Class C-D Preview: Pursuing perfection
March 18, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A pair of undefeated teams from Class C and D will play for their first MHSAA girls basketball championships this weekend.
Laingsburg, in Class C, and Class D Pittsford also won their first Regional titles on the way and are joined by two others hoping to reach championship games Saturday at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center for the first time in their programs’ histories.
But standing in the way are a three-time champ in Class C and three teams with a combined nine titles seeking to win again in Class D.
All four Class C and D Semifinals will be played Thursday, with all four championship games Saturday.
Semifinals - Thursday
Class C
Calumet (22-2) vs Laingsburg (26-0), 1 p.m.
Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (22-3) vs Flint Hamady (25-1), 2:50 p.m.
Class D
Pittsford (25-0) vs Waterford Our Lady (12-12), 6 p.m.
Frankfort (24-1) vs St. Ignace (20-5), 7:50 p.m.
Finals - Saturday
Class A - Noon
Class B - 6 pm
Class C - 4 pm
Class D - 10 am
Tickets cost $8 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session. All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.TV on a pay-per-view basis. All four Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit, the Class D, A and C title games on FOX Sports Detroit's primary channel and the Class B game on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
And now, a look at the semifinalists in Class C and D. Click on the name of the school to see that team’s full schedule and results from this season. (Statistics are through teams' Regional Finals.)
Class C
CALUMET
Record/rank: 22-2, unranked.
League finish: Second in Western Peninsula Athletic Conference.
Coach: Jeff Twardzik, first season (22-2).
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 43-37, 53-36 and 45-37 (District Final) over Hancock, 46-23 over Tawas in the Quarterfinal.
Players to watch: Lexie Rowe, 5-5 sr. G (11 ppg, 2.7 spg); Ellen Twardzik, 5-10 sr. C (9.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg).
Outlook: Calumet is making its first Semifinal appearance after playing in its first Quarterfinal since 1977. The Copper Kings are only a pair of losses to Class B and league rival Houghton from a perfect record. Seven seniors lead a veteran group, with four in the starting lineup. Junior Clara Loukus adds 7.6 points and 3.1 assists per game. Twardzik took over the varsity after previously leading the junior varsity to a 38-0 mark.
FLINT HAMADY
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 5.
League finish: First in Genesee Area Conference Blue.
Coach: Keith Smith, 13th season (292-38).
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent Class C 2010), one runner-up finish.
Best wins: 44-42 over No. 10 Saginaw Nouvel in the Quarterfinal, 42-26 over honorable mention Sandusky in the Regional Semifinal, 45-33 over honorable mention Flint Beecher in the District Final, 54-29 and 44-32 over Class D No. 9 Morrice.
Players to watch: Jalisha Terry, 5-7 jr. G; Aaliah Hill, 5-9 sr. C (statistics not provided).
Outlook: Hamady is back at the Semifinals for the first time since 2011 after winning back-to-back championships in 2009 and 2010. The Hawks again cruised through the GAC Blue for their sixth league title in seven seasons, and fell only to Class B semifinalist Detroit Country Day. Terry is a three-year varsity player at the point and one of the state’s top juniors, and she and Hill are surrounded by three underclassmen in the starting lineup with another freshman playing a key role off the bench.
LAINGSBURG
Record/rank: 26-0, No. 1.
League finish: First in Central Michigan Athletic Conference.
Coach: Doug Hurst, third season (55-15).
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 33-26 over No. 2 Niles Brandywine in the Quarterfinal, 40-29 over Morley Stanwood in the Regional Final, 33-24 over Kent City in the Regional Semifinal, 28-17 over No. 10 Carson City-Crystal in the District Final, 32-26 (District opener), 36-33 and 39-29 over Pewamo-Westphalia.
Players to watch: Lindsey Smith, 5-7 jr. F (11.2 ppg, 2.4 spg, 41 3-pointers); Julia Angst, 5-4 jr. G (8.0 ppg, 2.8 apg).
Outlook: Although Laingsburg has had nice seasons playing in a league that includes multiple previous MHSAA champions, this clearly has been the Wolfpack’s best run. The juniors above are the leading scorers but surrounded by three seniors in a starting lineup that is balanced not just in putting points on the board but rebounding and defensively as well – four players have between 54-64 steals and seven have grabbed at least 50 rebounds.
YPSILANTI ARBOR PREP
Record/rank: 22-3, tied for No. 3.
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Rod Wells, fourth season (78-14).
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 59-39 over No. 8 Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett in the Regional Final, 58-38 over No. 6 Blissfield in the Regional Semifinal, 59-55 over Class B No. 3 Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 54-39 over Class B No. 6 Detroit Country Day.
Players to watch: Nastassja Chambers, 5-9 jr. G (15.3 ppg, 2.1 apg, 3.7 spg); Karlee Morris, 5-11 sr. F (8.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.4 spg).
