St Mary Shows it 'Can Play with Anybody'
March 14, 2016
By Dennis Chase
Special for Second Half
GAYLORD – Jim Myler played basketball at Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart.
Still a fan of the Irish, his allegiance will be with another Catholic school tonight as Gaylord St. Mary takes on Sacred Heart in an MHSAA Class D girls basketball Quarterfinal. Myler’s daughters, Bekah and Emily, are key contributors on a 22-3 St. Mary team that beat Frankfort and Fairview last week to capture the Regional championship at Buckley.
“I’m all about my daughters, my family,” Myler said. “They mean the world.”
Bekah Myler, a senior center, averaged 16 points in leading St. Mary to its third Regional title in five years – surprising Frankfort along the way. The Panthers, led by Central Michigan-bound Mackenna Kelly, won the Regional the two previous years and advanced to the Semifinals a year ago.
The Snowbirds will be in an underdog role again Tuesday. Sacred Heart (22-1) beat St. Mary by 12 points in an early January nonleague contest.
“We’re going to go into that (Quarterfinal) game with the same mentality we had against Frankfort – that we can play with anybody,” Bekah Myler said. “We definitely have a fire burning in our hearts.”
Sophomore point guard Alex Hunter agreed.
“Frankfort was one of the best games we’ve played all year, hands down,” she said. “Everything clicked. We definitely have to bring it like that (Tuesday). We’ll have that underdog mentality. We feel we have something to prove. We know we can beat them. We just have to go out there and play hard.”
The Snowbirds breezed past Fairview 56-27 in the Regional Final. St. Mary held the Eagles without a field goal for more than nine minutes to open the game. However, it was the 54-41 win over Frankfort that drew attention, leading St. Mary coach Dan Smith to proclaim, “We’re back.”
It’s not that St. Mary had become a non-factor. The Snowbirds were 18-5 a year ago without a senior in the lineup. But District losses to Bellaire the last two years left an empty feeling. The Snowbirds made amends this season, topping Bellaire in the District Final.
“When I said ‘we’re back’ I meant we’re back deep into the tournament,” Smith said. “That’s where we want to be. That’s our goal every year – to compete for a Regional championship. It’s never easy, but we’ve got some kids that can play basketball.”
Young kids, too. The Snowbirds start two seniors, a junior and two sophomores. The two sophomores, guards Hunter and Averi Bebble, started on varsity as freshmen.
“We knew our sophomores had room to grow, but they’re talented kids,” Smith said. “They play a lot of basketball, probably 100 games a year (between high school and offseason teams). Their growing pains were felt last year. They came into this season in a much better position. Their confidence was at a B level at the start of the season. We’re closing in on the A level right now.”
Smith calls Hunter one of the best guards in northern Michigan.
“She’s very quick, plays outstanding on-the-ball defense and has a sweet shot,” he said. “We’re excited about our backcourt.”
Hunter and Bebble stood out in the Regional. It was their ability to handle Frankfort’s defensive pressure that limited the Panthers’ ability to create turnovers and transition scoring opportunities. The two then applied pressure of their own, attacking the basket on the offensive end.
“Bekah’s tough in the post and usually draws a double team, so that leaves cracks for Averi and Alex to penetrate,” Smith said. “They’re both quick, great ballhandlers, and they’ve got a good first step to the basket. If they see daylight, they’re going to get to the rim. If they get shut down, they’ll dish to Bekah.”
The versatile Myler, who has scored nearly 1,200 career points, is the top option offensively. She can score in the post or on the perimeter.
“She does a lot of good things for us,” Smith said. “She allows our guards to do what they do because she draws a lot of attention in the middle.”
St. Mary showed some depth in the Regional, too. Myler netted 14 points, junior Gabby Schultz 11 and Hunter and Bebble nine each in the win over Frankfort. Myler came back with 18 points, senior Giorgi Nowicki 10, freshman Olivea Jeffers nine and Bebble eight in the title game with Fairview. Sophomore Emily Myler pulled down a team-high nine rebounds while Hunter added five assists in the Regional finale.
The play of the underclassmen, especially the sophomores, has not shocked Bekah Myler, who played on the Snowbirds Quarterfinal team in 2013.
“Those girls have put in so much work during the offseason,” she said. “Basketball is a year-round sport for half of our team. I’m not surprised. They put in the work. They deserve a moment like this.”
The Snowbirds finished second in the Ski Valley Conference to Johannesburg-Lewiston (19-2). It was a close second as St. Mary dropped a pair of two-point games to the Cardinals.
“The fact we lost those two games (to Johannesburg-Lewiston) actually helped us keep our edge,” Smith said. “It was a gift in disguise. It gave us the energy to work towards the rest of the season and point to the tournament because that would be our time.”
That’s proven to be the case. Now, though, the stakes get higher with Sacred Heart looming.
“We’ll have a little bit of a chip on our shoulder,” Smith said. “We’re going to bring everything we’ve got. They’re a great program. I have a lot of respect for (Sacred Heart coach) Damon Brown. He does an excellent job. But our team is far improved. We’re not the same team that we were earlier in the season when we faced them. We’re very excited about the opportunity.”
