Patient Muskegon Perseveres, Comes Back Twice to Claim 1st Finals Championship
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
March 21, 2026
EAST LANSING – There was no panic Saturday on the Muskegon bench.
Not when the Big Reds trailed Detroit Renaissance 15-2 early in the second quarter of the Division 1 Girls Basketball Final. Not when their comeback was beat back and they fell behind by six midway through the fourth.
There was only belief that what they were doing would work, and they’d make plays when it was needed.
That belief was rewarded, as the Big Reds came through with those plays down the stretch, defeating Renaissance 34-29 at the Breslin Center.
“We never stopped playing and believing in each other, and playing hard-nosed defense,” Muskegon coach Bernard Loudermill said. “We had to get some more stops and get some more conversions on the offensive end. It was still just one possession at a time.”
Loudermill’s quiet confidence was in stark contrast to the raucous Muskegon crowd that watched the team win the first Finals title in program history.
“This championship means everything,” Big Reds senior Mariah Sain said. “We just made history. We made history yesterday (by winning a Semifinal for the first time), but we really just left our legacy at Muskegon High School. A lot of our community was out today from all areas of Muskegon, so it’s a really big moment for us and I’m truly blessed that I got to enjoy it with my team. I’m just going to enjoy it.”
Sain had 14 points and eight rebounds for Muskegon (26-2), capping off her career with one last victory and a parting lesson for the kids in the crowd who have looked up to her for years.
“To keep working, to fight through adversity,” Sain said. “I feel like that game we fought through a lot of adversity. There was a lot of highs in that game, but there were a lot of lows. I love the kids. A lot of kids look up to me, and I try to give them as much knowledge as I can and try to be in the community as much as I can.”
Muskegon didn’t score for the first 5½ minutes of the game, and trailed 15-2 early in the second quarter, but then went on a 10-0 run capped by a Sain 3-pointer to bring itself back.
“That was probably like the second time we’ve had a deficit like that,” Loudermill said. “We know with the types of players we have, we knew we had the ability to come back, but it still had to be one stop at a time. You can’t get it all back at once, so we had to be really patient, continue to believe in each other, and do more execution-wise on the offensive end.”
Muskegon did not lead in the game until junior center Dy’nasti Bell hit a layup with 58 seconds remaining in the game to make it 29-27.
The Big Reds wouldn’t trail again, as a defensive stop was followed by a three-point possession, courtesy in large part to Bell. While it was Sain making one free throw and senior Camiyah Bonner hitting the other two, it was a hustle play by Bell in between that kept Muskegon in possession and helped swell a three-point lead to five.
“I think I tried to push myself beyond my limits,” Bell said. “This was potentially the last time I would ever get to do that, so I just went at everything hard. When you give it your all, I think it pays off.”
Bell finished the night with seven points and 12 rebounds, including the final rebound on a desperation 3-point attempt from Renaissance with the clock winding down.
The Phoenix (23-3) were led by senior Jaebri’an Autry, who scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
It was Autry who stretched the Renaissance lead when Muskegon had first tied the game at 21 in the fourth quarter, finishing off back-to-back possessions to once again give her team control.
The second Big Reds comeback could not be fought off, however.
“I feel like we should have won that game,” Autry said. “We’ve been doubted all year, and this was the game to prove to everybody that we are capable. I love these girls. I love these girls. This is the best team that I’ve ever been on at this school. I’m just proud of how far we’ve come.”
Autry was the leader on what was an incredibly young Renaissance team, as underclassmen out-numbered upperclassmen 8-4.
That was mostly from a strong sophomore class, which Autry called the best in the state. Those teammates had plenty of good things to say about her, too.
“She’s just, (in) life, off the court, on the court, she’s taught me everything,” sophomore guard Kassidy Cain said. “That’s really my sister. Obviously I plan to keep up what she’s built and done here.”
