Youngest Liedel Providing Prolific Finish to Family's High-Scoring Legacy
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
February 9, 2022
ERIE – An end of an era is coming in southeast Michigan.
Only two miles from Lake Erie, a barn with a basketball court inside has helped develop some of the best 3-point shooters in state history. The youngest of 10 in a basketball-crazed family, Elizabeth Liedel, better known locally as Lizzie, is winding down her senior season and putting up big numbers – just like many of her siblings did.
“When I was younger, I kind of liked softball better,” Lizzie said. “When I got a little older, basketball definitely became my favorite. I think my brothers and sisters had something to do with that.”
So did the barn, which her father Brad built years ago for his power washing business. It wasn’t long after that the barn became home to a half basketball court with regulation backboards and, of course, a 3-point line.
“I try and get out there every day or every other day and work on my shooting,” Lizzie said. “I’ve put up a lot of shots in the barn.”
Lizzie is a senior for Erie Mason, a Division 3 team that is 12-3 and undefeated in the Tri-County Conference. The Eagles can clinch their second-straight TCC title with a win Thursday at home against Morenci. If they are able to capture another league title, you can bet Lizzie will play a key role. A four-year varsity player, she is averaging 28.1 points per game this season.
The family connection to basketball begins with Brad Liedel, who went to Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central, where he participated in multiple sports, including wrestling. He was in high school when he coached his first team.
“That was baseball,” he said. “I didn’t coach my first basketball team until after I graduated from high school.”
Brad and Beth Liedel have 10 kids, and all of their names are inspired by their faith – Matthew, Ben, Theresa, Maria, Michael, Sarah, Greg, Mary, Joseph and Elizabeth.
Brad has coached for years, from area high schools to travel ball in the summers.
“The kids will come to the barn, and we’ll play basketball and I put together some teams and we go out and play,” he said. “I love teaching the game and helping kids get better at the game. I just love basketball.”
Brad was a junior varsity basketball coach at SMCC when his oldest son, Matt, won the Monroe County Region Player of the Year honor. Two years later, in 2005-06, Ben Liedel set a state record by making 116 3-pointers, a record that has since been broken.
The basketball legend continued to grow. Sarah played at Erie Mason, as did Greg, who wound up with more than 900 career points.
The youngest three siblings – Mary, Joe and Lizzie – have been the biggest scorers. Mary made 56 3-pointers during her senior year of 2017-18 and finished her four seasons on varsity with 1,784 points. Joe topped 2,200 career points and made 334 career 3-pointers, second in the state record book for career triples, while helping Erie Mason reach the MHSAA Semifinals for the first time in school history before graduating in 2020. Both are continuing their basketball careers at the college level now.
Joe, who started his college career at University of Detroit-Mercy, is sidelined this semester with an injury, which has enabled him to be home and watch Lizzie mature as a player.
“She’s quite a player,” he said. “She’s fun to watch.”
Lizzie was an immediate starter for the Eagles as a freshman. Four years later, she has 1,354 career points and is having an outstanding senior season.
She had a high of 47 points against Blissfield, which happened to be the same night she passed 1,000.
Blissfield coach Ryan Gilbert said Liedel is not someone you want to see get hot from the outside. You also don’t want to send her to the free throw line.
“She has the ability to take over a game,” Gilbert said. “I felt like we contested 90 percent of her shots, and she still got to 47.”
Liedel is not just a scorer, although she has made more than 170 career 3-pointers.
“She draws double and triple teams quite often and she has great vision to keep her teammates involved,” Gilbert said. “What separates her from the rest is her ability to move without the ball, especially right after she gives it up. Something a lot of great players struggle with is moving without the ball; she does not, and it makes her tough to defend.”
Lizzie said the Blissfield game was a special one.
“My teammates were finding me, and I was really feeling good,” she said. “I think I made my first five 3-pointers. I felt like I couldn’t miss. Everything was going right.”
She finished four points behind her sister Mary’s single-game Erie Mason scoring record of 51.
Liedel was invited last summer to participate in the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan Reaching Higher showcase.
“It was very different playing against all of these girls you don’t know,” she said. “It was a unique experience.”
Liedel is one of five seniors for the Eagles. They have won 53 games over her four varsity seasons, including a 13-0 record last year before being eliminated from the Division 3 tournament by eventual champion Ypsilanti Arbor Prep. This year’s losses have been to two Division 1 schools – Monroe and Howell – and SMCC.
