Shar’Rae Davis (5-9 sr. G – 10 ppg, 5.0 apg), Alex Law (5-11 sr. F – 12 ppg), Abby Cole (6-5 jr. C). (Statistics not submitted.)
Outlook: Grand Haven just got past East Lansing in Tuesday’s Quarterfinal, but should have no problem rebounding for a game it’s likely been waiting a year to play. The Buccaneers fell by a point to Detroit Renaissance in a Semifinal last season, and Davis, Law and Cole plus the team’s three subs that game all are back. That lone loss this season came to East Kentwood, and Grand Haven has won 21 straight.

GROSSE POINTE SOUTH
Record/rank: 22-3, honorable mention
League finish: Tied for first in Macomb Area Conference White
Coach: Kevin Richards, fifth season (83-30)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 74-51 over honorable mention Warren Cousino, 56-45 over honorable mention Romeo (Regional Semifinal), 58-54 over No. 8 Waterford Kettering (Quarterfinal).
Players to watch: Caitlin Moore (5-10 sr. G – 16.2 ppg, 2.9 apg), Claire DeBoer (6-1 jr. F – 13.2 ppg, 10.4 rpg, 3.0 apg).
Outlook: The Blue Devils’ run is even more impressive considering the team has just four seniors, and only two who start – plus two freshman guards with significant roles. Grosse Points South beat its first five postseason opponents by 10 points or more – and also posted an impressive loss this season, falling to Class A Semifinalist Inkster 73-71 in overtime in the Blue Devils’ sixth game this winter.

INKSTER
Record/rank: 21-5, No. 10
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Ollie Mitchell, first season (21-5)
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recently 2011).
Best wins: 56-53 and 59-56 (District Final) over No. 7 Westland John Glenn, 56-53 over No. 2 Lansing Waverly, 59-40 over No. 4 Detroit Martin Luther King (Quarterfinal), 52-51 over Class B No. 6 Dearborn Divine Child.
Players to watch: Kelsey Mitchell (6-1 sr. F – 19.5 ppg), Jamie Madden (5-8 sr. G – 16 ppg), Ariyanna Taylor (5-10 sr. F – 14 ppg).
Outlook: In addition to the mentioned wins above, Inkster has beaten both Semifinalists it could see if it defeats Grand Haven on Friday – the Vikings defeated Ann Arbor Huron 71-61 early in the season and Grosse Pointe South 73-71 in overtime a few weeks later. Mitchell – who has signed with the University of Michigan – leads an imposing frontcourt featuring four players 6-feet and taller and two more who are 5-11. Mitchell and Madden both started last season as well.

Class B

DEARBORN DIVINE CHILD
Record/rank:
24-2, No. 6
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic High School League Central
Coach: Mary Laney, eighth season (131-60)
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recently 2011), one runner-up finish
Best wins: 45-35, 54-32 and 53-36 over Class A honorable mention Farmington Hills Mercy, 47-41 over Class D No. 7 Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes, 48-42 over Class A No. 4 Detroit Martin Luther King.
Players to watch: Rosanna Reynolds (5-9 sr. G – 12 ppg, 4.3 rpg), Morgan Blair (5-9 jr. G – 11 ppg, 3.2 apg).
Outlook: The reigning champion hasn’t had to face a ranked opponent during the postseason so far, but prepared plenty during the regular season. On top of its impressive wins mentioned above, Divine Child fell by one to Class A Semifinalist Inkster and by nine to Class C Semifinalist Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett. Plus, senior guards Cara Miller and junior forward Mallory Myler joined Reynolds and Blair in last season’s starting line-up and together carry the most Finals experience of any team at Breslin this weekend.

FREELAND
Record/rank:
22-3, honorable mention
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference Central
Coach: Tom Zolinski, fifth season (93-27)
Championship history: Won Class C title in 1998.
Best wins: 66-52 over honorable mention Gladstone (Quarterfinal), 50-43 over honorable mention Muskegon Oakridge (Regional Semifinal), 63-39 and 73-66 over honorable mention Bullock Creek, 60-58 over Class C honorable mention Saginaw Valley Lutheran.
Players to watch: Tori Jankoska (5-7 jr. G – 25.5 ppg, 4.3 apg, 58 3-pointers), Tara Padgett (5-5 jr. G – 12.1 ppg, 4.0 apg).
Outlook: Jankoska, who will sign with Michigan State this fall, is arguably the top junior in the state and will get the chance to play on her future home floor. She and Padgett key an offense averaging 59 points per game and also has cleared 70 five times this season. The Falcons avenged one of their two losses – against Saginaw Valley Lutheran – with the other coming to Class C top-ranked team Morley-Stanwood.

