The Western Michigan Christian Warriors knew that they had their work cut out for them as they traveled to rival high school Tri-Unity on Friday night to take on the unbeaten Defenders. The Defenders came into the contest red hot, winning their first 9 games this season, after previously winning the Class D State Championship in 2011. The Warriors, on the other hand, came into the game at 4-3 hoping to knock of Tri-Unity and give themselves an early lead in the race for the River Valley Conference. Coach Goorman and Western Michigan know a thing or two about State Championships themselves (winners of the 2008, 2009, AND 2010 Class D title) and were eager to take a stab at the reigning champs.

The first quarter started out somewhat promising for the Warriors as they were able to compete with Tri-Unity and keep the score close for the majority of the quarter. Both squads came out with a good amount of intensity, and there was a little smack talk going back and forth along with a bit of extra pushing and shoving for positioning that one would expect to see in a rivalry between perennial conference powerhouse schools. At the end of one the score was 17-6 in favor of the Defenders, but there was still hope that WMC could pull it together and make a game out of this one.

Unfortunately, this was just false hope and things begin to quickly get ugly for the Warriors in the second quarter. The Defenders turned things up on the defensive side of the ball, forcing turnover’s left and right which lead to numerous easy buckets in transition. Daniel Cole was one of the main Defenders to spark things on D, coming away with 3 big steals on the night along with another 3 assists. In addition to suffocating defense Tri-Unity got hot shooting in the second and began to pull away midway through the quarter. Eric Zudwig found his stroke in the second, knocking down two deep balls in the quarter. Zudwig had a superb night, stuffing the stat sheet with 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.

The Warriors were in a funk all night on offense, which led to frustration and lack of execution and hustle on defense as well. They continuously tried to feed the ball down low to sophomore stand out Bernard Smith, but ended up forcing way to many passes that just weren’t open, and countless passes to the low post were stolen or swatted away. Smith, who had been averaging just under 20 pts a night, was held to a season low 7 pts and he just couldn’t get his shots to fall. The Warriors went into half down 40-11, as the Defenders dominated the first half.

Things didn’t get much prettier in the second, but a running clock for the majority of the half helped make the game as quick and painless as it could be for WMC. Tri-Unity continued to knock down shots and play solid defense in the second half, allowing them to coast to an impressive 63-23 victory. Joey Blauwkamp led all scorers with 16 for the Defenders, and also added in 4 boards and 2 assists. Doug Venema and Joel Boersen also had impressive nights chipping in with 9 pts and 12 pts respectively.

The Defenders move to 10-0 on the season, sit alone atop the River Valley Conference, and seem primed to make another run at a State title. Tri-Unity dominated this one from start to finish and showed once again that they are a team to be reckoned with.

On a chilly, overcast afternoon Western Michigan Christan righty Austin Sandin provided late drama as the Warriors won a 3-2 nail-biter against the Freedom Christian Falcons in the first game of a double header.

With the Warriors playing as the home team in the first game of double header, Sandin approached the plate in the bottom of the sixth, with a runner on second, one out, and the game tied at two.  Working the count to an even 2-2, Sandin hit in the go-ahead RBI, giving Western Michigan Christian a 3-2 lead.  In the top of the seventh Sandin slammed the door shut on the Falcons, striking out the side, and sealing his team’s victory.

Western Michigan Christian struck first, scoring two runs in the second off of a Jake Wall single, and doubles by Omari Lewis and Collin Adams.  Freedom Christian responded with a run in the third and another in the fourth.  As mentioned earlier, the Warriors took the lead for good in the sixth, with Sandin’s one-out RBI.

Austin Sandin struck out seven in his complete game victory, allowing two runs and walking one.  Freedom starter Jake Westra gave up three runs, while striking out two and walking three.  He also picked off two Warriors baserunners.

Jake Westra led the way at the plate for the Falcons, going 2-3 with a double and a stolen base.  Tyler Carlson brought home one of the Freedom runs with an RBI sacrifice in the fourth.

Omari Lewis was 2-2 for the Warriors, with a single, double and a walk.  He scored a run and stole two bases.  Tim Schuitema was also 2-2 with a single and a double, he was also hit by a pitch.

Austin Sandin fires in a first inning pitch.

Benjamin Maloley throws out a runner from second.

Omari Lewis slides safely into third with a stolen base.

Tyler Carlson zones in on a pitch.

Tim Schuitema is unable to avoid the errant offering.

