Freshman Flynn Has Harbor Springs Hoops Taking Flight Again
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
December 17, 2021
Kalkaska and the rest of the Lake Michigan Conference may not know much of the basketball family history of Harbor Springs point guard Olivia Flynn.
But likely they know all of her high school basketball history.
Flynn, just a freshman for the Rams, has already racked up three 30-point plus performances – over just five career games – entering tonight’s LMC game at home with the Blazers. The Rams are off to a 5-0 start under first year coach Amy Flynn, also the mother of the Rams’ emerging star.
And, the Harbor Spring boys are off to a 3-1 start under first year coach John Flynn, Olivia’s father. The boys suffered their first loss Thursday, to Kalkaska, 51-48.
Last year, Olivia was an eighth grader at Petoskey. She transferred to Harbor to be a part of the growing Flynn family basketball history. Her grandfather, Joe Flynn, is a member of the Harbor Springs High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
Joe Flynn began working for Harbor Springs schools in 1968 as a middle school social studies teacher. He left a lasting impression shaping and molding many Harbor student athletes’ lives during a career spanning more than 30 years.
John Flynn starred for the Petoskey boys basketball team for three years and coached the Northmen the last three seasons. He’s a member of the Petoskey High School Athletic Hall of Fame and the Northmen went 43-16 under his guidance. But he grew up and spent most of his years in Harbor Springs.
The Rams girls varsity helm is Amy Flynn’s first high school head coaching job. But she’s no stranger to coaching youth basketball, and both she and John played at Grand Valley State. She and her husband also coached at East Grand Rapids High School.
Olivia urged her mom to apply for the Rams vacancy, knowing of her 1995-1999 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference record-setting basketball career and all the knowledge she had gained from her mother’s previous experience.
“I wouldn’t want anyone else besides my mom coaching,” Olivia said matter-of-factly. “My mom’s always been there to help me get better.
“She has high expectations of me, so there is no other coach I would want.”
The 30-point performances, the most recent 38 in a lopsided win over Harbor Light Christian, is putting a little pressure on the freshman star. But the first-year coach is not feeling it.
“I don’t feel like there is pressure, just because when Olivia gets out there on the court it’s just so natural,” Amy Flynn said. “There is nothing forced. The game comes to her.”
Credit for Olivia’s fast start in high school also needs to go AAU coaches Rob Ruhstorfer, Jermain Smith and Jake Voelker, both Olivia and Amy noted.
“They had a huge impact on Olivia’s career,” Amy said. “The (Michigan) Mystics have been a great team for her and all the experiences.”
Amy Flynn has watched her daughter’s growth and feels blessed to have a team of players wanting to grow in the game of basketball. Athletes with a winning attitude and desire to learn were awaiting when she took over the Rams.
“Whether she continues to score 30 points or not, her game just will come along and she will bring her teammates along with her,” Amy said. “These girls are amazing – it was all there for me — already set more or less.”
Making the move to Harbor for the Flynn coaches was the best thing for their family, which also includes their second-grade son and boys team manager Johnny, fifth-grade daughter and girls team manager Alaina, and eighth-grade son and member of the Harbor middle school basketball team, Braeden. Another factor was the boys coach’s fond memories of playing for his father.
“I was apprehensive to take this position just because I didn’t know how Olivia would feel about it,” Amy Flynn said. “When she came to me a said, ‘Mom there is a girls opening in Harbor Springs and I want you to take it,’ I said, ‘You want to transfer from Petoskey and you want me to coach … are your sure about this?’ And she said, ‘Yep, and I will learn more from you and this is something we’ll never forget.’
“My husband (John) was on the same page,” the girls coach continued. “He said, ‘These are going to be four short years of her life and our lives. We’re going to do this as a family. If you want this, we’re all in.’”
So far, Olivia is loving high school basketball at Harbor. She’s expecting more difficult challenges ahead though, as she steps on the court each night sporting her No. 33 jersey.
“I am excited I started off on this foot, but I know we have some bigger games coming up too,” she said. “So I have to dial in and focus and get prepared for those games.
“They are going to be tougher competition, so I have to get ready for those.”
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. 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) Harbor Springs’ Olivia Flynn (33) has a spring in her step as she comes off the floor during last Friday’s win over Grayling. (Middle) The Flynn family, from left: Alaina, Amy, Olivia, Braeden, John and Johnny. (Below) Olivia and Alaina share a fun moment. (Photos by Sarah Sheperd.)
Countdown to Calvin: Girls Report Week 2
December 12, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The first weeks of girls basketball season give us an opportunity to watch potential new powers emerge – and we’ve already got some candidates.
