Seniors Continue Country Day Legacy
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
March 17, 2018
GRAND RAPIDS – Detroit Country Day senior Kaela Webb dribbled out the clock Saturday on a hard-fought Class B title game against Jackson Northwest, and a smile overtook her face.
She looked over at her coach, Frank Orlando, who was about to celebrate his 13th MHSAA title at the school, and her smile grew wider.
She looked at her classmates, Maxine Moore and Destini Lewis, who with her have been at Country Day for three titles, and triumphantly tossed the ball into the air, finishing off the 64-48 victory.
“I just looked over at Max, Destini and Coach O, and I couldn’t do anything but smile,” Webb said. “We just never thought about winning three state championships, but we came in hungry and wanted to continue that. This team was so special because we had to find our own identity. We had to pick up where we left off last year from losing a valuable asset on both sides of the floor, so we knew we had to work even harder than we had the year before.”
The championship was the second straight for the Yellowjackets (23-4), who were making their 17th appearance in the title game, all coming under Orlando, who is the state’s all-time leader in girls basketball coaching victories (785).
Orlando didn’t say whether or not the 13th title would mark his final game at Country Day, but he did say that in the moment, it was just as sweet as the first.
“It’s a blessing -- I just feel like it’s a blessing,” Orlando said. “It’s these kids right here that gave me the blessing. If it has to go down in a certain way, I’ll give it to them.”
The three seniors have no choice but to move on, but they certainly left their mark on a program that was already incredibly rich with tradition.
“I’m so blessed and grateful, and I have to give it up to my teammates and especially Coach O for instilling a tremendous work ethic in all of us,” said Moore, who will play next year at Western Michigan. “In practice every day, this was our common goal, this is where we wanted to be. To have three of these, not a lot of people can say that. Me and Kaela and Destini, we’re so proud of our program, our coaches, everybody.”
Despite the 16-point margin of victory, the Yellowjackets had their hands full throughout with a Jackson Northwest (25-2) team making the program’s first appearance in the Finals. The Yellowjackets never trailed, and the game was tied for only five seconds before Webb opened with a 3-pointer from the corner. But the Mounties never went away.
“That was a dogfight, and I think our effort was anything a coach could ask for out of his players,” Jackson Northwest coach Ryan Carroll said. “I heard the radio announcer out of the corner of my ear say this was a David vs. Goliath matchup here tonight, and I don’t think it was that at all. Coming in, I didn’t think that’s what it was. They just knocked down some big shots, and we really shot ourselves in the foot when we had chances to get back into the game.
“I’m extremely proud of our effort and the way we showed up tonight and represented our school, I think, in the best possible fashion.”
It was a late Country Day run in the third quarter that finally put some distance between the teams, and it came with star guard Jasmine Powell on the bench with four fouls.
The Mounties had cut the lead to five points, but 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions from Lewis and Maddie Novak pushed the lead to 11 heading into the fourth quarter.
“They were huge,” said Webb, who will play collegiately at Providence next season. “When Jasmine got in foul trouble, Coach O was basically telling me to take over, so I knew at that point that I had to go. They were closing in on the lead, they were starting to have another run and I knew that I had to do everything in my power to prevent it. That contributed to getting my teammates involved, because they started to plug in on me, then (Lewis and Novak) knocked down the open 3s when we needed it.”
Powell still led the Yellowjackets in scoring with 19 points despite the foul trouble. Novak added 13 points, while Adrian Folks had 12 points and seven rebounds. Webb filled the stat sheet with 11 points, seven assists and six steals. As a team, Country Day had 15 steals on the night.
“If I’ve got Kaela on my side, that’s all I want,” Orlando said. “She’s a fighter, she’s a coach, she knows the game and she plays it with her heart. If anybody can do it, Kaela can, and I respect that.”
Sydney Shafer led Jackson Northwest with 22 points, including some deep 3-pointers, and eight rebounds. Ella Bontrager added 10 points for the Mounties, who were playing in front of what felt like a home crowd.
“Seeing all the parents there that aren’t just our parents, but that were community members and (parents of) people that we go to school with, it was really awesome to see them here,” Jackson Northwest senior Carsyn Sleight said. “Here supporting not just their kids, but their community.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Detroit Country Day players celebrate their Class B championship Saturday night at Van Noord Arena. (Middle) Adrian Folks works to get a shot in the post while walled off by Jackson Northwest defenders.
Performance: Wayne's Camree' Clegg
March 2, 2018
Camree’ Clegg
Wayne Memorial senior – Basketball
The 5-foot-5 senior guard has led her team to an 18-4 record heading into tonight’s Class A District Final against Dearborn Heights Crestwood. She scored 31 points in Wayne’s 50-46 win over Howell in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association championship game Feb. 22 to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
Clegg recently was announced as one of four finalists for this season’s Miss Basketball Award, and she brings plenty of impressive credentials – Clegg is averaging 23.7 points, 6.4 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game this season and has scored more than 1,000 points for her career. She’s making 46 percent of her shots from the field and 39 percent of her 3-point attempts. Wayne finished 0-21 in 2014-15, but since Clegg joined the program as a sophomore (after transferring from Detroit Country Day) the Zebras have won two KLAA division titles, two overall league titles and a District championship.
