Marshall Leaves No Room for Regrets
March 19, 2016
By Bill Khan
Special for Second Half
EAST LANSING — Sal Konkle couldn't hold back the tears as she watched her Marshall basketball players celebrate the fulfillment of a dream that appeared to vanish 35 years ago.
Konkle was a star senior on the only other Marshall team to play for an MHSAA championship, but she was on the losing end of a 64-52 decision to Okemos in the 1981 Class B title game.
In almost every case, that's where the dream ends. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes and goes. High school athletes move on with the rest of their lives, but can have lingering regrets about the championship that got away.
The first step toward redemption for Konkle occurred back in 1999 when she became Marshall's head coach and won her first 23 games. But 11 District championship teams in her first 15 seasons couldn't take it all the way.
Her 16th season proved to be the sweetest, as Marshall beat Grand Rapids South Christian, 51-42, in the Class B championship game Saturday night at the Breslin Center.
"I got numerous texts from former teammates saying we can do it," Konkle said. "One is in the stands. She called me this morning. She said to me, 'Hey, I know you're busy, and I'll be there, but not a lot of people get do-overs in life, and you got a do-over. So, can you just make this happen?' I got a text from coach (Tom) Duffey, who was my coach at the time. He said, 'Second time's a charm; you've got this.'"
Making the championship even more special for Konkle is she was able to achieve it with her 14 daughters — her actual flesh and blood, junior guard Jill Konkle, and 13 other girls she regards as adopted children.
"They're kind of all my girls," coach Konkle said. "When you grow up in a small town, these kids are over at your house. Jill hangs out with them. They go to proms. They do everything together. That's what makes it so special for us. These kids are close. This is something they're going to remember the rest of their lives. I remember doing it with my best friends. It's just very, very special."
Jill Konkle said her mother doesn't bring up tales of her glory days or the opportunity that got away in 1981 often, but the topic came to the forefront more in recent weeks as the current group of Marshall players chased that elusive championship. This year's team and the 1981 squad are the only ones from Marshall to get past the MHSAA Quarterfinals.
"Only because we got this far did we talk about it more," said Jill Konkle, who scored a team-high 13 points against South Christian. "Other than that, not as much. She did bring it up with the team a bit. We talked about it the last couple of weeks quite a bit. I was always telling her, 'I'm gonna get it. I'm gonna beat you,' and I did."
Marshall won the Class B title with a group of girls who have played together since their early elementary school years. It was back in those formative years that they became acquainted with the woman who would coach them to a championship as teenagers.
"We all have this respect for her," said Emily Delmotte, the only senior on the team. "I've had it since I was little, watching her teams since I can remember. She's always been a presence. It's not like the kind of coach that as soon as you get into high school is the first time you meet her. In basketball, the first time I met her was in first or second grade. She makes herself present. She's a part of the program, no matter what age you are."
Coach Konkle's pregame message to her team hinted at the lingering pain of that 1981 loss.
"I told them, 'You can do anything for 32 minutes,'" she said. "'If you do this for 32 minutes, you're going to be state champions. If you don't do it for 32 minutes, you're going to regret that for the rest of your life.' Every timeout, every quarter, I'm telling them, 'Eight more minutes, eight more minutes, you've got this. Or 3:20, you've got this.' They're a resilient group. They're a hard-working group — and they got this."
With the largest cheering section of the weekend in their corner, the Redhawks took the lead with 2:01 left in the first quarter and never relinquished it. Marshall built a 12-point lead late in the first half before taking a 25-15 advantage into the break.
When Nicole Tucker scored on the fast break with 4:24 left in the third quarter, Marshall had its biggest lead of the night at 33-19.
South Christian, which had three seniors who played on the 2014 MHSAA runner-up team, battled back. A basket by Mariel Bruxvoort with 6:44 left in the game cut Marshall's lead to 37-32.
The Redhawks responded with a 5-0 run, all from the free throw line, to go up 42-32. What could have been a key moment for the Sailors came when Markayla Vander made a free throw and missed the second one, only to have Bruxvoort score off an offensive rebound and get fouled. When Bruxvoort made the free throw, South Christian had four points in a one-second span to get within 42-36 with 3:38 left.
