Saints Hold On to Earn Chance at Perfection

March 21, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

GRAND RAPIDS – Dorene Ingalls has coached more great teams than most over 20 seasons leading the St. Ignace girls basketball program.

But it doesn’t take long to tell how much she’s enjoyed guiding this one.

There are plenty of reasons why – these Saints are selfless. They’re one of the hardest-working teams she’s coached. And they are just plain nice.

And like St. Ignace teams of the long and recent past, they know how to close out wins – and showed how again in holding on against senior-dominated Kingston 48-44 in Thursday’s first Division 4 Semifinal.  

“We wanted it really bad,” Saints sophomore guard Hallie Marshall said. “We wanted it for our seniors, and our team – it’s a special group this year.”

It’s also the first with a chance to finish 28-0 – only 18 teams have achieved that record – and the Saints will get that chance against either Adrian Lenawee Christian or Fowler in Saturday’s 10 a.m. championship game.

St. Ignace has won five Finals titles under Ingalls, including back-to-back to end her first two seasons running the show. The 2013 team finished 27-0 with only two District games on its tournament path.

It took a classic effort to earn this opportunity against a Kingston team also enjoying a historic run.

These Cardinals were the first in school hoops history, girls or boys, to reach the Semifinals. And led by an all-senior starting lineup, they didn’t show any intimidation taking on an annual state power with more history on the line.

The Saints got the lead up to seven multiple times during the first half, but Kingston got the margin back to four by the break. St. Ignace led by as many as 12, at 3:19 to play in the third quarter, but the Cardinals got within two twice during the final two minutes. Marshall had a three-point play – basket and free throw – the first time, and freshman guard Ally Schultz hit two free throws the second to establish the final margin.

Senior forward Carley Smith had 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Cardinals, and senior guard Lily Lyons added 12 points.

“When you’ve got seniors playing basketball as long as they have, they trust in each other,” Kingston coach Jay Green said. “What makes this team special is their teamwork.

“These guys work well together and know how to accentuate each other’s positives and make up for if they are lacking stuff in their game. I’m not surprised at all they came out with the confidence they had. These girls are special and proved it today – and we’re almost there.”

Senior Emily Coveyou scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Saints. Marshall had 14 points as one of only two players to make more than 50 percent of her shots from the floor.

Coveyou is battling through exertional compartment syndrome, an exercise-induced muscle and nerve condition that causes pain, swelling and sometimes disability as described by the Mayo Clinic. But averaging a team-high 22.9 ppg entering the week, she has St. Ignace on the verge of what would be its fourth title this decade and first since 2015.

“We had six players make over 15,000 shots before the season started and Coveyou is probably closer to 20,000,” said Ingalls, at the postgame press conference with her leading scorer. “Coveyou is playing at sub-70 percent. She’s just a warrior. It’s progressively getting worse every week we go.

“But we have only one more game sweetheart. I’m proud of you – you’ve willed your way.”

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS: (Top) St. Ignace’s Emily Coveyou makes a move toward the basket during Thursday’s Division 4 Semifinal. (Middle) Kingston’s Gerilyn Carpenter looks for a teammate while Ally Schultz defends.

Long Wait Ends as Fowler Returns to Finals

By Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com

April 7, 2021

GRAND RAPIDS – It took a couple years, but the wait was worth it for Fowler's girls basketball team.

The Eagles finally closed the book on a disappointing Quarterfinal loss two years ago to stun unbeaten Carney-Nadeau 61-37 in Wednesday's first Division 4 Semifinal at Van Andel Arena.

Fowler junior guard Mia Riley said her teammates had not forgotten a 57-36 Quarterfinal loss to Adrian Lenawee Christian in 2019, a loss which capped a 17-win season. The players used that memory to pound their way into their first Girls Basketball Final since finishing Class D runner-up in 1999.

"We've been waiting, just itching to get back,"  Riley said. "It was always in the back of our minds, and now it's just a great feeling."

The win snapped a 22-game winning streak for Carney-Nadeau, which had won its previous five tournament games by an average of 19 points per contest. No team had come as close as eight points to beating the Wolves this season.

But Fowler (15-4) never trailed after a layup by Avery Koenigsknecht snapped a 10-10 tie with 1:21 left in the first quarter. Fowler upped the lead to 33-17 at the half and 49-28 at the end of three quarters.

The win sent Fowler (15-4) into Friday's 10 a.m. Final against Bellaire at the Breslin Center.

Eagles coach Nathan Goerge said there was little to complain about after his team forced a whopping  31 turnovers, including 16 in the first half. That defense, which featured five players with at least three steals, was largely responsible for Carney-Nadeau attempting 28 fewer field goals (59-31).

2021 Division 4 Girls Basketball Semifinal - Fowler

"The execution was absolutely awesome. We had some breakdowns, but none that really hurt us," Goerge said. "We're a tough team to beat when we spread the floor and make shots. We always tell the girls when you have a shot, it's going up. We have a lot of good shooters on this team."

Fowler overcame missing its first nine 3-pointers to land three players in double figures while shooting 37 percent (22 of 59) from the floor.

Sisters Emma and Mia Riley head the list of good shooters. Mia, a junior guard, finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, four assists and four steals. Emma, a sophomore guard, added 18 points and eight steals. Emma Halfmann had 11 points.

Carney-Nadeau was led by Tessa Wagner's 21 points and eight rebounds. Taylor Kedsch added 10 points.

"We've handled the press well, but this was something new for us," Kedsch said.

Wolves coach Ken Lindor said the turnovers made it difficult for the team to sustain much consistency on offense.

"We just really struggled with their pressure," Lindor said. "They pushed us out on offense. We were okay shooting the ball (48 percent), but we had too many unforced turnovers that we don't normally make. We just couldn't get in a flow. They had good ball pressure and took away the passing lanes. We didn't move as well as we usually do; there was a lot of standing around.

"We haven't been this far in 20 years, and one of our goals was to get here,” he added. “We met that goal, and that was pretty special."

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS: (Top) Fowler's Mia Riley looks for an opening with Carney-Nadeau's Shae Linder defending. (Middle) Emma Riley brings the ball upcourt with teammate Emma Halfmann at her side . (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)