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March 12, 2012
Check out our must-know scores and news from March 5-10.
(Click on links for coverage.)
Gymnastics
Where no team has gone before: Grand Ledge indeed accomplished what no team had before Friday by winning its fifth-straight MHSAA team championship. Senior Christine Wilson and junior Sara Peltier then won the Division 1 and 2 individual titles, respectively, on Saturday. (Second Half Team) (Second Half Individual)
Swimming and Diving
Celebratory dip: Saline isn’t the first boys swimming and diving program to win three straight MHSAA championships. But it’s definitely the program of the day after claiming another Division 1 title Saturday and breaking four records -- including two all-division/class records -- in the process. (Second Half)
Hockey
Consider it avenged: There are few better ways to go out than with a championship after falling in the Final the year before. That’s how Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice and super senior Mackenzie MacEachern finished off this season Saturday, beating Grosse Pointe South 4-1 after falling by the same score in the 2011 championship game. (Second Half)
Girls Basketball
Only one can move on: Detroit Martin Luther King won its third and final meeting this season against Detroit Pershing to move on to this week’s Class A Quarterfinals. King had lost to Pershing by five during the regular season, then beat Pershing by three in the Detroit Public School League Final before defeating Pershing again 54-53 on Thursday in a Regional Final. (Mlive.com)
Boys Basketball
Another championship down, two to go: Top-ranked and reigning Class B champion Lansing Sexton eliminated what was perceived heading into the postseason as one of the biggest obstacles standing between the Big Reds and a repeat. They downed No. 4 Lansing Catholic 66-56 in a District Final on Friday to improve to 22-1. (Lansing State Journal)
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Long Wait Ends as Fowler Returns to Finals
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
April 7, 2021
GRAND RAPIDS – It took a couple years, but the wait was worth it for Fowler's girls basketball team.
The Eagles finally closed the book on a disappointing Quarterfinal loss two years ago to stun unbeaten Carney-Nadeau 61-37 in Wednesday's first Division 4 Semifinal at Van Andel Arena.
Fowler junior guard Mia Riley said her teammates had not forgotten a 57-36 Quarterfinal loss to Adrian Lenawee Christian in 2019, a loss which capped a 17-win season. The players used that memory to pound their way into their first Girls Basketball Final since finishing Class D runner-up in 1999.
"We've been waiting, just itching to get back," Riley said. "It was always in the back of our minds, and now it's just a great feeling."
The win snapped a 22-game winning streak for Carney-Nadeau, which had won its previous five tournament games by an average of 19 points per contest. No team had come as close as eight points to beating the Wolves this season.
But Fowler (15-4) never trailed after a layup by Avery Koenigsknecht snapped a 10-10 tie with 1:21 left in the first quarter. Fowler upped the lead to 33-17 at the half and 49-28 at the end of three quarters.
The win sent Fowler (15-4) into Friday's 10 a.m. Final against Bellaire at the Breslin Center.
Eagles coach Nathan Goerge said there was little to complain about after his team forced a whopping 31 turnovers, including 16 in the first half. That defense, which featured five players with at least three steals, was largely responsible for Carney-Nadeau attempting 28 fewer field goals (59-31).
"The execution was absolutely awesome. We had some breakdowns, but none that really hurt us," Goerge said. "We're a tough team to beat when we spread the floor and make shots. We always tell the girls when you have a shot, it's going up. We have a lot of good shooters on this team."
Fowler overcame missing its first nine 3-pointers to land three players in double figures while shooting 37 percent (22 of 59) from the floor.
Sisters Emma and Mia Riley head the list of good shooters. Mia, a junior guard, finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, four assists and four steals. Emma, a sophomore guard, added 18 points and eight steals. Emma Halfmann had 11 points.
Carney-Nadeau was led by Tessa Wagner's 21 points and eight rebounds. Taylor Kedsch added 10 points.
"We've handled the press well, but this was something new for us," Kedsch said.
Wolves coach Ken Lindor said the turnovers made it difficult for the team to sustain much consistency on offense.
"We just really struggled with their pressure," Lindor said. "They pushed us out on offense. We were okay shooting the ball (48 percent), but we had too many unforced turnovers that we don't normally make. We just couldn't get in a flow. They had good ball pressure and took away the passing lanes. We didn't move as well as we usually do; there was a lot of standing around.
"We haven't been this far in 20 years, and one of our goals was to get here,” he added. “We met that goal, and that was pretty special."
PHOTOS: (Top) Fowler's Mia Riley looks for an opening with Carney-Nadeau's Shae Linder defending. (Middle) Emma Riley brings the ball upcourt with teammate Emma Halfmann at her side . (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)