Westwood Sets Sights on Past Heights

December 20, 2018

By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half

ISHPEMING – The Westwood Patriots do not have a senior on their girls basketball roster and only two players stand as tall as 5-foot-9.

But don’t overlook this team.

Five juniors who played extensively a year ago provide the leadership and experience, while two sophomores and a promising freshman show excellent potential in the challenging Mid-Peninsula Conference. And they play for a team that is steeped in tradition and success, including a 2003 Class C championship.

Kurt Corcoran, a former Westwood cager, is in his seventh season as head coach. His assistant coach is Irv Dieterle, who is second in the Upper Peninsula among boys basketball coaches with 555 wins. Corcoran played for Dieterle in the 1990s.

“Irv is one of my very best friends in life now,” said Corcoran. “At times I was so angry and frustrated with him as a teenage boy. Now we can sit over a cup of coffee and laugh and laugh and laugh.

“I have the best assistant coach possibly in the nation. I feel very privileged to have him as a friend, assistant and mentor.”

Dieterle provides suggestions at halftime or when asked on the bench. “I would be crazy not to heed his advice,” said Corcoran, who is in charge of this team.

With the lack of size, the Patriots use solid defense and rely heavily on the shooting skills of junior Madi Koski, a three-year starter who was all-conference and All-U.P. as a freshman. In their most recent game, Dec. 18, Koski scored 21 points and hit two 3-point baskets to help subdue Gladstone 50-32.

“Madi is a stone-cold killer when it comes to scoring,” said Corcoran. “I’ll put her shot up against anybody (in high school).”

Her sister Jillian is a freshman with outstanding promise playing like most freshmen riding the roller coaster of success and mis-adventures. She did not score against Gladstone but had 17 points against archrival Ishpeming on Dec. 10.

“They are not the same player. Jillian will sacrifice her body, but Madi is a little more reserved diving into those (piles of) bodies,” said Corcoran. “(Jillian) is a real good ball handler, probably one of the best I’ve seen, but she needs to get stronger and catch up to the speed of the game.”

Jillian Koski has been a point guard since forever but is now at shooting guard, with her sister at the point. “(Jillian) is not on anybody’s radar yet (but) she is catching up with the speed of the game. That takes at least 10 games,” said Corcoran. “She lets the game come to her. Madi has to score. Madi facilitates the game. She wears many hats (scoring, passing, defending).”

He said the young sisters “really have just one goal in common, and that is to win.”

Corcoran is trying to restore Westwood to the level of long-ago years when the Patriots were always among the Upper Peninsula’s elite teams under veteran coach Tom Hammar (nearly 400 career wins) and with such standouts as Sarah Stream and Megan Manninen, who both played in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference for Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State, respectively. Jessica Racine also played at Tech, and Chelsea Wealton was another standout.

Two years ago, the Patriots beat unbeaten Norway and all-stater Jordan Kraemer, and last year they beat unbeaten neighbor Negaunee in the District opener. Negaunee and Westwood, two of the best teams in the peninsula this season, will collide in the tourney opener in March after two regular-season league matchups.

“With the guard play we have now and in the future, our goals are set high,” said Corcoran. “But we have to get past that first game to even get out of Districts. I’d be lying if I didn’t say we have our sights set on making a run downstate. They have paid their dues; they want a state championship. That is not a secret, but that is also Negaunee’s goal and West Iron’s goal. That is everyone’s goal.”

Reaching that height would be a big change from where the Patriots were a couple of years ago. The Pats were 5-15 when Madi Koski and fellow junior standout Tessa Leece were in eighth grade.

“As freshmen, they came to a struggling program that had been down in the dumps. They were given the keys to the Cadillac as young teenagers and they really were not ready,” said Corcoran.

But the two frosh made an immediate impact and Corcoran said “from that moment forward the program took a turn for the better. They got to 12 wins and beat 18-0 Norway. (Madi Koski and Leece) are the lead dogs and are really comfortable in their lead roles. They really stepped into a big hole in the program.”

He said his junior aces spend 365 days a year in the gym, and that hard work is catching on with their teammates, such as junior Karlie Patron and sophomore Ellie Miller.

Leece’s sister Mallory is a freshman on the school’s junior varsity. With low numbers (eight varsity players, nine jayvees), the younger Leece stayed with the jayvees but could join the varsity for the postseason.

Corcoran said he is seeing many long-time Westwood fans returning to the gym as they hear about the program’s revival. “We’re turning heads a little bit and people are starting to notice,” he said, admitting that also generates pressure from parents, fans and administrators.

He pointed out the Westwood school district was born in 1974 through a consolidation that brought in students from Champion, National Mine and Michigamme. “Westwood is not a town,” he said of the area west of Ishpeming that covers about 700 square miles of woodlands and water and consists of multiple generational Westwood school families.