Bekah Myler will draw a tough defensive assignment, guarding 6-3 Averi Gamble, her AAU teammate during the offseason. Gamble scored 24 points, grabbed 24 rebounds and blocked four shots in Sacred Heart’s Regional championship win over Portland St. Patrick.
The Snowbirds would like to reverse a recent trend. St. Mary narrowly lost its last two Quarterfinal appearances – 42-40 to Climax-Scotts in 2013 and 59-57 to Crystal Falls Forest Park in 2012.
“It’s a pretty big deal for us to be here right now,” Bebble said. “But we want to break through (that barrier) and get to the Breslin.”
Dennis Chase worked 32 years as a sportswriter at the Traverse City Record-Eagle, including as sports editor from 2000-14. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Gaylord St. Mary celebrates its Regional Final win last week. (Middle) Alex Hunter sets up the offense for the Snowbirds against Frankfort during the Regional Semifinal. (Top photo by Denny Chase; middle photo courtesy of Gaylord St. Mary athletic department.)
3-Sport Standout Sluss Gives Lenawee Christian All-State Boost for Every Season
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
January 11, 2023
ADRIAN – Avery Sluss picked up a golf club for the first time her freshmen year at Adrian Lenawee Christian. Now she’s an all-state golfer.
Sluss started playing basketball because it was a way for her and her older brother, Gavin, to connect. She’s now the leading scorer on the Cougars basketball team a year after receiving all-state recognition.
Everything she touches seems to turn to gold. She will return to the soccer field in the spring already with her college plans in place. She signed recently to play goalkeeper at Indiana Wesleyan University.
“I’ve learned so much from sports,” Avery said. “It teaches me a lot about life.”
Her coaches call her a self-motivated athlete, quiet leader and someone dedicated to her faith, her teammates, and academics. She is a 4.0 student and has played four years of varsity golf, basketball, and soccer. She’s earned all-state recognition in all three sports.
“She is very self-motivated,” said first-year Lenawee Christian girls basketball coach Emilie Beach. “She doesn’t miss workouts or practices. She pushes herself hard. She forces others to rise (around her).”
Sluss is in her fourth season on the Lenawee Christian varsity basketball team. This year her role changed from mostly a defensive specialist to scorer.
Beach said Avery hasn’t changed her positive attitude with the changes in her role on the team. She has a high basketball IQ, Beach said, which helps her on the court.
“It can be tough and frustrating, but she comes in with a great attitude each day and leads her teammates,” Beach said. “She is a quiet leader who leads by example. She is hardest on herself, and that’s where a lot of her motivation comes from.”
The Cougars have had great success on the basketball floor the last several years, and Sluss has been part of it. She’s played alongside all-staters and played at the Breslin Center. She started and played 20 minutes in last year’s Semifinal loss to Plymouth Christian Academy.
This season she’s averaging 14.5 points a game, with 16 3-pointers, and has scored at least 17 points four times.
“It’s very different, but I like the role I’m in now,” she said. “Now, it’s like you have to score. I’ve accepted it. I’m just trying my best to fulfill that role for my teammates.”
Sluss sat out the fall travel soccer season while she was recovering from a slight back injury. But she was able to hit the golf course. She shot a two-day total of 186 at the Lower Peninsula Division 4 Final, helping the Cougars finish second as a team. A year earlier Sluss shot an 89 and 87 and helped the Cougars finish fourth overall.
Not bad for someone who didn’t pick up a golf club until just a few years ago.
“Golf was new to me my freshman year,” she said. “Some of my friends said I should try it, so I did. I went to the range maybe one or two times before I started to play. I’ve loved it.”
As far as sports goes, soccer was her first love. She started playing at the age of 4 when a neighborhood dad gathered a few girls together and formed a team.
“We started playing in the back yard,” she said. “I’ve been playing soccer ever since. My first travel team was when I was 7.”
Sluss first started thinking about playing college soccer when she was in kindergarten.
“I’ve always wanted to play soccer in college,” she said. “I’ve dreamed about that. I’ve spent so much time on the sport that it would be silly not to. I want it to pay off with college.”
She used to play multiple positions but turned to goalkeeper at the age of 12.
“It’s a lot of work,” she said. “There are a lot of little things. The mental part of being a goalkeeper is important.”
After being named to the coaches association all-state third team last year, Sluss is primed for a big season this spring, especially with her college choice behind her.
“It is a strong Christian college, which was important to me,” she said. “It’s a lot like Lenawee Christian. Everyone on the soccer team was great when I met them, and the girls are so nice.”
Sluss has become adept at mixing sports with academics and life.
“Balance is a big issue,” she said. “It’s a lot of work, especially doing two at a time.
“My whole family, my parents (David and Kristen), they always push me to be the best I can be. I owe them a lot. Even my little sister (Addie) pushes me to do my best.”
Avery’s family moved from Toledo to the Adrian area several years ago, and the two perfectly complement to each other.
“Lenawee Christian has been a great fit for me,” she said. “All of the people are awesome, and I have grown in my faith here.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Avery Sluss gathers up the ball while playing keeper for Lenawee Christian’s soccer team. (Middle) Sluss puts up a shot during last season’s Division 4 Semifinal at Breslin Center. (Below) Sluss plants a chip on the green. (Photos courtesy of the Lenawee Christian athletic department.)