GOODRICH
Record/rank:
26-0, No. 1
League finish: First in Genesee Area Conference Red
Coach: Jason Gray, 13th season (266-38)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 56-47 over No. 3 Detroit Country Day (Quarterfinal), 70-67 over Class C No. 9 Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett, 61-24 over Class A honorable mention Auburn Hills Avondale, 56-36 over Class A No. 3 Midland, 63-46 over Class A No. 10 Inkster.
Players to watch: Aketra Sevillian (5-6 jr. G – 13.7 ppg, 3.4 spg), Frankie Joubran (5-11 sr. F – 11.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg), Taylor Gleason (5-8 jr. G – 11.1 ppg, 3.6 apg).
Outlook: Goodrich could make the argument as the state’s top team, regardless of class. Four starters are back from the squad that fell by two in double-overtime to eventual Class B champion Divine Child during last season’s Semifinals. The Martians have beaten their opponents by an average of 64-30 this winter. Joubran has signed with Belmont and senior guard Destiny Stephens has signed with Detroit Mercy.

GRAND RAPIDS CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank:
23-3, No. 10
League finish: First in O-K Gold
Coach: Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate, 19th season (347-60)
Championship history: One MHSAA title (2010), one runner-up finish
Best wins: 48-33 over No. 2 Portland (Regional Semifinal), 49-46 (OT) over No. 5 East Grand Rapids (District), 54-35 and 46-31 (Regional Final) over honorable mention Grand Rapids South Christian, 68-41 and 53-28 (District Semifinal) over honorable mention Grand Rapids Christian, 48-34 over Class A No. 10 Inkster.
Players to watch: Tiesha Stokes (6-0 sr. C – 10 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 3.8 spg), Shellis Hampton (5-10 sr. G – 10 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 5.0 apg), Addie Johnson (5-11 sr. F – 10 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.2 spg).
Outlook: Stokes and Hampton also played significant roles on the 2010 championship team and are among eight seniors who have led this squad to its third Finals in four seasons. Grand Rapids Catholic has won nine straight and knocked out two top-five teams along the way. The Cougars are especially hard to defend because of their balance – three more players average six points per game, and sophomore Alyzia Dilworth hands out five assists per contest.

Class C

CONCORD
Record/rank:
26-0, No. 2
League finish: First in Big 8 Conference
Coach: Jeff Redman, fifth season (62-50)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 31-28 over honorable mention Grass Lake (District Semifinal), 56-45 over No. 4 Niles Brandywine (Quarterfinal), 52-42 and 50-40 over Athens.
Players to watch: Megan Redman (5-4 jr. G – 13 ppg, 3.0 apg), Maycee Brigham (5-10 jr. F – 11.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg).
Outlook: A team with only three seniors is just three seasons removed from a 0-21 finish. But Jeff Redman has led the Yellow Jackets to two straight league championships and a run this season that’s included 22 wins by 10 or more points. Two of those wins were over Class D Semifinalist Athens. Megan Redman earned an all-state honorable mention this week.

GROSSE POINTE WOODS UNIVERSITY LIGGETT
Record/rank:
22-4, No. 9 (tied)
League finish: First in Michigan Independent Athletic Conference
Coach: Joe LaMagno, first season (18-3)
Championship history: Finished runner-up in 2011.
Best wins: 51-33 over No. 7 Flint Hamady (Regional Semifinal), 46-37 over Class B No. 6 Dearborn Divine Child, 77-63 over Class A No. 10 Inkster.
Players to watch: Madison Ristovski (5-10 sr. G – 19.2 ppg, 9.0 apg, 6.0 rpg, 3.0 spg), Haleigh Ristovski (5-10 jr. F – 10.2 ppg).
Outlook: University Liggett’s return seemed inevitable after it fell in last season’s Final 65-54 to St. Ignace. It is the only team left in Class C without a perfect record, but those losses all came to Class B or A schools, including B top-ranked Goodrich by three points. Ristovski was named the state’s Miss Basketball on Monday and has signed with the University of Michigan. Her freshman sister Lola also is a major contributor, starting and averaging 12.2 points per game. The Knights are without sophomore guard Bre’nae Andrews (11.7 ppg), who has a leg injury.