This week’s “Countdown to Calvin” – powered by MI Student Aid – is filled with teams making strong first impressions, starting with the first two victors mentioned in the “Week in Review” below that earned victories over teams that made it to the final weekend of last season.
These reports are based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com – to offer corrections, email me at [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Howell 51, Ypsilanti Arbor Prep 41 – The Highlanders moved to 4-0 and broke a 26-game regular-season winning streak for Arbor Prep, which lost last season in the Class B championship game.
2. Coldwater 42, Marshall 30 – Coldwater broke Marshall’s 42-game perfect run during the first three seasons of the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference, and after losing to the 2017 Class B semifinalist Redhawks by 15 and 24 last season.
3. East Lansing 52, DeWitt 51 – East Lansing handed DeWitt a one-point loss for the second straight meeting after doing the same in last season’s Class A District Final; DeWitt won the first meeting last season by a point.
4. Negaunee 74, Houghton 44 – The Miners moved to 4-0 with a big win over a Houghton team that won last year’s meeting by a basket and finished 21-2.
5. Flint Hamady 57, Dearborn Henry Ford Academy 38 – The Hawks are off to their usual strong start, but this one was especially impressive with Henry Ford Academy coming off 19 wins last season.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Battle Creek Harper Creek (3-0) – Harper Creek’s noticeable first week was followed by an important win Friday, 56-53 over Jackson Northwest. The Beavers finished 12-10 overall and fifth in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference last season, splitting two games with Northwest – which finished runner-up in the league. Harper Creek also opened this season with a win over St. Joseph, 17-5 last winter.
Bay City Western (3-0) – The Warriors improved from 12 to 15 wins over the last two seasons, and made the jump last winter despite an 0-2 start. Two of last December’s defeats were by 10 to Freeland and 19 to Midland; last week Western beat Freeland by two and Midland by seven.
CLASS B
Corunna (2-1) – The Cavaliers did lose to Laingsburg by five to open last week, after also losing to the Wolfpack at the start of 2016-17. But Corunna finished with a 62-57 win over Flint Beecher on Friday and also has a 17-point win so far against Birch Run, last winter’s Tri-Valley Conference East runner-up.
Gladwin (3-0) – The Flying G’s shared last season’s Jack Pine Conference title and already are off to a better start, avenging last winter’s four-point loss to Midland Bullock Creek with a 10-point win last week. Gladwin also has close victories over Farwell and Houghton Lake, the former Farwell’s only loss against three wins.
CLASS C
Marlette (3-0) – The Red Raiders play in a tough Greater Thumb Conference East that includes usual powers Sandusky and Harbor Beach, but early returns make it look like they could factor into the mix. Marlette also started 3-0 last year on the way to finishing 10-10, but last week’s 38-33 win over Millington should be a good sign of things to come.
Reese (4-0) – We point out the Rockets every season, and with good reason – they went 20-3 last winter. This opening run has included three wins by double digits including by 14 over Millington and 18 over Frankenmuth, and a five-point win last week against Class A Saginaw Arthur Hill.
CLASS D
Kingston (3-0) – Kingston has held two of its first three opponents to single-digit scoring as it looks to repeat as North Central Thumb League champion. The Cardinals went 18-3 last season and get their first chance at avenging those defeats next week against Sandusky.
Ontonagon (2-0) – The Gladiators are hoping to build off last season’s 9-12 finish after winning 16 games the winter before that. They’re off to the right start; last week’s 45-40 win over Baraga avenged an eight-point loss a year ago.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Wednesday – Portland St. Patrick (3-0) at Laingsburg (4-0) – The Shamrocks also get undefeated Pewamo-Westphalia on Friday, so this will be the first step toward seeing which of these teams will take the lead in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference.
Friday – Farmington Hills Mercy (4-0) at Bloomfield Hills Marian (3-0) – These two as usual find themselves quickly at the top of the Detroit Catholic League Central; Mercy won the league title and Marian was runner-up last season.
Friday – Flint Hamady (4-0) at Goodrich (3-1) – The only loss this season between these annual Genesee Area Conference powers was Goodrich’s to Arbor Prep two weeks ago; Goodrich was first and Hamady second in the GAC Red last season.
Saturday – Detroit Martin Luther King (0-0) vs. Detroit Country Day (1-1) at Detroit Edison – These two will meet against as part of the Best of Michigan Classic, and most seasons they are in Class A and B, respectively.
Saturday – Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (3-1) vs. Flint Carman-Ainsworth (4-0) at Detroit Edison – These two should find themselves near the top of the first state rankings in Class C and A, respectively, when polls come out next month.
PHOTO: Marlette shut down Millington for a 38-33 victory last week. (Click to see more from Varsity Monthly.)