Still #1: Heritage Lands 2nd Straight Title
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
March 23, 2019
GRAND RAPIDS – Not often is the reigning champion the hunter and not the hunted. But that’s how the Saginaw Heritage girls basketball approached this season.
With the graduation of some key members from the 2018 Class A title team, the Hawks felt they were being overlooked.
On Saturday, they re-established themselves as the top team among the state’s largest schools, now classified as Division 1.
Behind a stifling defense, Heritage earned a second straight MHSAA title by defeating top-ranked Southfield Arts & Technology 55-40 at Van Noord Arena on the campus of Calvin College.
“If anything, we kind of felt underestimated, like a lot of people didn’t think we were going to get right back,” Heritage senior Shine Strickland-Gills said. “We lost two players, and they scored a lot … and it didn’t look like we had much coming in through the tunnel after them, so they didn’t really think we were going to go back again. But we wanted to prove them all wrong, and our whole thing was to stick together. Our end goal, everybody’s end goal, was to play in the last game and win. We just knew what we had to do, and we made sure that got done.”
It was the third MHSAA championship for the Hawks (25-2), and it seemed fitting it was this senior class that spearheaded these last two. Strickland-Gills and classmates Moira Joiner and Mallory McCartney have been playing together for more than a decade, and had predicted they could accomplish this before they got into high school.
“They were eighth graders the last time we were in a Final Four, and they all cut school and came down to the Breslin Center and watched Heritage,” Hawks coach Vonnie DeLong said. “We lost that day, and they told me that day, ‘We’re getting back here and we’re winning it, Coach.’ They made good on their promise to me.”
Heritage looked like a team that knew it was supposed to be playing in Saturday’s moment, taking control early and remaining calm and composed while clinically finishing it off.
The Hawks were hitting 50 percent of their 3-pointers at one point in the third quarter, and finished the game with 19 assists on 20 made baskets. Joiner led the way with 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, nearly matching the triple double she had in Friday’s Semifinal against Wayne Memorial. Strickland-Gills added 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists and six blocks, while junior Keyonie Champion had 12 points. McCartney added seven points, five rebounds and five assists.
“Having them be seniors, not just seniors, but having been in this game before – having been in these big games is huge,” DeLong said. “Today they just knew. I talked to them this morning and told them, ‘This is it, last time you’re ever going to play together – you're going to keep playing, but not together – and this is the last chance you got. I’m going to tell you right now, last game senior year, if you can go out a winner, that’s absolutely the way you want to go.’”
While Heritage didn’t have much trouble settling in, the Hawks made it hard for the Warriors (24-2) to do so, especially on the offensive end. They played zone and closed down on everything in the paint, forcing Southfield A&T into its worst offensive performance of the season.
It was only the second time all year the Warriors – who shot 16 of 47 (34 percent) from the field – were held below 50 points. The other time was a 45-43 loss to Heritage in the second game of the season.
“They were in a zone, and the zone packed it in a little bit, and we were struggling to find some gaps to attack,” Southfield A&T coach Michele Marshall said. “We play inside-out, and it just appeared the gaps were not there. If they were, when we tried to attack, we were just a little bit hesitant.”
Zone isn’t the typical defensive setup for Heritage, but DeLong said possible fatigue from the previous night’s Semifinal and the importance of keeping Strickland-Gills out of foul trouble pushed her to make the change.
“I don’t think we’ve played a full game of zone all year this year,” DeLong said. “We played it a couple times last year, and it worked in the Final. We talked about it last night, watched some film today and did some walkthrough at a gym this morning. Most of them have played our zone enough, so they know what to do, but a couple of our kids are a little shaky. But we got them through, and it worked.”
The Warriors shot 6 of 21 (28.6 percent) in the first half, and just 2 of 8 (25 percent) in the second quarter. They played more than six minutes of the second quarter without star forward Alexis Johnson, who was sidelined with three fouls.
Heritage was able to take advantage during that span, stretching its lead to 11 points by halftime and never looking back.
Soleil Barnes led Southfield A&T with 14 points, while Cheyenne McEvans had 13.
PHOTOS: (Top) Heritage’s Mallory McCartney looks for open teammates Saturday during the Division 1 Final. (Middle) A&T’s Cheyenne McEvans directs her team’s offense.