Outlook: Arbor Prep won Regional titles the last two seasons – it fell to eventual champion Eaton Rapids in last season’s Class B Quarterfinal – and is tested against some of the biggest and best in Michigan with losses to Class A Southfield-Lathrup, Ann Arbor Huron and Bloomfield Hills Marian. Five players score at least six points per game, with senior guard Payton Sims adding eight points per and making 44 3-pointers heading into the week.
Class D
FRANKFORT
Record/rank: 24-1, No. 1.
League finish: First in Northwest Conference.
Coach: Tim Reznich, 13th season (236-72).
Championship history: Class D champions 2006 and 2005.
Best wins: 49-42 over No. 7 Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in the Quarterfinal, 52-30 over No. 3 Bellaire in the Regional Final, 61-38 over St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran.
Players to watch: Mackenna Kelly, 5-10 jr. G (17.1 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 3.0 apg, 2.3 spg); Cecelia Schmitt, 5-10 soph. G (13.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg).
Outlook: Frankfort emerged from a 10-11 record only two seasons ago to go a combined 47-3 over the last two – and knocked off reigning champion Sacred Heart to reach its first Finals weekend since winning the back-to-back titles. The only loss was in December to Portland, a Class B District finalist. Kelly and Schmitt are strong shooters – Schmitt better than 50 percent from 3-point range – and Kelly gets plenty of rebounding help from seniors Shayla Soto (9.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.1 apg) and Madison Stefanski (4.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg).
PITTSFORD
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 2.
League finish: First in Southern Central Athletic Association East.
Coach: Chris Hodos, third season (63-7).
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 65-20 over No. 9 Morrice in the Regional Final, 50-45 over St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran in the Quarterfinal, 47-39 over Manchester.
Players to watch: Maddie Clark, 5-9 soph. F (19.4 ppg, 10 rpg, 4.0 spg, 1.4 bpg); Jaycie Burger, 5-9 soph. G (17.9 ppg, 6.5 apg, 3.9 spg).
Outlook: Pittsford has gotten here in part with an incredible defensive effort. The Wildcats are giving up an average of 27.6 points per game during the postseason and total have kept opponents under 30 points 18 times this winter. Only four of 13 players are upperclassmen, making this potentially the first of a few impressive runs to come.
ST. IGNACE
Record/rank: 20-5, No. 6.
League finish: First in Straits Area Conference.
Coach: Dorene Ingalls, 16th season (335-65).
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent Class D 2013), three runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 66-51 over No. 10 Crystal Falls Forest Park in the Quarterfinal, 81-51 over Hillman in the Regional Final, 55-40 over Cedarville, 52-48 and 56-35 over Sault Ste. Marie.
Players to watch: Margo Brown, 5-7 sr. G (13.8 ppg, 3.2 apg, 3.4 spg, 51 3-pointers); Abbey Ostman, 5-9 jr. G/F (16.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 3.8 apg, 4.0 spg).
Outlook: Class C or D matters not to the Saints; they’ve made six straight Finals weekends and played in two straight championship games, finishing as runner-up in Class C a year ago. Ostman and Smith also started last season and 6-0 senior center Sarah Smith played the most minutes off the bench in the Final; she’s averaging 8.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. St. Ignace has won 10 straight since falling to Class A Gaylord on Feb. 2, and all five of its losses were to bigger schools.
WATERFORD OUR LADY
Record/rank: 12-12, unranked.
League finish: Third in Detroit Catholic League East.
Coach: Steve Robak, eighth season (147-52).
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2012), one runner-up finish.
Best wins: 38-35 over honorable mention Birmingham Roeper in the Regional Semifinal, 39-36 over Kingston in the Quarterfinal, 46-44 over Allen Park Inter-City Baptist in the Regional Final.
Players to watch: Tiffany Senerius, 5-8 fr. G (10.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg); Alex Troy, 5-6 jr. G (10.1 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 2.8 apg).
Outlook: Our Lady is in the rare situation as a surprise at the Finals – the Lakers won three straight titles and then finished runner-up from 2010-13 before falling to 8-13 a year ago. They’ve been revived with two freshmen starters and a sophomore in the playing group to go with three junior starters. This weekend will continue to provide valuable experience for a lineup that has gone 8-4 over its last 12 games.
PHOTO: Clara Loukus (10) stands in the way of a Hancock ball handler during Calumet's District championship win. (Photo courtesy of Calumet High School.)
Few in Number, Tecumseh Pursuing Sizable Success with Zajacs Setting Pace
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
December 5, 2023
TECUMSEH – First, the good news: Nearly everyone on the Tecumseh girls basketball team has aspirations to play college basketball – and several of them at a very high level.