The Sailors didn't get a chance to build on that momentum, as Taryn Long made a 3-point play with 3:10 left to put Marshall up 45-36. South Christian couldn't put together consecutive scores the rest of the game.
"It took us a little while to get into an offensive flow," South Christian coach Kim Legge said. "Actually, I'm not really sure we did get into an offensive flow. Marshall did a good job with their defense on us. Obviously, they had scouted well. We've been behind before and usually can make runs, but they did an excellent job of stopping that. The momentum never did swing to our favor."
Taryn Long finished with 10 points and Carlee Long had five assists for Marshall (26-1), which won its final 26 games after a season-opening 40-33 loss to Williamston.
Vander had 16 points and Jennifer DeBoer 13 for the Sailors (25-3), who had only four players score. Vander, DeBoer and Sydney DeYoung were the only holdovers from the 2014 South Christian team that went into the Class B title game with a 26-0 record before losing to Eaton Rapids.
"It's definitely been a fun four years," DeBoer said. "I've enjoyed every second of the experience. I think the thing I'm going to miss the most are my teammates and all the memories we made. I'll never get these experiences back, so I'm just really thankful for them."
The Girls Basketball Finals are presented by Sparrow Health System.
PHOTOS: (Top) Marshall players storm the floor while coach Sal Konkle, far left, covers her face for a moment after her team had clinched the Class B title. (Middle) Jill Konkle works to hold onto the ball with South Christian’s Jennifer DeBoer (4) trying to gain possession.
Breslin Bound: 2022-23 Girls Report Week 12
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 20, 2023
The seeds for this season’s District brackets are set as nearly 700 Michigan girls basketball teams are finishing up their regular seasons this week in advance of the playoffs beginning Feb. 27.
Brackets were seeded and filled Sunday, and published here for all four divisions:
Division 1 | Division 2 | Division 3 | Division 4
This will be the last of our regular-season “Breslin Bound” reports, as next week we switch the format up a bit while previewing several of the strongest Districts across the state.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 41, Farmington Hills Mercy 27 The Irish (17-3) won the season series with Mercy (17-3), following up their league schedule split with this victory in the Detroit Catholic League Bishop championship game.
2. Grosse Pointe North 36, Utica Ford 28 A Feb. 7 matchup was canceled, but these league champions met after all as North (17-2) claimed the Macomb Area Conference Red/White Tournament title against the Falcons (17-2).
3. Dansville 43, Fowler 38 (OT) The Aggies (17-1) clinched a share of the Central Michigan Athletic Conference championship in memorable fashion by completing a regular-season sweep of the two-time reigning Division 4 champion Eagles (13-7).
4. Frankenmuth 46, Freeland 39 (OT) The Eagles (17-2) ran their Tri-Valley Conference 8 winning streak to 41 in clinching a share of a third-straight league title, with their last TVC loss coming in 2020 to the Falcons (15-5).
5. Rockford 50, Haslett 36 This matchup of league champions saw Rockford move to 19-1 in handing Haslett (20-1) its only defeat.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Coldwater (19-1) The Cardinals made a jump from three wins just two seasons ago to 12-10 last winter and now near-perfect and in position to at least share the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference championship. Coldwater avenged that lone loss, 50-46 to Jackson Northwest on Jan. 10, with a 57-51 victory Feb. 7. Those two are tied for the league lead with two games left to play for both. Coldwater also earned the top seed at the Battle Creek Lakeview District.
North Farmington (20-0) The Raiders are another notable story of a quick turnaround as they’ve gone from six wins two seasons ago to 12-9 last winter to undefeated. They lead the Oakland Activities Association White by a game over Oxford and face the Wildcats on Tuesday with an opportunity to clinch the championship outright. North Farmington also earned the second seed in the District it will be hosting next week.