With just 17 girls in the basketball program, Corcoran was asked about the future of girls basketball, which in the U.P. has just seven freshmen teams.

He said youth travel programs have made a big impact in recent years – and goals can become misplaced on winning tournaments instead of how many players enjoy the sport enough to continue on into high school.

“They play little (weekend) tournaments and everybody has fun, they have pizza parties at their hotel. Then they get to the high school level and coaches hold you accountable," Corcoran said. "We practice seven days a week, there are no pizza parties, no trophies. They’re in ninth grade and they already have a seven-year career and they’re not having fun anymore.” 

“Basketball is a way of life up here and we take it seriously. With that comes a lot of hard work, too.”

Denny Grall retired in 2012 after 39 years at the Escanaba Daily Press and four at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, plus 15 months for WLST radio in Escanaba; he served as the Daily Press sports editor from 1970-80 and again from 1984-2012 and currently is in a second stint as the interim in that position. Grall was inducted into the Upper Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 and serves as its executive secretary. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for the Upper Peninsula.

PHOTOS: (Top) Westwood's Tessa Leece (2) drives to the basket while Ishpeming's Emma Poirier defends last week. (Middle) Poirier (2) is pressured by Westwood's Jillian Koski as she heads to the basket. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)

Bark River-Harris Girls Hoops Rolling Into February on 10-Game Win Streak

By John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com

February 1, 2024

HARRIS — The Bark River-Harris girls basketball team has been enjoying a successful season with 10 straight victories and a 12-1 overall record to show for it.

Upper PeninsulaPlaying at Escanaba High School, this fall, however, was a new experience for the exchange student from Italy. The Broncos also need only to look back to mid-January to find this season’s biggest highlight to date.

BR-H overcame a 21-point third-quarter deficit to stun neighboring Escanaba 66-63 in a home nonconference match-up Jan. 19.

Senior guard Nina Bower drained a 23-foot jump shot from the left wing on a pass from junior Marissa Ives at the final buzzer, enabling the Broncos to secure that victory.

“Marissa gave me a beautiful pass,” Bower said. “I had no choice but to put it up. Coach (Matt Richer) told us going into overtime was better than turning the ball over. We beat them pretty good the first time (62-47 at Escanaba) and kind of expected to do that again.

“We had an amazing crowd, but haven’t had a game this close. It was a tournament-like atmosphere. We were frustrated at halftime because we hadn’t been playing up to what we could. Although, I think we’ve been playing well together overall and our communication has been good for sure.”

The Broncos’ only loss took place Dec. 11 at Menominee, where they dropped a 64-48 decision.

“We learned if we don’t play together, we can be beaten,” Bower said. “We also learned to overcome adversity.”

The Broncos look to match up most with Munising (11-1) at the top of the Skyline Central Conference Large-schools division this season. They face off Feb. 23.

Bark River-Harris will then attempt to take back the Division 3 District title. The Broncos defeated Menominee 37-33 to clinch the District championship in 2022, but fell to Gladstone 49-44 in overtime in a District Semifinal a year ago.

Senior teammate Lauren Zawada (center) muscles her way to the basket.Bower is averaging 13 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals a game. Senior Lauren Zawada, with an 18-point average, is the team’s leading scorer. She also averages 12 rebounds, five steals and four assists.

“We had kind of a rough start (against Escanaba),” Zawada said. “Things weren’t working out. They’ve improved from the first time we played them. At halftime, we didn’t know how we were going to get back up. We got a little more aggressive and tightened up our defense. Once we got within single digits, our crowd really got into it.

“As seniors we knew this would be the last time we’d play Esky. They have very good players and coaches. This is kind of a feather in our hat.”

BR-H trailed 42-21 early in the third quarter before starting its comeback.

“Coach talked to us at halftime,” senior McKenzie Hoffmeyer said. “We needed to rebound better and work as a team. That was the big highlight of the season. This is the first time we’ve beaten them twice in the same season. They’re a tough team. I think that game will keep us going for a while.”

“At Menominee we just weren’t working as a team, but knew as long as we worked as a team we’d be okay. We’ve been finding the open person and working the ball for high-percentage shots. We need to work on our rebounding and box out more.”

Hoffmeyer averages 17 points, seven rebounds, five steals and four assists.

The Broncos have followed up that Escanaba victory with big wins against Rapid River and Crystal Falls Forest Park and defeated Marquette on Monday 38-32.

“We have to work on our attitude against other teams,” Zawada said. “We also need to work on not getting down on ourselves. We’ve been playing together for so long. Things are starting to click.”

John VrancicJohn Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.

PHOTOS (Top) Bark River-Harris senior McKenzie Hoffmeyer (23) drives past a Marquette defender during her team’s 38-32 win Monday. (Middle) Senior teammate Lauren Zawada (center) muscles her way to the basket. (Photos courtesy of Mitch Vosburg/Escanaba Daily Press.)