Also a strong student, Clegg carries a 4.5 grade-point average and is dually enrolled at Schoolcraft College. She will graduate with nearly 30 college credits and has signed to continue her academic and basketball careers at Clemson University. She’ll major in sports communications with hopes of someday becoming a TV sportscaster, following a lengthy professional hoops career.
Coach Jarvis Mitchell said: “Camree’ embodies the structure of a progressive student-athlete. Not only is she a standout on the court, but she scored 1200 on the SAT test and currently carries a 4.5 GPA. She is a great kid with an unparalleled passion for competing. In my 14 years of coaching, I have never coached a player that competes every possession of a game or practice the way Camree’ does. She scores the ball well, and has a "follow me" like aggression towards the game of basketball. Not only has she propelled herself into an elite company, she has also been the nucleus of Wayne Memorial's plunge into relevancy. As a coach, she provides relief because I know I will get the extent of her effort each contest.”
Performance Point: “We were plagued by foul trouble … so I took it upon myself to carry the team,” Clegg said of the Howell win last week. “That’s kinda something I’ve been doing for the past three years, so it wasn’t anything new to me. Whenever we find ourselves in potentially a dire situation, I take it upon myself like, ‘OK, we’ve got to get this going. I try to get my team going as well as myself going, and usually it ends up working in our favor."
Fear and encouragement: "I just put some energy into them, like ‘Come on guys, let’s go.’ Nobody wants to lose, so I try to put a little bit of fear into them like, ‘Do you guys want to lose? Come on, now. You guys gotta pick this up.’ And usually it ends up working – they end up getting fired up, they become more confident in themselves, they start hitting shots, they start making the right decisions. ... I think my team, you have to use psychology with them. Like say they miss a shot, they'll get into their own heads: 'I can't seem to make a shot.' You've just got to be like, 'No, you’re OK. Just come on. Just pick it up.' And usually they get the confidence back.”
Program builder: “It’s really a great feeling because I’ve been able to see everything turn around (at Wayne). To know I’ve been a trailblazer, a pioneer in this, it’s a great honor. And I hope it continues to get even better. … The easiest part has definitely been my coach has made it super easy for me – it’s easy to play for him because he has so much trust in me. The hardest part was probably going through the trials and tribulations, trying to make everyone better around me. Making them smarter because most of them came in as freshmen, (and) especially trying to play varsity as a freshman … just getting their minds right, making sure they get better, making sure they know the game is faster and adjusting them to the game. Just being that leader and trying to guide them in the right direction.”
This can be our year: “Everybody’s pretty much locked in. I believe last year we probably could’ve won it. We were definitely set back by injuries. But this year, everybody’s healthy, everybody’s doing good. Everybody’s getting so much better throughout the year, throughout all the preseason workouts. We feel like we’ve worked harder than anybody else, and we feel like we can definitely win it this year.”
Always working: “I have to excel in all facets of my life. I just try to balance it. I have somewhat of a short (class) schedule, so I have some time to do homework before practice, and after practice if I have a little bit left I just do it. I find myself extremely tired at the end of the day, but it’s all paying off. … My Plan A is I definitely want to become a pro basketball player, whether that’s here in the WNBA or potentially overseas, or potentially both. At the end of my career or if I don’t make it, I want to go into (becoming) potentially an analyst or a journalist within sports. My dream is to potentially end up on ESPN one day, so we’ll see if I can make that happen.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2017-18 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2017-18 honorees:
February 23: Aliah Robertson, Sault Ste. Marie swimming - Read
February 16: Austin O'Hearon, Eaton Rapids wrestling - Read
February 9: Sophia Wiard, Muskegon Oakridge basketball - Read
February 2: Brenden Tulpa, Hartland hockey - Read
January 25: Brandon Whitman, Dundee wrestling - Read
January 18: Derek Maas, Holland West Ottawa swimming - Read
January 11: Lexi Niepoth, Bellaire basketball - Read
November 30: La'Darius Jefferson, Muskegon football - Read
November 23: Ashley Turak, Farmington Hills Harrison swimming - Read
November 16: Bryce Veasley, West Bloomfield football - Read
November 9: Jose Penaloza, Holland soccer - Read
November 2: Karenna Duffey, Macomb L'Anse Creuse North cross country - Read
October 26: Anika Dy, Traverse City Central golf - Read
October 19: Andrew Zhang, Bloomfield Hills tennis - Read
October 12: Nolan Fugate, Grand Rapids Catholic Central football - Read
October 5: Marissa Ackerman, Munising tennis - Read
September 28: Minh Le, Portage Central soccer - Read
September 21: Olivia Theis, Lansing Catholic cross country - Read
September 14: Maddy Chinn, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep volleyball - Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Wayne Memorial guard Camree' Clegg splits a pair of Novi defenders. (Middle) Clegg fires a no-look pass. (Photos courtesy of the Wayne Memorial girls basketball program.)