MORLEY-STANWOOD
Record/rank:
26-0, No. 1
League finish: First in Central State Activities Association
Coach: Bob Raven, 19th season (319-116)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 70-50 over No. 8 McBain, 44-42 over No. 5 Kent City (Regional Final), 59-44 over Saginaw Nouvel (Quarterfinal), 62-53 over Class B honorable mention Freeland.
Players to watch: Bailey Cairnduff (5-10 sr. G – 16.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.3 spg), Alexis Huntey (6-1 sr. F – 15.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 3.5 apg).
Outlook: All-staters Cairnduff and Huntey hope to make this final run a memorable one after also leading the Morley-Stanwood volleyball team to that Class C championship in the fall. The Mohawks have won 11 straight conference and seven straight District championships – and more than 20 games in each of the last seven seasons too. But this is the first time in five tries during that run that they advanced to the Semifinals. Senior guard Elyse Starck adds 13 points per game and 3.7 assists as the main distributor to those standout posts.

ST. IGNACE
Record/rank:
25-0, No. 3
League finish: First in Straits Area Conference
Coach: Dorene Ingalls, 13th season (264-56)
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recently 2011), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 70-69 (OT) over No. 9 Houghton (Regional Final), 73-65 over No. 8 McBain (Quarterfinal), 68-39 over Class D honorable mention Brimley.
Players to watch: Lauren Goldthorpe (5-8 sr. G/F – 15.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 4.0 spg), Kelley Wright (5-10 soph. G – 13.9 ppg, 4.7 apg, 5.4 spg), Emily Hinsman (5-10 soph. G – 12.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 4.0 spg).
Outlook: The reigning champion actually has reached the Final the last two seasons, falling in 2010. Goldthorpe, Wright and junior guard Sarah Cullip (10.4 ppg) started in last season’s championship game, although the team as a whole has picked up a lot of slack after graduating two eventual college players last spring. Goldthorpe earned an all-state special mention this season.

Class D

ATHENS
Record/rank:
20-5, honorable mention
League finish: Third in Big 8 Conference
Coach: Calvin Quist, seventh season (122-46)
Championship history: Has not appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 34-32 and 48-34 (Regional Final) over No. 10 Climax-Scotts, 31-30 over No. 8 Lansing Christian (Quarterfinal).
Players to watch: Sierra Stevens (5-5 sr. F – 10.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg), Leia Fuller (5-8 jr. F – 5.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg).
Outlook: Athens has been on the verge of a trip to Breslin – Quist has led the Indians to six straight District championships, three Regional titles in four seasons, and at least 20 wins in five straight. Athens is on the low end, literally, in terms of size – Fuller is the team’s tallest player at 5-8. But that hasn’t affected the Indians defensively – they give up just 36 points per game, and have allowed more than 45 only three times. Two losses came to Class C Semifinalist Concord.

CRYSTAL FALLS FOREST PARK
Record/rank:
21-5, honorable mention
League finish: Second in Skyline Conference
Coach: Jeff Syrjanen, seventh season (121-35)
Championship history: Finished runner-up in 1995.
Best wins: 63-58 and 50-47 (Regional Final) over No. 1 Bark River-Harris, 50-39 and 50-29 over honorable mention Rapid River, 52-42 over No. 5 Eben Junction Superior Central (Regional Semifinal), 59-57 over No. 3 Gaylord St. Mary (Quarterfinal).  
Players to watch: Alexis Gussert (5-11 soph. F – 21.8 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 2.8 apg, 2.8 spg, 2.0 bpg, 45 3-pointers), Tanner Bartczak (5-11 sr. F – 10.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.2 spg).
Outlook: The Trojans have staked their claim by beating three of the top five teams in the final Associated Press poll, although they also won 21 games last season. Gussert, an all-state selection this week, is the best player you probably haven't heard of right now – but you’ll know all about her by the end of the weekend. Just a sophomore, she’s got major college eyes turned toward the northwest corner of the Upper Peninsula.