Jake Westra struck out two WMC batters.

Cord Sutter turns a slick double play.

Cody Timmer is tagged out sliding into home.

Austin Sandin rips the go-ahead RBI.

Geoff Field tags out the runner attempting to swipe second.

Cord Sutter drives the ball at the plate.

Jake Westra safely dives back to first on the pickoff attempt.

Matt Philpott Photography was proud to bring you coverage of this afternoon’s game.  Please visit his site for additional photos!

Flint Beecher 78 – Western Michigan Christian 55

It was a six point game with 6:10 left to play. And it was ALL Bucs from there. The Warrior ball handlers struggled to handle the 2-2-1 full court press throughout the game, Flint Beecher would eventually turn WMC over 19 times in the game and 5 out of 6 possessions in the fourth quarter during an 11-0 run that pushed the lead back to 17 which tied the largest of the game at that point. Beecher would cruse through the final 4:30 and run away with a 23 point drubbing of Western Michigan Christian to move on to the Breslin Center this weekend.

WMC went bigger in the starting 5 swapping Buter for Prince. Omari Lewis scored the games first two points and the change in lineup payed off early as Buter scored twice during an 8-2 run to open the game for the Warriors. The six point lead would be their largest of the game.

The 2-2-1 press by Beecher would change the course of the evening causing four turnovers and a 7-0 run to close the first quarter would help Flint grab the lead 18-14 at the break.

A 8-0 run early in the second forced a WMC timeout with six minutes to go, and the lead would eventually swell to 26-16.
The Warriors cut down on the turnovers and got as close as four before another quick spurt by Flint gave the Buccaneers a 40-31 lead at the half.

Omari Lewis had 8 points to go along with 7 boards and London Burris finished the first sixteen minutes with 10 points.

For the Bucs, why get 2 when you can get 3?

Cortez Robinson had 10 and a three point play the old-fashioned way, Monte Morris had 9 with a three pointer, and Antuan Burks scored 8 with a three point play and a bucket from beyond the long line.

A five point run to open the half by Flint Beecher made it quickly a 14 point margin and things were starting to look bleak for the WMC faithful that made the long trip up to Mt. P.

Just then a quick burst. A Lewis triple, and a 4 point personal run by Prince with a transition lay-in, an in-bounds pass steal and a quick jumper made it a 7 point WMC run from the 2:31 mark to 1:18 left to play in the third. The two would trade buckets and a buzzer beating layup by Lewis made it 48-40 FBHS lead after three.

Omari Lewis was just a rebound away from the double-double with 13 points and 9 boards after three quarters of play. He’d go on to finish the night with 19 points and 14 rebounds.

Lewis used the momentum of the buzzer beater to score the first two of the fourth and cut it to six. Outstanding free throw shooting and great D for Beecher that forced 5 turnovers on 6 possessions with the other being a blocked shot led to an 11-0 run. It was a 20 point difference at the 3:20 mark and the game finished at it’s largest margin, a 78-55 final.

Class C. Warrior fans are asking tonight, “What’s the difference?”

Monday I told you Omari Lewis would have to be Superman for WMC to win, I was wrong. He was Batman, and he got help from Robin in the form of London Burris and Bat Girl, my apologies to Bernard Smith, I tried to come up with a more notable trifecta of heroes the whole drive home, sorry bud. Lewis finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds, Burris had 18, including 4 triples, and Smith finished with 11 points and 10 boards.

The Yellow Jackets finally cooled down from beyond the arc and struggled to score the basketball. Ithaca had won 13 of their last 14 games and had been shooting the long ball at over 40% during that stretch. Tonight the Jackets had 5 threes in the first half on 8 attempts, but shot just one for ten rest of the way. On three straight possessions down the stretch IHS got wide-open looks at three with the game hovering around a 6 point margin and it just wasn’t meant to be.

The Warriors move on to the Mt. Pleasant Quarterfinal match-up with Flint Beecher. WMC will not likely be favored to win that matchup and they will have to overcome some pretty significant obstacles to come out on top, but isn’t that why we watch superhero movies in the first place?

Game #1: Western Michigan Christian 56 – Clare 55

The 3-time defending Class D State Champions got all they could handle tonight from a very tough, controlled attack from the Clare Pioneers.