“I’m happy with how we are playing,” she said. “We really wanted to win the league again, and we have a good shot at it. I love this team. They are helping me do a lot better this year.”
Her offseason work, including playing in the barn, is paying off. She has multiple college scholarship offers, including from Davenport, Indiana-Kokomo and Schoolcraft. Indiana Tech, an NAIA powerhouse, is interested, as is Lake Superior State.
She credits her dad and coaches for helping her game develop. She also gives a nod to her brothers and sisters.
“We are so close,” she said. “I love that. We talk all the time. When I come home after games, they’ll tell me how I did or what I need to do to get better.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Erie Mason’s Lizzie Liedel makes a move toward the basket against Carleton Airport. (Middle) Liedel shows off the family barn where she’s sharpened her shot. (Top photo by Tom Hawley; middle photo courtesy of Brad Liedel.)
Howardsville Christian Striving to Transfer Fall Successes to Basketball Court
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
November 28, 2023
HOWARDSVILLE - There is a sign that hangs inside Howardsville Christian School's tiny gymnasium that accurately depicts the mission for the Eagles during the 2023-24 boys basketball season.
It reads "In Jesus' name we play."
Ken Sparks and the eight players on his varsity basketball roster have challenged themselves to help one another understand what it means to give their season to God.
"My goal is to help these boys find gratitude in playing for a greater power than themselves," said Sparks, a varsity standout himself at Howardsville from 1996-2000, member of the 1,000-point club and an honorable mention all-stater his senior year.
Nestled on the border between St. Joseph and Cass counties along Bent Road, Howardsville Christian, a Division 4 school for its sports with fewer than 80 students, has enjoyed a rich tradition of spiritual learning both in the classroom and on the court and playing fields.
The contribution of many talented athletes from several families has been instrumental in Howardsville's athletic success for years, especially this school year.
Howardsville won District titles this fall in boys soccer and girls volleyball. Now the Eagles hope to carry that momentum over to the basketball court.
With four starters returning, Sparks is looking for Howardsville’s boys team to battle for supremacy in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph League and improve on a 13-10 record from last season. The Eagles finished 7-7 in the league last winter and endured a disappointing District Semifinal loss to Marcellus. Howardsville Christian had won its District the season in 2021.
"We competed well with all the teams on our schedule and lost to some teams we shouldn't have," Sparks said. "There are eight teams in our conference, and this season we need to beat Benton Harbor Countryside to be the top team. It's been a good league for us."
Senior twin brothers Colin and Dylan Muldoon return for Howardsville, along with junior cousin Kaden Sparks, son of the head coach, and junior John Paul Rose.
The Muldoon brothers both are beginning their third year as varsity starters.
"Working together as a team is something we really want to do well. A lot of teams set a goal of winning Districts. The last two years we've fallen short of that goal. It's definitely something we want to achieve this year," Colin Muldoon said.
Dylan Muldoon echoed that sentiment.
"Our success in soccer makes us want to attain the same goals in basketball. We know we are capable of reaching those, so I think it makes us want to pull things together," Dylan Muldoon said. "There's a lot of long-distance running in soccer, but there's also a lot of quickness and turning in basketball, especially when you're guarding or driving around someone. You just have to be quick."
Kaden Sparks, another three-year starter, will be Howardsville's best shooting guard.
"Winning Districts is achievable. We have to learn to work together. I played summer ball, and the biggest takeaway is that it taught me that I have to always give 100-percent effort out there. We had a great soccer season, and It’s taught us a lot about accountability," Kaden Sparks said.
Rose will be Howardsville Christian's starting point guard. He has been a starter since his freshman year, along with Kaden Sparks.
"The team chemistry and communication we had in soccer easily transfers over to basketball. As our point guard, it's important for me to try to get the ball to other guys who have open looks," Rose said. "I want to be more aggressive defensively, push the ball up the floor more and increase my scoring."
In addition, Ken Sparks believes the physicality a majority of his team learned from soccer will be a big benefit on the basketball floor.
"You build up your physicality from playing soccer with having to always body up. Watching them play sometimes hurts me, but that's what I want them to do in basketball. It helps them to want to draw contact and be physical on the floor," Ken Sparks said.