PORTLAND ST. PATRICK
Record/rank:
19-6, unranked
League finish: Fourth in Central Michigan Athletic Conference
Coach: Al Schrauben, 27th season (531-137)
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recently 2002), six runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 41-29 over No. 2 Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (District Semifinal), 65-61 over East Kentwood West Michigan Lutheran (Regional Semifinal), 52-27 over Pewamo-Westphalia.
Players to watch: Sidney Hill (5-8 sr. C – 7.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Courtney Dixon (5-10 jr. C – 7.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg).
Outlook: Don’t overlook the Shamrocks because of their record, lack of rank, or no player scoring more than eight points per game this season. Few programs have had as much success on Girls Basketball Finals weekend. Although St. Patrick’s last championship game appearance was in 2006, it has won District titles four of the last five seasons and Regionals the last two.

WATERFORD OUR LADY OF THE LAKES
Record/rank:
21-4, No. 7
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic High School League East
Coach: Steve Robak, fifth season (105-22)
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recently 2011).
Best wins: 37-35, 53-40 and 42-35 (District Final) over No. 6 Marine City Cardinal Mooney, 38-30 over Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary (Quarterfinal), 47-44 and 39-38 over Allen Park Cabrini.
Players to watch: Carlee Cottrell (5-9 sr. G – 11.8 ppg, 3.3 apg), Lexie Robak (5-9 jr. G – 11.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 43 3-pointers), Tori Duffey (5-8 sr. G – 11.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg).
Outlook: Our Lady has won the last two Class D championships, and Lexie Robak and junior guard Ava Doetsch (9.7 ppg) started for both of those teams, while Cottrell also started in last season’s Final. Robak and Cottrell were named all-state earlier this week. The Lakers again battled through a tough schedule including a number of bigger schools, with losses to Class B Semifinalist Dearborn Divine Child and Class C Saginaw Nouvel. But they allowed only two postseason opponents within 28 points. 

PHOTO: Waterford Our Lady senior Tori Duffey drives to the basket during a game against Marine City Cardinal Mooney. (Photo courtesy of Terry McNamara Photography.)

Kelsey Carries Well Richards' Legacy

January 9, 2020

By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half

Kelsey Richards is constantly compared to her older sisters, which doesn’t bother her one bit.

“They were both amazing players, so I’ll take it,” Kelsey said with her big smile, which is on display seemingly everywhere – except during her basketball games.

“I feel like it’s my time. It’s my time to show my senior leadership and my love for Christ as we play.”

Kelsey, a 6-0 senior, like older sisters Taylor and Allyson before her, is a fifth-year varsity starter for Fruitport Calvary Christian, a school of just 72 students which the Richards girls – with the help of their father and 10th-year coach Brad Richards – have transformed into a Division 4 powerhouse in West Michigan.

Fruitport Calvary has averaged 20 wins per season over the past nine years, with seven consecutive Alliance League championships and six straight MHSAA District titles. In five of those seasons, Calvary’s tournament run ended at the hands of state power Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in Regional Finals.

But last year, the Eagles flew south for Regionals and Kelsey scored 21 points as they broke through with a 49-46 victory over Mendon for the school’s first-ever Regional championship in any sport. Calvary lost in the Quarterfinals to eventual Division 4 champion Adrian Lenawee Christian.

“It’s just a real blessing,” Coach Richards explained after a lopsided victory Tuesday night over visiting Hudsonville Libertas Christian. “We put God first, family second and basketball third. This school has allowed us to do all three of those things at one time, and we are so thankful for that.”

This year, the Eagles are off to a 6-2 start, with losses coming against Division 3 opponents Muskegon Western Michigan Christian and Hart, and the most notable win 50-46 over Division 2 Central Montcalm last week at the Cornerstone University Holiday Tournament. Richards matched her jersey number with 33 points in that game.

Fruitport Calvary will be shooting for its 51st consecutive Alliance League victory when it opens conference play Friday night at Byron Center Zion Christian.

The first constant for the Eagles over the past nine years is an ultra-aggressive style of play, using relentless full-court pressure to break teams down. As a result, Calvary gets to the free-throw line often, with the goal every game to make more free throws than the other team attempts.

The second constant is the dominating play of the Richards sisters.

Taylor Richards put Calvary girls basketball on the map before graduating in 2014. She remains the school’s all-time career leader in points (2,455), rebounds (1,541) and assists (381). Taylor went on to a standout career at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids and now coaches eighth-grade girls basketball at Northern Hills Middle School.