It looked like it would be smooth sailing into the Regional Final for the Warriors as they ran out to their biggest lead of the game in the first 5 minutes leading 17-8 with 3 minutes to play in the first. Omari Lewis was a handful on the block and Clare couldn’t keep London Burris out of the lane, Coach Wise called a wise T.O. and made the coaching move of the game switching to a Matchup Zone Defense that allowed 6’8″ James Wezensky to protect the middle of the floor. Wezensky would finish the night with 8 Blocks and 13 Boards to go with his 14 points. That defensive move coupled with some terrible outside shooting from WMC allowed clare to dominate play over the next two and half quarters. After scoring 17 in the first 5 minutes the Warriors went to the 4th quarter with just 34 on the board, trailing by nine headed into the final eight minutes. Then Omari Lewis happened… the first 11 Warrior points in the 4th belonged to Lewis including an enormous triple that cut it to a one possession game with 4 minutes to play. Clare held strong as their lead would dwindle to a single point 3 times and each time they had an answer. A Burris three finally put WMC over the hump and gave them their first lead since the early in the second quarter. Clare took the lead back on the next possession with a lay-in by Wezensky. Down on the Christian found the right Warrior for the job, Omari finished a tough layup in traffic to give WMC the 56-55 lead. A three point shot from Clare’s Tanner Vida at the buzzer was just inches from finding twine and WMC escaped with the one-point win.

Game #2: Ithaca 59 – Covenant Christian 41

The second game would not be nearly as entertaining as the first.

The Yellow Jackets dominated the basketball game in every aspect. Hitting 8 threes in the first half (9-19 in the game), connecting on their first 13 FT attempts (16-19 as a team), and getting to every loose ball imaginable. Throw in a pair of buzzer-beater 3′s at the horn in the first and second quarters, and the route was on. The lead swelled to as many as 20 three separate times and it never got closer than 15 in the second half. Charles Schnetzler had 23 points to pace the Jackets who also got great nights from Lucas Slater and David Brown, 14 and 12 points respectively.

Regional Final Preview

WMC will need another big night from Omari Lewis and better shooting from their guards to matchup with the pinpoint execution, tenacious on-ball defense, and sharpshooting of the Yellow Jackets. If they can’t shoot IHS out of the extended 2-3 zone early the Jackets have the ability to bury them from the long line. Omari may have to be Superman to pull out a win Wednesday. Ithaca is very deep with their 9-man rotation and will wear down WMC with multiple defensive looks and pressure, in a close game the Jackets would be the favorite to out-execute them down the stretch. Should be a fun one.

Walking into Montague High School tonight it was clear that this was an EVENT, this wasn’t just a game. Forty-five minutes before tip the parking lot was jam packed and the line was long entering the school. Upon walking into the Gym there were only a handful of open seats remaining and both Montague and visiting Western Michigan Christian were well represented. The buzz was already there and the juices started to flow, there were no teams even in sight.

Once we got going it was loud, it was rowdy, and it was playoff basketball! WMC jumped out early and grabbed the momentum but not really much of a lead. London Burris and Omari Lewis worked the offense for the Warriors in what was a very nervous start to the game. WMC had a 5-0 lead with only 3:40 left in the 1^st quarter until Montague was finally able to get on the board. The Wildcats could not buy an outside shot and it sent them behind early. WMC led 9-4 after one.

The jitters were shaken by both teams and attack mode was engaged. This was some of the best basketball seen all night. The action was fast and action packed as both teams went back and forth. London Burris is an absolute flash with the ball and Montague had no answer for trying to cover him all night. The Wildcats were able to grab their first lead of the night however at the 5:34 mark they took a 12-11 lead yet were unable to hang on as WMC took a 25-21 lead into the half.

Paul Lombard and Omari Lewis fell into deep foul trouble very early into the 3^rd quarter and both sat with 4 fouls for much of the second half. This changed the game for Montague who lost their inside presence and watched the game slip away. Burris and fellow guard John Walker got inside and made some huge buckets to swell their lead out to 9 with just seconds to play in the quarter. Jaylyn Gordon was also vital at the end of the 3^rd and into the 4^th as he provided Burris with a much needed breather.

The crowd was feeling this 20-0 season slip away as we all took a deep breath entering the 4^th. The WMC fans traveled well and were not afraid to let everyone know they were there. With Lombard on the bench it was up to Anthony Root to make something happen for his team and will the Wildcats back into contention. Root and Dylan Ode led a feverish attack at WMC and after Root drilled a triple with 4:30 left the WMC lead was down to 3 at 41-39.