Now, the twist: There are only eight girls in the entire program.
Tecumseh head coach Kristy Zajac, starting her seventh season, is unfazed by the lack of numbers. Tecumseh will field just a varsity team this season but should contend for a Southeastern Conference White championship and pursue a deep playoff run as well.
“This is a great group of girls,” Zajac said. “At least six or seven of them want to play college basketball. The basketball IQ is so much higher than we have had in the past. We’ve never had a full team of basketball-first kids.”
Zajac said that dynamic has changed practices and the approach on the court.
“We do a lot more high-level skill stuff and high-level thinking,” she said. “We do more read-and-react stuff where they have to play on the fly, which makes us harder to scout. We want to try and give the kids a chance to use that basketball IQ and make opportunities for themselves on the floor so they can score without having to run a set play.”
The list of college prospects starts with her daughter, 6-foot-2 junior Alli Zajac. She holds about 15 Division I offers, and the list seems to grow daily.
She’s been receiving recruiting attention since before she played a game in high school. As a freshman, she was the Lenawee County Player of the Year and has been all-state both of her first two seasons. Last winter, she scored 433 points as Tecumseh went 20-5.
Her sister, Addi Zajac, hasn’t played a varsity game yet but has received a lot of attention as well as a college prospect after several great years of travel ball. She’s 6-foot and a true center.
“She wears a size 14 shoe,” Zajac said. “We are hoping next year she is 6-3 or 6-4. She has such a strong body; I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anyone that strong at her age. She can push people around.”
The sisters are very different types of players. They also are extremely competitive, as witnessed when they play 1-on-1 at home.
“It usually ends in a fistfight,” Zajac said. “They are both very competitive.”
The team is loaded with more talent than just the Zajac sisters.
Sophomore Makayla Schlorf made 28 3-pointers last season, and sophomore Chloe Bollinger made 26. Junior Ashlyn Moorhead averaged just under double figures in scoring and averaged 3.7 assists a game last year. Junior Lauren Kilbarger also is back from last season and joined by newcomers Faith Wiedyk, a junior, sophomore Sophia Torres and freshman Amaria Brown.
Maddie VanBlack is another travel ball veteran but is out this season due to tearing an ACL.
Tecumseh athletic director Jon Zajac – Kristy’s husband – said it is disappointing Tecumseh won’t field a junior varsity team this year. He said kids playing travel ball in other sports, along with the youth of the current team, are factors.
“It is frustrating,” he said. “Hopefully this is the only year for that.”
Kristy (Maska) Zajac grew up near Tecumseh in Britton, played four years on the varsity and scored more than 1,800 career points under coach Bart Bartels, now an assistant on her staff. She played at Eastern Michigan University, where she was one of the top scorers in school history. Jon Zajac, played at EMU and professionally overseas.
The entire family is crazy about basketball. In addition to Alli and Addi, son Ryder played four years at Tecumseh before heading off to college to play football, and the youngest in the family, Avery, is a budding star in her own right.
“There were a few travel games this year where my team was short on numbers and Avery got to play with Addi and Alli,” Kristy Zajac said. “That was cool to see. She held her own. She won’t get to play with Alli in high school (Avery is in seventh grade), but she’ll get two years with Addi. I got to play with my sister, and I wouldn’t trade that time for anything.”
Jon Zajac stops by practice now and then to coach as well. He and Kristy coach Avery’s travel team.
“He is a great person to have as part of the program,” Kristy Zajac said of her husband. “Anytime I can get him to help with the post players and with the girls is great. He’s a huge help.”
The family often schedules trips around basketball and is seemingly always pulled in multiple directions as the three girls compete at various levels.
“It’s pretty much basketball all day, every day,” Zajac said. “It’s fun to see how the kids enjoy it and love the game.”
Tecumseh, which has won a combined 39 games over the past two seasons, has loaded up its schedule, playing a collection of nonconference teams that made deep tournament runs and won conference championships last season. Tecumseh plays in the Icebreaker event at Ypsilanti Arbor Prep against Detroit Country Day on Saturday and also faces Temperance-Bedford (23-1 last season), reigning Division 3 runner-up Blissfield and Grand Blanc.
Without a senior on the team and no JV squad, Tecumseh will play essentially this group for the next 50 or more games. It’s a two-year window with virtually the same team.
“We’re doing what we can to win this year,” Zajac said. “We want this year to be super successful. We are just taking it one game at a time and going from there. We want to keep building and getting better every day, every game. Hopefully by the end of next year, we’ll be where we need to be.”
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) Tecumseh’s Alli Zajac makes her move toward the lane last season against Adrian. (Middle) Kristy Zajac coaches her team, which finished 20-5 in 2022-23. (Photos by Deloris Clark-Osborne/Adrian Daily Telegram.)