DIVISION 2
Marysville (16-4) The Vikings have won 11 of their last 12 games, along the way clinching the MAC Blue championship and winning the MAC Blue/Gold Tournament last week with a 41-22 victory over Marine City (15-4). Marysville also avenged an early loss to St. Clair (14-6) in the tournament semifinal, and earned the top seed in the District hosted by Armada as the Vikings seek to build on last year’s Quarterfinal run.
Wayland (17-3) The Wildcats had averaged nearly 14 wins over the last three seasons, so they’ve grown accustomed to being in the mix. But this winter has seen another step forward, as Wayland has won 13 of its last 14 games and clinched a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold title with a 46-39 victory Friday over Grand Rapids South Christian – which had handed the Wildcats their most recent defeat, 54-48 on Jan. 20. Wayland also earned a top District seed, at Hopkins, with its only other losses to Byron Center (17-3) and Grand Rapids West Catholic (19-0).
DIVISION 3
Ithaca (17-3) The Yellowjackets have bounced back from a two-game stumble near the end of January to earn a chance to clinch a share of the Tri-Valley Conference 10-2 title Friday. They’re tied atop the league with Saginaw Valley Lutheran – with which they split their regular-season series – and Ithaca earned the second seed in one of the strongest Districts in Division 3, at Bath. Ithaca is up to No. 9 overall in Division 3 MPR, with wins over Valley Lutheran (17-3) and Standish-Sterling (17-3) among 10 total over teams with winning records.
Watervliet (16-4) The Panthers finished a perfect run through the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore last week with a second win over Bridgman (15-4), with that pair and another over SAC Central champion Martin (15-4) among the most notable victories next also to strong losses to Buchanan (18-1), Benton Harbor (13-8), Kalamazoo Christian (17-3) and Stevensville Lakeshore (14-5). Watervliet will be the top seed next week at Bloomingdale.
DIVISION 4
Ontonagon (15-5) The Gladiators have won 15 games for the second-straight season and at least 13 for the fifth consecutive, and they’ve clinched a title share of the Porcupine Mountain division of the Copper Mountain Conference. Ontonagon is the top seed at next week’s District at Bessemer and is 9-0 this season against the other teams in the bracket, with a pair of wins over second seed Ewen-Trout Creek part of the team’s best work. The Gladiators also have a sweep of Lake Linden-Hubbell (15-5) and notable losses to Baraga (16-4) twice, Hancock (17-1) and Calumet (15-4).
Petersburg Summerfield (18-2) A 46-28 win over Morenci on Thursday avenged a 48-41 loss from Jan. 17 and locked up a shared Tri-County Conference championship between the two. Summerfield also sits No. 15 overall in Division 4 MPR and is the top seed at next week’s District at Britton Deerfield. The Bulldogs’ only other loss this season was to Division 2 Ida, 50-42 on Dec. 6, and they defeated Manchester and East Jackson at the end of that month to win Adrian College’s holiday tournament.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Holt (17-3) at DeWitt (18-2) – The Rams own a share of the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue title thanks to a 55-53 win over the Panthers from Jan. 31, but DeWitt still has a chance to earn a share as well.
Thursday – Lake City (19-1) at McBain (16-4) – Three teams still have a chance to earn a piece of the Highland Conference title, with this matchup determining if Lake City claims it outright or shares it with McBain and Evart.
Thursday – Wixom St. Catherine (19-1) at Riverview (18-2) – These two will get some more valuable postseason prep with Riverview No. 16 in Division 1 MPR and St. Catherine No. 7 in Division 2.
Thursday – Detroit Renaissance (18-0) at Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (17-3) – The champions of the Detroit Public School League and Catholic League Bishop tournaments, respectively, meet in the annual Operation Friendship game.
Thursday – Farwell (16-4) at Sanford Meridian (18-1) – Should both win (or both lose) Tuesday, this will determine if Meridian wins the Jack Pine Conference title outright or shares it with the Eagles.
MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO North Farmington's Penelope Creary (3) brings the ball upcourt during her team's Feb. 16 win over Rochester Adams. (Photo courtesy of the North Farmington athletic department.)