The lack of upperclassmen on Howardsville's varsity the last couple of years gave Rose and Kaden Sparks an immediate opportunity to play as freshmen.
"The fact John Paul and Kaden had that early chance at the varsity level is really paying off now,” Ken Sparks added. “Kaden is an excellent shooter. I want him to get the confidence that I had when I was in high school. He tends to be a little more passive on the floor than I like, but he's finally getting that aggressive nature that you need offensively.”
Kaden, Colin Muldoon and Rose all averaged double-digit scoring last season, while Dylan Muldoon is the Eagles' best defensive player. The Muldoon brothers will serve as Howardsville's team captains.
"Kaden is very self-motivated to become a better basketball player. His goal is to be the best player that he can be," Ken Sparks said. "John Paul is explosive and has really refined his jump shot to where he can be a scoring threat. He sees the floor very well and can really push the ball up the floor without turning it over. We're going to see big strides from him because of his determination and drive.
"Colin is a great overall player. He's a threat from the outside and can score inside with his height as well. If we're going to be successful, he and Dylan have to bring the same drive that John Paul and Kaden bring to the court.”
"I've coached all of the guys on our team for the last three seasons except one,” Sparks added. “We talk about being well-rounded. These guys are the best academically and spiritual leaders in our school."
Howardsville Christian’s most well-known alumni is Dylan Jergens, the third-leading scorer in state history with 2,782 career points.
During the fall soccer season, the Muldoons, Kaden Sparks and Rose helped Howardsville win a second-straight District title. The Eagles then lost 5-0 in the Regional Semifinal to eventual Division 4 champion Muskegon Western Michigan Christian. Both Muldoons, Kaden Sparks and Rose were named to the first-team all-BCS and District soccer squads.
The Muldoons were the two main catalysts in the Eagles' soccer run, along with Lukas Krueger. Dylan Muldoon had 28 goals and nine assists, while Colin Muldoon posted 14 goals and eight assists. Krueger added 19 goals to go with 16 assists. Kaden Sparks had five goals and four assists, and Rose added three goals and three assists.
Steve Muldoon, Colin and Dylan's father and Howardsville's head boys soccer coach, sees many correlations between soccer and basketball that will bring the Eagles success in hoops this winter.
"Communication is key. A team that doesn't talk on the field/court isn't going to win. They learn how to correct and encourage one another to deal with problems without getting too negative," Steve Muldoon said. "Individually, they learn how to anticipate. There isn't much difference between anticipating a pass and stepping in front of it in soccer or basketball or making a hard run down the court/field to get open for a layup/counterattack. They learn how to react and make the correct decision under pressure. The skills needed to do it in soccer and basketball are different, but most of it is mental and that carries over."
Determination was another big factor for Howardsville's soccer success this fall.
"We beat Lansing Christian this fall in a weekend soccer tournament and they are a much bigger and physical team than us, but we managed to beat them," Colin Muldoon said. "That win gave us a lot of confidence for the remainder of the season that we could beat anyone."
***
The family dynamic doesn't stop with Howardsville's boys basketball team.
Senior Kyla Sparks, Ken's daughter and Kaden's older sister, is one of three cousins on the roster for a Howardsville girls team that finished 12-11 last year. All five starters are back for that Eagles team as well.
"As a team, we want to improve on last year's record. With all our starters back, we feel we have a good shot to finish at the top of both our conference and District. Most of our basketball team also played volleyball this fall, and we view us all as family," Kyla Sparks said. "Being able to play with my two cousins makes good lifelong memories."
Kyla Sparks, who averaged 12 points per game her junior year, starts with sophomore cousins Kelsie Muldoon and Kate Evans. Those three also started on the varsity volleyball team that captured its first District title since 1997.
Coincidently, the mothers of Kyla, Kelsie and Kate were all on the 1997 District champion volleyball team.
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Colin Muldoon drives to the basket against his twin brother Dylan Muldoon during recent Howardsville Christian boys basketball practice. (Middle) Eagles varsity boys basketball coach Ken Sparks, far left, is pictured by the school's trophy case with his four returning starters Colin Muldoon, Dylan Muldoon, Kaden Sparks and John Paul Rose. (Below) The boys soccer and girls volleyball teams earned District titles during the fall. (Top and middle photos by Scott Hassinger. District championship photos courtesy of Howardsville Christian School.)