Martians Claim Class B Over Rival Powers

March 16, 2013

By Bill Khan
Special to Second Half

EAST LANSING — To coach Jason Gray’s left sat Taylor Gleason, still in her Goodrich basketball uniform, but already representing the past for the Martians’ program just moments after her final high school game.

To his right in the postgame press conference sat sophomore Tania Davis, a living, breathing reminder that Goodrich’s future could be every bit as great as the immediate past.

Davis scored a game-high 20 points, as Goodrich became only the fourth school to win back-to-back MHSAA Class B Finals championships with a 51-34 victory over local rival Flint Powers Catholic on Saturday night at the Breslin Center.

Gleason, the Miss Basketball runner-up who has signed with the University of Illinois, capped a spectacular four-year career with 14 points, six steals and five assists. Goodrich never advanced beyond the Quarterfinals until Gleason came along. The Martians lost in double overtime in the Semifinals two years ago before joining traditional heavyweights Powers, Detroit Country Day and Dearborn Divine Child as the only schools with consecutive Class B titles.

Asked what to expect from Goodrich in the coming years, Davis didn’t hesitate to offer this prediction: “More championships, of course.”

Why not?

Davis emerged as a team leader ahead of schedule when Penn State recruit KeKe Sevillian missed the entire season with an injury. Davis, who started as a freshman, averaged 17.6 points as the number two scorer behind Gleason’s 21.6 average.

“I think I’ve grown up a lot,” Davis said. “I learned from KeKe and Taylor. When (Sevillian) went down, I knew I had to step up tremendously and be a leader and take her position on the team, and
also do my part.”

In Gleason and Davis, Gray said Goodrich had the best backcourt tandemin the state.

Their chemistry was evident on one play in particular. Gleason stole the ball and led a full-court break, dishing a behind-the-back pass to Davis, who caught the ball in stride and made the easy basket with
4:46 left in the second quarter.

“I love playing with Taylor,” Davis said. “I’ve played with her basically my entire life. I know everything she’s going to do. She knows everything I’m going to do. The behind-the-back passes, she knows when they’re coming and I know when they’re coming. It’s awesome.”

Goodrich had a strong program before Gleason arrived, but went to a higher level under her watch. The Martians were 101-7 during her career, making three trips to the Breslin Center. Perhaps just as
important as the MHSAA championships in the psyche of long-suffering Goodrich fans, the Martians beat Powers in the postseason all four years.

The Chargers had been a perennial roadblock for Goodrich, beating the Martians in all eight of the rivals’ tournament meetings over a 12-season span from 1997-2009. Goodrich eliminated Powers in the
Districts the last three seasons before new District boundaries separated the Flint-area schools until the Finals.

“I’ve been very fortunate to play with a team as talented as I have these last four years,” Gleason said. “I couldn’t imagine playing with anybody else. The experiences I’ve had with this team and this program
have been unforgettable.”

As for playing Powers in the MHSAA Finals instead of the Districts,  Gleason said: “It was really cool, knowing that Powers has been here multiple times before. My aunt (all-stater Aimee Pearson) carried that
on. It was really cool for my family.”

Powers has four MHSAA Finals championships on its resume, but this was a surprise postseason run for the unranked Chargers after a 3-5 start. Powers (21-7) beat two state-ranked teams along the way in Freeland and Detroit Country Day, but No. 3 Goodrich (25-3) took control immediately, building an insurmountable lead.

Goodrich led 15-2 after one quarter and 28-6 at halftime, as Powers shot 3 for 31 (9.7 percent) from the field. The Chargers didn’t get closer than 14 points in the second half.

“The first quarter kind of defined the tone of the game,” Powers coach Thom Staudacher said. “Once we got down that big, it was difficult for us to dig out. Going into halftime, at Powers it’s not really a guideline; it’s a rule that we’re never going to give up.”

Powers’ quest for its first MHSAA title since 2001 will continue next year with a squad that should return virtually intact. The Chargers lose only two seniors, starters Darbie Barkman and Kim Berry.

“This year was definitely one to remember,” said junior guard Ally Haran, who had nine points and five steals. “No one expected us to even make it this far. We were expected to lose in Districts. We kept pushing and pushing, knowing we could make it. We made it this far. It’s going to stay in the back of our mind that we lost this game tonight, but that’s going to push us to keep playing well and to be ready for next year.”

Junior Michela Coury grabbed 19 rebounds for Powers, while junior Sarah Ruhstorfer had nine points.

While Goodrich and Powers have a huge local rivalry, only two of the 12 postseason meetings between the teams have been decided by fewer than 15 points. The most memorable edition of the rivalry came in the
2002 Regional championship game at Imlay City, when power forward Erin Carney hit the only 3-pointer of her four-year career to beat the buzzer in Powers’ 42-41 victory.

“These last four years we’ve defeated Powers, but there’s a lot of heartbreak in a lot of Goodrich girls basketball alumni in the 10, 12 years prior to this,” Gray said. “Tania made a point that this one was for those alumni who scratched and clawed. Sometimes they challenged them, sometimes they got beat down good. It makes me happy they’re thinking big picture.”

Click for a full box score. 

PHOTOS: (Top) Goodrich's Taylor Gleason works to drive past Flint Powers' Darbie Barkman (1) during Saturday's Class B Final. (Middle) Powers' Hannah VanAlst goes up for a shot over a Goodrich defender. (Top photo by Hockey Weekly Action Photos; middle photo by HighSchoolSportsScene.com). 

