Second-Half Surge Sends Tri-unity Christian to 3rd-Straight Final
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 23, 2023
EAST LANSING — The Defenders will once again have a chance to do just that.
In what has become a usual rite of March during longtime head coach Mark Keeler’s 36-year tenure, the Wyoming Tri-unity Christian Defenders are once again headed for the Division 4 boys basketball championship game following a 54-37 win over Frankfort in a Semifinal on Thursday.
Making its third-straight appearance in a Final and 11th in school history, Tri-unity Christian will attempt to repeat as champion when it faces Munising in the 10 a.m. title game Saturday.
Junior Owen Rosendall scored 13 points and senior Roy Fogg added 11 on Thursday to lead Tri-unity Christian (22-6), which will go for its sixth Finals win.
“At the beginning of the year, we had some ups and downs in the season,” Rosendall said. “But we stuck to it and kept working.”
Tri-unity Christian got it done mainly by dominating the board, collecting a 41-22 rebounding advantage.
“I think our quickness on the boards outdid their size,” Keeler said. “I was really happy with how explosive we were on the boards.”
The discrepancy even surprised Frankfort head coach Dan Loney, who said rebounding has been a strength of his team all year.
“Going into the game, I would not have guessed they would have outrebounded us like that,” Loney said. “It’s one thing we’ve done well all year. I think honestly a lot of that came from their guard play. When their guards got to the rim (and) our bigs stepped over to help, their bigs were there to get their missed layups.”
Sophomore Carter Kerby led all scorers with 21 points to pace Frankfort (18-9).
“It was a fun season for sure. We look forward to the future,” Loney said.
Tri-unity Christian separated itself in the third quarter after Frankfort cut the lead to 29-26 with 4:40 to go in the period.
From there, Tri-unity Christian ended the third on an 11-1 run to take a 40-27 lead into the fourth quarter.
“We have a little more depth, and it helped,” Keeler said. “We were really trying to push the ball, and we were really trying to pressure them on defense. I think we wore them down a little bit.”
The Defenders continued to grow the lead in the fourth, taking a 48-32 advantage with 4:17 remaining after a 3-pointer by Rosendall and a basket by Akais Giplaye.
Tri-Unity Christian forced Frankfort into 12 turnovers and 38.9-percent shooting from the field while committing only six turnovers itself.
“We played great defense,” Keeler said. “That is what I was really happy about. We made them work for everything they had.”
Tri-unity Christian got off to a good start, taking a 16-8 lead after the first quarter before Frankfort settled in during the second.
Frankfort outscored Tri-unity Christian 13-9 in the second quarter to cut its deficit to 25-21 by halftime.
PHOTOS (Top) Tri-unity’s Jordan VanKlompenberg (3) puts up a shot over the outstretched arm of Frankfort’s Xander Sauer on Thursday. (Middle) Emmerson Farmer (0) gets a hand up high as Owen Rosendall puts up a jumper.
Undefeated Williamston Reaches Final Game with 1 More to Win
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
March 25, 2022
EAST LANSING – It’s been 82 years since Williamston won a boys basketball state championship.
Now the Hornets are one win away from ending that drought and seemingly the entire town, located only about 10 miles away from East Lansing, packed the Breslin Center on Friday to watch its own version of “Hoosiers” take another step.
Williamston (26-0) used its variety of weapons to jump ahead of Freeland early in a battle of unbeatens, then gradually pulled away for a 65-45 victory in the night’s second Division 2 Semifinal.
“It feels like we have the whole city with us, pushing us,” said 6-foot-4 Williamston senior Jacob Wallace, who scored 12 points. “I’m playing not only for my coaches and teammates, but the whole community.”
The Hornets will need all hands on deck in Saturday’s highly-anticipated showdown with reigning Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Catholic Central, an explosive team which downed Ferndale, 82-71, in Friday’s first Division 2 Semifinal.
Williamston, an experienced team with 10 seniors, had to avoid looking past a pesky Freeland team.
The Hornets took control early behind the play of senior point guard Mason Docks and 6-10 senior post player Max Burton.
Docks was a thorn in Freeland’s side all night long, leading Williamston with 19 points, five steals and four assists. Burton set the tone early inside and finished with nine points, six rebounds and three assists.
Williamston, which won the Capital Area Activities Conference White title, has played its best basketball in the postseason – winning its six tournament games by an average of 26 points.
“I would say the main feeling I have right now is excitement,” said Docks. “We’ve been preparing all season for this moment. Now it’s time to go out and have some fun and play our game.”
Tight defense and good execution on offense were the formula once again, as the Hornets built a 14-7 lead after one quarter and then extended it to 31-18 by halftime.
After Williamston built the lead to 19 points, Freeland showed why it came into Friday’s Semifinal undefeated as well, using an 8-2 run to end the third quarter trailing by just 12 points.
However, a 12-4 Hornets spurt to open the fourth quarter built the lead back to 20 points, 60-40, and they cruised from there.
Jackson Newman played a strong all-around game for Williamston with nine points, five rebounds and two steals. The Hornets finished with a commanding 42-20 advantage in points in the paint.
Freeland (25-1), which won its first Regional championship since 1971 and made its first-ever trip to the Semifinals, was paced by senior Bryson Huckeby’s 19 points and seven rebounds.
“Coach (John Fattal) has been telling us all year, like when we were 10-0 and kept winning, that we hadn’t arrived yet,” said Huckeby. “Well, when I stepped out on this court and saw all of those people there to support us, I knew we had arrived. That atmosphere tonight is something that I will never forget.”
Jacob Kundinger scored 10 points for the Falcons, and center Alex Duley contributed five points, four assists and three steals.
The stage is now set for an epic Division 2 Final game which will be a contrast in styles. Williamston likes to play a more controlled game and has won all 26 with precision half-court execution, while GRCC never stops running.
“We’ve prided ourselves on defense all year, but tomorrow night will be our greatest challenge by far in that department,” said sixth-year Williamston coach Tom Lewis. “We have to get back in transition because they just go, go, go. We have to limit their runs.”
PHOTOS (Top) Williamston's Max Burton extends his reach as Freeland's Alex Duley (24) attempts to direct a shot around him. (Middle) The Hornets' Mason Docks gets to the basket Friday. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)