PHOTOS (Top) Muskegon’s Mariah Sain (10) drives hard to the basket Saturday with Renaissance’s Maria Walker (1) keeping in step. (Middle) Jaebri’an Autry (22) works to get a shot up over the Big Reds’ Dy’nasti Bell (24). (Photos by Keionna Banks and Lilanie Karunanayake/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
West Bloomfield Hangs On to Edge Rockford, Reach 1st Final since 1989
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 18, 2022
EAST LANSING – West Bloomfield girls basketball coach Darrin McAllister said his team has played all sorts of opponents and their varying styles this season, but he admitted he hadn’t seen a team like Rockford.
And that included Detroit Edison, a squad that hadn’t lost to a Michigan school since 2017-18 before West Bloomfield won their February matchup.
“We have not faced a team that shoots that amount of threes and has the ability to make them,” McAllister said of Rockford.
Indeed, in Friday’s first Division 1 Semifinal at Michigan State’s Breslin Center, West Bloomfield saw Rockford attempt a whopping 37 shots from 3-point range against the Lakers’ zone, making 13 of them.
In contrast, West Bloomfield made only three shots from behind the 3-point line.
“I do play a lot of different zones, but I was definitely searching for something,” McAllister said.
Despite the barrage of 3-pointers and 30-point disadvantage from behind the 3-point line, McAllister saw his young team overcome and find a way, as West Bloomfield made the winning plays at the end to earn a 66-63 win over Rockford.
The Lakers (24-1) advanced to the championship game for the first time since 1989, when it finished runner-up to Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills.
“I’m happy that we won, but if I had hair I’d probably have pulled it out by now,” McAllister joked.
The big reason why West Bloomfield was able to survive was its sophomore forward duo, Indya Davis and Summer Davis. Indya Davis had 24 points and eight rebounds, while Summer Davis had 16 points and seven rebounds.
Senior Myonna Hooper added 14 points, and junior Sydney Hendrix had 10 points and 10 rebounds as well for the Lakers.
“I didn’t take it upon myself,” Indya Davis said of her performance. “I took it upon the whole team and doing it for the team.”
With the game tied at 58-58 with 1:02 remaining, West Bloomfield took a 60-58 lead after two free throws by Hooper.
Following a turnover by Rockford, West Bloomfield extended the lead to 61-58 when sophomore Destiny Washington hit the first of two free throws with 40 seconds to go.
Washington missed the second free throw, but Summer Davis got the offensive rebound and passed the ball back to Hooper, who was fouled and drained both free throws to give West Bloomfield a 63-58 advantage with 36.6 seconds remaining.
On Rockford’s next possession, a 3-point attempt by Gabrielle Irwin rimmed out and was rebounded by Indya Davis, who got the ball up to Washington.
After being fouled, Washington split a pair of free throws with 14.1 seconds remaining to give West Bloomfield a 64-58 lead and all but seal the game.
The teams then traded two free throws each before Rockford hit a 3-pointer right at the buzzer to account for the final score.
Rockford saw six different players connect on 3-pointers, led by sophomore Grace Lyons, who drilled five en route to a team-high 21 points.
Rockford coach Brad Wilson admitted his team usually doesn’t shoot that many 3-pointers in a game.
“That’s more than normal, but we are fully capable of doing that,” Wilson said. “Sometimes, you take what the defense gives you. We believe in our kids. It’s a little bit unusual, but all five players on the court have the green light at all times. We just believe in them. We attack gaps and pass where the help comes from. We rep that out all year, so we have confidence that it’s going to go in.”
Rockford was making its first appearance as a program in a Semifinal, and the community certainly followed with a good portion of Breslin Center covered in orange.
“I am so proud of our community and the support they gave,” Wilson said. “Just to be a part of something like that, a sea of orange, was just so much fun.”
Rockford held a 31-26 lead at halftime and was up 36-30 in the third quarter before West Bloomfield went on a 9-0 run to take a 39-36 lead with 5:52 left in the period.
Rockford then got hot from the perimeter again, hitting three more 3-pointers before the quarter ended to take a 49-48 lead into the fourth.
PHOTOS (Top) West Bloomfield celebrates its Division 1 Semifinal win over Rockford on Friday. (Middle) The Lakers’ Sydney Hendrix (5) gets a shot up over a pair of Rams defenders. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)