Allyson Richards had an amazing prep career of her own, graduating in 2017 as the school’s second-leading career scorer (1,951) and rebounder (1,167). She is now a junior forward for Cornerstone, but has played less than half the team’s games this season due to injuries.

Kelsey, who like her sisters has the ability to play every position on the court, is moving up the school’s record book. The two-time all-stater has scored 1,879 points and needs just 73 to surpass Allyson for second place on the school record list.

Some of Calvary’s best seasons came when the Richards sisters played together. While the three never played varsity at the same time, Taylor and Allyson played together for three years, while Allyson and Kelsey played together for two years.

Kelsey has not had a sibling on the roster for the past three years, but filling that void admirably has been 6-0 senior Lizzie Cammenga. Richards and Cammenga are the only seniors on Calvary’s 10-player roster, and both are fifth-year varsity players and returning all-staters, who can play any position based on the opponent. (Schools with fewer than 100 students may play eighth graders on high school teams, although only their statistics from grades 9-12 count toward MHSAA record book consideration.)

“This team is a joy to coach,” explained Brad Richards, who previously coached girls basketball for 12 years at Ravenna and was named The Associated Press Class C state Coach of the Year in 2002. “Lizzie and Kelsey are our leaders, but all of these girls come from great families and are self-motivated to keep getting better.”

The final piece of the Richards basketball puzzle is younger brother Bradley, a 6-foot-3 seventh grader at Calvary. Coach Richards is considering switching over to boys basketball after this season for the opportunity to coach his son.

Richards retired from teaching history at Ravenna in 2018, which gives him more time to devote to coaching, his second career as a realtor and now an unexpected “mid-life adventure” which has made him a national television figure.

Richards is one of the researchers in “The Curse of Civil War Gold,” a series which premiered on The History Channel in the spring of 2018 and has reached an estimated 24.2 million viewers.

The show theorizes that Union soldiers confiscated millions of dollars in Confederate gold and silver during the final stages of the Civil War, then carried out a plot to smuggle the loot back to Michigan using the railway system and then laundered it through the banking system. According to a lighthouse keeper's deathbed confession years later, part of the stolen Confederate treasury was put into a train car on a barge and pushed off a ferry into Lake Michigan.

“It’s been a lot of fun and people from all over come up to me and talk about it,” said Richards, who has traveled as far away as Utah and Georgia to do research. “I am grateful to be a part of this project. I've been blessed by the Lord through this mid-life adventure.”

On the court, Kelsey and her father are focused on getting better each game to try and make another postseason run.

Kelsey is much happier talking about her teammates than herself, pointing out the improvement of the team’s other three starters – junior Kyra Hamilton, sophomore Cate Anhalt and freshman McKena Wilson.

“Each of the teams I’ve played on has been very different, but I’ve been really surprised how well some of our younger girls have played this year,” said Kelsey, noting Anhalt’s improved shooting and Wilson’s ability to stay calm in pressure situations.

Kelsey does plan to break one family tradition by not going to Cornerstone University, opting instead to play basketball at Spring Arbor College, an evangelical Christian school near Jackson. Brad played basketball at Cornerstone, her mother, Joy, played volleyball there and her two older sisters played basketball – but she chose a different path.

“I felt very comfortable when I visited Spring Arbor and I really like the girls on the team and Coach (Ryan) Frost,” said Kelsey, 17, who plans to sign with Spring Arbor on Jan. 28.

But first, she is determined to make the most of her final prep basketball season and the final five months of high school, where she is one of just 14 seniors.

“I really enjoy that we are small, because we are more like a family here,” said Kelsey, who runs track in the spring. “As big as basketball is for me, I really love being a chapel leader at school and a worship leader for youth group. A lot of people know me as a basketball player, but that part of my life is really important to me.”

Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Kelsey Richards defends during a game earlier this season against Hart. (Middle) Richards works to get past a Muskegon Catholic Central defender last season. (Below) The Richards children, from left: Kelsey Richards, Allyson Richards (junior at Cornerstone), Bradley Richards (6-3 seventh grader at Fruitport Calvary Christian) and Taylor Richards (Cornerstone graduate). (Action photos courtesy of Dr. Tom Watkins; family photo courtesy of the Richards family.)