Nouvel Sets Stage for Photo Finish
March 14, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – A photo at the Hengesbach home shows Saginaw Nouvel coach Kris and her then-seventh grade daughter Taylor hugging after the Panthers’ first MHSAA girls basketball championship, in 2007.
They’re hoping to take the same picture Saturday, but this time with mom and daughter celebrating as champions together.
Nouvel earned that opportunity Thursday with a 44-32 Semifinal win over Houghton at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center. The Panthers will play in their fourth championship game under Hengesbach and for their first title since also repeating in 2008.
“Sometimes we drive separately to practice,” Taylor Hengesbach joked about being coached by her mom. “But no, I wouldn’t ask for anything else. It’s the best experience you can have.”
“Like Taylor said, it’s surreal,” Kris Hengesbach added. “I pinch myself every day that we get to share this journey together that we’ve always talked about. It’s pretty cool.”
At that, and in typical mother-daughter fashion, Taylor told her wet-eyed mom to stop before she too broke into tears.
No doubt, Kris Hengesbach could recognize she had this kind of team on the way. The No. 4 Panthers will face No. 3 Manchester at 4 p.m. Saturday for the championship.
And Taylor's had a good idea what it would take as well.
“I remember that (2007) team being so energetic and confident,” she said. “The school was so supportive, and we couldn't have done it without those aspects. The team chemistry and the student section, and everyone being involved.”
Nouvel student cheerers traveled en masse Thursday to see the Panthers jump to an 11-0 lead over the first five minutes. Houghton played Nouvel nearly even the rest of the way, but could get only within seven of the lead.
The No. 7 Gremlins (23-3) nearly pulled closer, just missing stealing the inbounds pass after junior Elisa Jurmu’s basket with 1:34 to play made the score 40-32. Instead, Houghton didn't score again.
Junior center Rachel McInerney had 16 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks to lead the Panthers (25-2), and Hengesbach added 13 points.
Jurmu and senior guard Alexa Johnson led Houghton with 11 points each, but the Gremlins as a whole had a tough time getting established against the 6-2 McInerney in the post. Houghton was outrebounded 44-31 and shot only 20 percent from the floor while often being forced to attack from outside.
“It goes back to shooting. We missed shots we've hit throughout the season. Maybe they blocked a couple, maybe they got into our minds a little bit,” Houghton coach Julie Filpus said.
“The part that frustrated us is we feel good about our inside-outside attack. But their length affected our inside attack, and we had to rely on our perimeter (shooting). When shots don’t fall, we’re going to be in trouble.”
Nouvel has now beaten three top-10 teams during the tournament, in addition to Class B No. 1 Freeland and reigning Class D champion Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes during the regular season.
“With my experience as a coach and going through all of this, to me the key is you've got to have team leadership, and we have it. Talent obviously, and chemistry,” Kris Hengesbach said. “You can’t rely on one person every single night. We've got threats on the floor at every position, and everyone steps up every single game.
“I told them to just soak it up. It’s a special time, and they’re a special team.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Saginaw Nouvel's Taylor Hengesbach (44) drives around a Houghton defender during Thursday's Class C Semifinal. (Middle) Houghton's Alexa Johnson (13) looks for an open teammate. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Edison Follows Miss Basketball Whitehorn Back to Championship Day
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
March 18, 2022
EAST LANSING – Detroit Edison and Miss Basketball Award winner Ruby Whitehorn will try for the program’s first Division 2 title since 2019 after moving past Ludington on Friday 63-30 in a Semifinal at the Breslin Center.
The Pioneers (18-3) will face Grand Rapids West Catholic at 6:15 p.m. Saturday.
Edison was felled by the COVID-19 last season, so getting a chance to play at the Breslin meant a little more.
“I was a little nervous because I knew we hadn’t been here in a few years,’’ said coach Monique Brown. “I have a whole new team since the last time we were here. Devin (Hagemann), she has only played 10 games in the last two seasons. To be on the floor where her sister (DeeDee) plays at, I know she was a little nervous. We jumped out a little bit early, but we got a little antsy. We were able to settle down, and overplaying them we were able to pull away from them.’’
Whitehorn came out of the game with six minutes left having scored 18 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and handed out seven assists.
“The past few games I’ve learned to keep my attitude in check and trust my teammates,’’ said Whitehorn. “They have my back. It took me a little while not to get on myself when I wasn’t scoring. I realized that when I get an assist, I feel like I’m scoring. I love to rebound. That’s my big thing. It’s the most aggressive thing for me to do on the court. It’s fun to me. When you get a rebound, you look tough.
“Growing up, it was always a dream to play on Michigan State’s court. I thought since I committed somewhere else (Clemson), I thought I wouldn’t get that chance, but God has a way of making things work out.’’
Shouts of “overrated” by the Ludington student cheering section toward Whitehorn were unfounded.
Ludington (20-6) shot 53.8 percent from the field during the first half. But 17 turnovers were the reason they trailed by 13 at halftime despite Whitehorn scoring just four points over the first 16 minutes.
Edison’s quickness was disruptive, forcing the Orioles into bad decisions and 30 turnovers total for the game.
“We work on more defensive drills than anything,” said Brown. “We had a stretch where we’d play a game and not play for six or seven days or play a game and not play for 14 days. We’ve had a chance to get into a rhythm.’’
Whitehorn scored four points early in the third quarter, and Edison extended its lead to 39-21.
Edison eventually doubled the score (43-21) on a basket by Myan Cooksey.
“It wasn’t like I thought it would be,’’ Ludington’s Keelyn Laird said about going up against Whitehorn. “She can jump out of the gym. She’s a really, really good player.’’
Edison scored the first 10 points of the game, forcing Ludington coach Warren Stowe to call a timeout with 4:37 left in the first quarter.
“Tough game for us,’’ said Stowe. “We knew we were going to see an immense amount of pressure all night. We did. It’s like a leaky faucet. It’s what we try to do to teams on the west side of the state, put that type of pressure on them. It wears on you.’’
Oliva Lynn finally scored for the Orioles, after Hagemann had drained a triple, to make it 13-2.
Ludington shook off the jitters and got to within six, at 15-9 with 1:41 to go in the opening period, going inside against the Edison defense.
Ludington’s zone started to affect the Edison offense, and when RyAnn Rohrer scored four straight points the Orioles were within 17-14 with Whitehorn on the bench with two fouls a minute into in the second quarter. The 6-foot-3 Laird made her presence felt inside, scoring a rebound basket a minute later to make it a one-point game, 17-16.
Edison promptly went on a 13-1 spurt to take a 30-17 advantage, and led 32-19 at halftime.
Rohrer scored 11 points during the first half and led the Orioles with 15. Madisen Wardell added 10 points and four steals for the Pioneers.
PHOTOS (Top) Detroit Edison’s Ruby Whitehorn makes a move toward the hoop as Ludington's RyAnn Rohrer (5) defends Friday. (Middle) Madisen Wardell (15) gets up a shot during her team’s Division 2 Semifinal win. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)