Heartache in Past, Wait Ends as West Catholic Breaks Through to Breslin
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
March 17, 2022
GRAND RAPIDS – Good things come to those who wait.
That has been the case for the Grand Rapids West Catholic girls basketball team.
The Falcons have had to endure two years of disappointment and heartache, but all of that has been washed away with this year’s tournament run.
“It’s really exciting for our team, just because of all the hard work we’ve put in and it's finally showing with this run,” said Falcons senior guard and Michigan State recruit Abbey Kimball, whose team rolled into the Division 2 Semifinals on Tuesday with a convincing 82-27 win over previously-unbeaten Edwardsburg in the Quarterfinals.
“Obviously the past two years haven’t been the best, but we’re just happy we are here and we're just trying to enjoy the moment.”
This moment has eluded West Catholic most recently.
In 2020, the Falcons won their first District title in 25 years and earned a berth in the Regional Finals before the remainder of tournament was canceled due to the coronavirus.
Last season, West Catholic won another District title, but lost to Newaygo, 55-48, in the Regional Final without the services of Kimball and junior standout and Toledo commit Cadence Dykstra.
“You can't predict things like COVID or injuries or whatever circumstance that might come up,” Falcons coach Jill VanderEnde said. “You have to take it day by day, and you have to be resilient and you have to adapt.
“This year has been about being adaptable and yet continuing to persevere. That's what separates the team from years past, even though we’ve had some great teams the past few years.”
The Falcons will play Friday in their first Semifinal since 1995, against Detroit Country Day at the Breslin Center.
West Catholic lost to the Yellowjackets, 44-32, in the 1995 Class B Final.
“They’re a great team that is well-coached and very athletic and skilled,” VanderEnde said. “We will have to come up with a savvy gameplan to disrupt the things they do well.”
The Falcons improved to 24-1 as a suffocating defense helped them to their Quarterfinal win.
West Catholic led 26-5 after the first quarter en route to the lopsided victory.
“Our defense has set the tone all season long, and going into the tournament that’s what we were hoping to hang our hat on,” VanderEnde said.
The Falcons’ only loss occurred earlier in the season against Rockford, which advanced to the Division 1 Semifinals.
West Catholic went undefeated in conference play, led by Kimball and a supporting cast of young talent.
All five of its starters, including Kimball, Dykstra, freshman Elisha Dykstra, sophomore Emma Tuttle and junior Ellie Bies, made the all-conference team, while freshman Anna Ignatoski and sophomore Reese Polega earned all-conference honorable mention.
“It’s always satisfying when you can look at your players and know that they put in the hard work and that they've done everything you have asked and more to try and accomplish a goal that the entire team was seeking,” VanderEnde said. “Just to see those kids’ faces and smiles in the locker room (after Tuesday’s win) and the pure excitement and enjoyment of being able to accomplish something that we set out for so many months ago to do was really rewarding.
“That's what coaching is all about. Getting everyone on the same page and going in the same direction and not leaving anyone behind.”
Kimball, a four-year starter, finished runner-up to Detroit Edison’s Ruby Whitehorn in the Michigan Miss Basketball Award voting.
She is the lone senior, and has embraced her role as a veteran leader.
“In other years, there have been other seniors on the team who I’ve looked up to and they’ve really paved a path for me,” Kimball said. “Just to see how to lead a team, and so I’ve taken that role by getting girls in the gym with me and leading by example. They’ve helped me in that way, and it’s been really cool.”
VanderEnde has seen that growth throughout the season.
“Her skill level is off the charts, but there is a lot of responsibility with being the lone senior,” she said. “She has learned how to embrace her teammates and work with the younger kids. In the past she didn’t have to share that load. She could just be herself and be the leading scorer, but with all the seniors gone she has helped hold the other kids accountable in helping achieve the goals for the program. She’s really matured in that area.”
Kimball will now get the rare opportunity to play on her future collegiate court.
“I’m excited, and it will be the first time playing on that court so that will be fun,” Kimball said. “Every game we’ve been super focused because we want to get to the end goal, which is a state championship.”
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for four 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) West Catholic’s Abbey Kimball (1), Emma Tuttle (15) and Ellie Bies (11) help up a teammate this season. (Middle) Kimball makes her move to the basket. (Photos courtesy of the West Catholic athletic department.)