Zeinstra Finishing 4-Year Byron Center Run Among School's All-Time Greats

By Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com

February 15, 2024

BYRON CENTER – As an incoming freshman four years ago, Lily Zeinstra was immediately thrust into a starting role on the Byron Center varsity girls basketball team.

West MichiganWhile it was an overwhelming experience, Zeinstra embraced the opportunity, and believes the early demands placed on her helped pave the way for what has become an outstanding high school career – and spot among the best in school history.

“My freshman year was scary,” she said. “Just coming in and starting on varsity. And in our first game, I had to guard Jillian Brown from East Grand Rapids, who was a really good player. I feel I was pushed into a big role on our team at a really early age, but I think that has helped me over the last four years to develop into the player I am today.”

Now a senior standout, the 5-foot-11 Zeinstra has been a mainstay in the Bulldogs’ starting line-up throughout while helping lead the program to four years of success.

She recently became the school’s all-time leading scorer, surpassing 1,500 points for her career.

“I have to give credit to my teammates,” Zeinstra said. “Through the years I've been in different scoring positions, but I've always been on a team that has trusted me with the ball in tight game scenarios.

“I’ve been told by my coaches since I was younger that I'm a scorer and they need me to score, and that's been my role so I feel like scoring all those points is what I needed to do to help our team win. That’s the most important part.”

Zeinstra, who committed to Division I Butler University last spring, has been the focal point every season and has enjoyed her role as a team leader. Byron Center (14-4) is a combined 68-14 over her four seasons.

“I’ve definitely learned a lot about being a leader and having different roles that I can have on teams,” she said. “Coming in freshman year, my job was to work hard and I was one of the top defenders, so I was guarding the other teams’ best players.

“As years went on, our team lacked numbers so I became more of a scorer, especially last year. I worked on posting up down low and scoring all around the basket, and this year even more trying to further my game and score better. I'm playing college basketball next year, and that’s what they need me to do.”

Zeinstra also had the opportunity to play two years at Byron Center with her older sister, Avery, who plays now at Grand Valley State.

Zienstra, left, puts up a shot against Muskegon.“I feel like I didn’t enjoy it enough when I was in it with her,” Zeinstra said. “But I loved her class so much. There were two other seniors who she played with all four years, and they were big leaders and taught me about the culture here at Byron Center. I really enjoyed playing with them.”

Zeinstra is averaging 25 points per game this season and had a career-high 39 points against Grandville in late December.

First-year Byron Center coach Cam Burns, who replaced longtime program leader Jen Slot, knew all about Zeinstra before being hired.

“I saw her on the AAU circuit and I watched her play for a couple years, and I have friends who spoke highly of her,” Burns said. “When I got the job I wanted to check her out, and I saw her pace and how she plays the game was very special.”

Burns said Zeinstra possesses unwavering confidence and the ability to score several ways.

That mentality has come from countless hours in the gym and a strong work ethic.

“She’s one of the hardest working kids in practice, and she just wants it,” he said. “And she’s a sponge, always looking at different skills and movements to try and get a better look at the rim.

“And it’s about the time and effort she puts into the little details. She makes plays, and I’m not surprised when I see something from her on the court when others are taken back by it. She continues to show why she is so good.”

The adjustment period for Zeinstra was difficult at the onset of this season.

She was getting accustomed to a new coach, as well as a new group of varsity players after the loss of several seniors.

“It was hard at the beginning because I had been running Coach Slot’s plays and offense for three years, and I knew what to expect going into every game and every practice,” Zeinstra said. “When Coach Burns came in, he brought a different vibe and a different culture, and it was the first year I had to get used to playing with new players and a new coach. I was learning things all over again.”

Zeinstra has adapted well to her new surroundings.

“It’s been going pretty good, and we had a couple big wins last week and we are in first place in our conference,” she said. “We should be able to pull another conference championship out – fingers crossed.”

The Bulldogs are chasing their fourth straight conference championship and have a one-game lead entering Friday’s Ottawa-Kent Conference White game against Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central. Their only conference loss was against Forest Hills Northern.

“It would be such a great accomplishment to win another one,” Zeinstra said. “We have had this winning culture in our program for so long, and with getting a new coach I was worried we were going to lose some of that. But I really feel like this team is buying into everything that Coach is saying and we are finally putting the pieces together and starting to win some big games.”

After a rocky start, Byron Center has adjusted well to its new coach and made giant strides. The Bulldogs dropped their first two games of the season to East Kentwood and reigning Division 1 champion Rockford, but since have won 13 of their last 15 games.

“We started out 0-2 against two of the top teams in the state, and it was just learning a new system and a new process and feeling each other out,” Burns said. “As weeks have gone by, they are starting to trust in each other and trust me. They’ve started to trust in the process.

“After that first win we got to celebrate that, and it was special. From then on we started rolling, and we’re getting better day by day, continuing to trust in one another.”

The Bulldogs also will seek a third consecutive District crown when the postseason begins in a few weeks. Zeinstra is looking forward to a potential rematch with East Kentwood.

“I want another stab at them, and we like challenges,” Zeinstra said. “We feed off that, so I feel like we have a shot to win (Districts) again.”

Dean HolzwarthDean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for five years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties. 

PHOTOS (Top) Byron Center’s Lily Zienstra considers her options during a game against Rockford. (Middle) Zienstra, left, puts up a shot against Muskegon. (Photos courtesy of the Byron Center girls basketball program.)