Goodrich, Freeland, Midland Dow also among winners
MT. MORRIS TWP. -- With one more victory, all roads will lead to the Breslin Center with a state championship there for the taking.
Mid-Michigan schools fared extremely well in regional title games for girls basketball on Wednesday night. The area's two defending state champions - Hamady and New Lothrop - each claimed regional crowns to qualify for the state quarterfinals. Battling a tough Pewamo-Westphalia team, the Hamady Hawks earned a hard-fought, 48-40 victory on their home floor. The visiting Pirates did not make it easy on the defending Class C state champs, whittling a double-figure deficit to just three points in the late stages of the fourth quarter. But despite going dry from the field, the Hawks hit their free throws down the stretch and tightened up their defense to escape with the eight-point win.
A Hamady team which had grown accustomed to blowout wins has now survived three tightly-contested games with Beecher, Olivet and Pewamo-Westphalia in the post-season, but a challenging regular season schedule got the Hawks ready for exactly these types of battles.
"We were prepared for some tough games," said Hamady head coach Keith Smith. "We had a pretty tough schedule this season. We played the likes of Saginaw High, of course New Lothrop twice already, Saginaw Valley Lutheran, Southfield, Goodrich. So we played some good teams during the regular season, so going through these close games during the tournament...we were ready for them, we feel."
"We all just come out and just play hard. You know, it's Hamady," added Hawks junior forward Porsha Fluker. "We just gotta keep playing hard and working hard, and that's our key goal. To win another state championship."
Next up for Hamady is Morley-Stanwood in the state quarterfinals, next Tuesday at Mt. Pleasant High School.
The Hawks remained on a collision course with fellow GAC Blue rival New Lothrop, who exploded out of the gate in their regional title game battle with Nouvel Catholic Central, and never looked back. After leading 13-3 after one quarter, the Hornets went on for a 51-34 victory to punch their ticket for the state playoffs. New Lothrop - which won the last two Class D state titles before moving up to Class C this season - will now battle Detroit Allen Academy next Tuesday at Montrose High School. If they and Hamady each win their quarterfinal games, the two powerhouses will meet at the Breslin Center on March 18th with a trip to the Class C state title game on the line.
Elsewhere, the stellar high school basketball career of Jordan LaDuke came to a heartbreaking end, as the Flushing Raiders fell on their home floor to visiting Midland Dow, 43-42. LaDuke scored a game-high 16 points in what turned out to be her final high school game. The Chargers will take on Canton next Tuesday at Davision High School in the Class A state quarterfinals.
Mid-Michigan is still well-represented in Class B, as both Goodrich and Freeland won regional crowns on Wednesday. The Falcons defeated Big Rapids, 56-46, while the Martians breezed past GAC Red foe Durand by a somewhat surprising, 56-35 final. Goodrich will now face perhaps their toughest test all season when they meet Detroit Country Day in state quarterfinals next Tuesday in Imlay City. The Yellowjackets won their two regional playoff games by an average margin of 39.5 points. Freeland, meanwhile, will take on Kingsford out in Houghton Lake.
Finally, a pair of schools in Class D also advanced to the state quarterfinals, as Deckerville and Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart each took home regional titles. Deckerville will meet Waterford Our Lady out in Port Sanillac, while Sacred Heart will take on Central Lake at Benzie Central.
