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Ishpeming players celebrate their Semifinal win Thursday at Breslin Center.

Senior Stars Bring Ishpeming Back to Breslin, Earn One More Game Together

By Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com

March 19, 2026

EAST LANSING – Ishpeming coach Ryan Reichel wanted 32 more minutes with his two standout seniors.

Those seniors – Jenessa Eagle and Mya Hemmer – helped grant him his wish.

The Hematites overcame poor shooting and a double-digit deficit to outlast Morenci 37-34 in the first Division 4 Semifinal on Thursday at Breslin Center.

“We talked about playing 32 minutes since yesterday, especially with having seniors, and right now they have 32 minutes left in their career with one extra game,” Reichel said. “Us trying to complete that 32 minutes was huge, just with the mental toughness these girls brought.

“I’m pretty emotional about this because having these two girls and knowing it's the finale of their careers and seeing what they did tonight trying to carry us and will their team to the win was remarkable.”

Eagle and Hemmer combined for 35 points as Ishpeming (24-3) advanced to the Final for the second time over the last three years. The Hematites won the Division 4 title in 2024.

Eagle, who’s headed to Michigan Tech, scored a game-high 20 points, while Hemmer, who will play volleyball at Baylor, recorded 15 points and 15 rebounds. 

Ishpeming was playing its second game in as many days due to the winter storm in the Upper Peninsula. The Hematites had defeated Indian River Inland Lakes in a one-day delayed Quarterfinal on Wednesday.

Morenci’s Emersyn Bachelder (33) and Ishpeming’s Mya Hemmer (14) contend for a loose ball. “When we got up at the hotel this morning and saw the green grass we rolled in it like we were in Florida,” Hemmer joked. “It’s been so long since we’ve seen green grass. This season has really shown how much of a family we are and how much we trust each other, especially Coach.”

If dealing with adversity related to weather and travel wasn’t enough, the Hematites had to persevere through a game where points were hard to come by.

Ishpeming trailed throughout the first half, including 16-6 in the second quarter, but rallied during the second half with a stifling defense that created multiple turnovers.

“We’ve faced adversity here two years ago, so we knew that getting the lead was doable,” Eagle said. “I think today we proved we can do that at a higher level. We are going to need that energy and focus on Saturday.”

Morenci – playing in its first Semifinal since 2011 – led 20-18 at the half and 27-25 after three quarters, but the final eight minutes saw the lead change multiple times.

Ahead by a single point late, sophomore Camby Gauthier scooped in a lay-up with 34 second left to give the Hematites a three-point edge.

Their defense did the rest and prevented the Bulldogs from tying it before the buzzer. 

“That’s a great Morenci team, and they had us rattled in the first half,” Reichel said. “We settled down, and we persevered, and we lifted each other up.”

Ishpeming failed to make a 3-point shot for the first time this season, going 0-for-22. “I didn’t know that,” Eagle said. “I thought one of us hit a 3. I’m shocked by that.” 

The Bulldogs also struggled from the field, shooting 27 percent (12-44) and missing all five of their 3-point attempts. They also committed a season-high 31 turnovers. 

Morenci did outrebound Ishpeming 51-27, with 20 offensive rebounds.

“Not how we wanted it to go, but they battled all season and they battled tonight,” Morenci coach Ashley Joughin said. “Some of our shots didn’t fall when we needed them to, but hats off to that team because they got after it in the second half and we gave up a couple offensive boards that were costly. We fought all season to be here, and nothing can take that away from them.”  

Junior Colbi Ekins scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the way for the Bulldogs, while senior Emmersyn Bachelder tallied a double-double with 14 points, and 13 rebounds.

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS (Top) Ishpeming players celebrate their Semifinal win Thursday at Breslin Center. (Middle) Morenci’s Emersyn Bachelder (33) and Ishpeming’s Mya Hemmer (14) contend for a loose ball. (Photos by Lilanie Karunanayake/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)

Tony Coggins serves as PA announcer during a 2022 Division 3 volleyball match at Kellogg Arena.

In Memoriam: Tony Coggins (1971-2023)

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

October 24, 2023

The MHSAA and Holly school communities are grieving this week after the sudden loss of Tony Coggins, a shining light in his educational community and an enthusiastic supporter of school sports as a public address announcer for several of our largest championship events.

But while that cheerful tone has been quieted, it surely will not be forgotten by the many fortunate to enjoy an event in the presence of that voice and the joyfulness he brought into every arena, press box and classroom.

Coggins, 51, died Saturday. He is survived by his wife Kristy and children Emma and Bradlee, among several family and friends from his local and greater sports communities.

Tony CogginsHis career as a PA announcer began during his freshman year of high school in 1985, when his father Dale Coggins – Flushing’s athletic director at the time – couldn’t find anyone else to announce middle school football games. That was 39 years ago, and this fall Tony Coggins was in his 24th announcing at Holly, where he taught and served as an administrator in addition to his role as “Voice of the Holly Bronchos” for football, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, competitive cheer and swimming & diving over the years.

Coggins has been a mainstay among MHSAA Finals PA announcers over the last decade in football, basketball, softball and most recently volleyball. He lent his voice to college sports at University of Michigan as well. “Tony was a huge part of our Finals events. It’s hard to imagine it being the same without him,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said.

As part of the run-up to the MHSAA public address announcers clinic in 2018, Coggins said this about what drew him to the microphone:

“I have zero athletic ability whatsoever, which is interesting because my father was an all-state running back. But I enjoy being involved, and I've always been the one for history and statistics and knowing what's going on,” Coggins said. “This is a way for me to be involved. It's a way for me to use a talent I've been given; public speaking has always come pretty naturally for me.

“So I worked at my craft to get better. I got better from watching the people around me, from studying the people I like, and the people – if I saw someone I didn’t care for – I'd make a note and say to myself, ‘Don't do that.’ I take feedback from people very personally, and I mean that in a good way. If somebody takes the time to come up and say, ‘You did this well; I think you should change this,’ that means they care about the program also. We all have the same goal in mind, and that's to make the experience good for the high school student and the parents, the fans, that come there.”

Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, at St. John Vianney, 2415 Bagley Street in Flint. There will be visitation from 2-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at the Swartz Funeral Home, 1225 West Hill Road, and at the church from 10 a.m. Saturday until the time of the Mass.