Sophomore Brandon Moore played a bigger roll on defense than at the other end as he picked up the slack for Lombard. Lewis did a great job of checking Moore all night whenever he had the ball and really made it hard for the sophomore to get anything done offensively. We had our first tie since early on at the 3:49 mark but it wasn’t until 1:45 left in the game when Lombard returned with his squad down by a bucket. Root missed a layup with about :20 left and WMC got the timeout call with 16.8 to go. A foul sent Lewis to the line for a one-and-one in which he missed the front end of and the huge rebound was snatched by the athletic Brandon Moore. Montague got their timeout with 7.4 left down 47-45 with the perfect season in the balance.

Running the designed play seemed to be going as planned but you got the feeling the wrong guy had the ball with time running out. Chase Casebolt had the ball and fired a three that nearly fell as many of his nearly fell all night and rimmed out. The buzzer sounded and the Warriors advanced in a knock down, dragout of a game. WMC is coming off of 3 straight state titles but those were collected in Class D as they were moved up to class C this year it is something of a new test for Jim Goorman’s team.

Burris finished with 15 points and 9 boards, Lewis with 9 points in limited play and Bernard Smith filled in well for Lewis and went for 11pts and 11reb. Ode led the way for Montague with 12 points while Root had 11. Lombard, in his short minutes, compiled 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 blocks.

WMC will move on to face Hart at 5pm on Wednesday at Hart. On the other side of the bracket North Muskegon took care of Ravenna 78-36 and will play Holton after they blew by Hesperia 76-45. WMC will open the action at 5pm followed by Holton and North Muskegon at Hart High School.

In this Northern District, those of us that run WMA have an interesting situation on our hands. We have a Three-time defending state title winner facing off against a 20-0 home squad in the first round of districts. Western Michigan Christian has been the toast of the class D town over the last 3 years taking home a trio of state titles while featuring standout players London Burris and Omari Lewis. WMC’s guard and forward duo is matched by Montague however with the outstanding play of Brandon Moore and Paul Lombard. Moore is a physical freak and as enough athleticism to match most class C teams as a whole, Lombard is sneaky good and has an amazing touch near the basket.

These two teams faced off at Montague back on Feb. 7^th with the Wildcats taking home a 61-53 OT victory. A very pro Montague video is shown below. Notice Moore’s leaping ability at the 3:20 mark of the video!

Montague vs Western Michigan Christian

This will be a great game and WMA will be all over it tonight! The other team in this bracket with a chance is North Muskegon, the Norsemen are having a good year at 11-9 overall and 9-5 in the West Michigan Conference. They are led by Spencer Krannitz who leads all West Michigan scorers with 463 points this year. Montague was able to slip past NM on Feb 25^th with a buzzer beater. We fully expect Montague to make a deep run this year as they are very deep and talented. Keep an eye out tonight for complete coverage of the game against WMC.



1. Grand Haven (20-0)

There’s no doubt about it: the Buccaneers are easily the best team in west Michigan. They finished their regular season undefeated and beat their opponents by an average margin of 23.5 points per game. They have one of the best shots in the area to take home the 2011 state title.

2. Catholic Central (19-1)

Catholic Central put up an almost perfect season with their one loss coming from a strong Inkster squad. The Cougars don’t have to worry about that Class A foe in the playoffs, though, as they look to defend their Class B title.

3. East Grand Rapids (17-2)

The Pioneers chose a great time to start putting up strong performances. They do have home court advantage in their district, but they’ll have to make it past Catholic Central to see any regional action.

4. Forest Hills Central (19-2)

The Rangers had a great season, particularly on the defensive end. They finish the regular season with the lowest points allowed average of any of our top ten teams: 27.2 points per game. They received a first round bye for districts.

5. Byron Center (18-1)

The Bulldogs have a long road ahead of them in the playoffs. Head coach Glenn Davis is unable to coach the team during playoffs after failing to complete a mandatory MHSAA rules meeting, so assistant coach Jen Slot has taken the reins. It will be interesting to see how Byron Center adjusts at the most important time in their season.

6. Grand Rapids Christian (17-2)

The Eagles also received a bye for the first round of playoffs. They’ll have to face the winner of the Wyoming Park vs. South Christian game, though: two teams that have come on strong at the end of the season.

7. Oakridge (17-2)

Oakridge played strong and consistent throughout the season. A 13-point victory over Orchard View last night moves them on into district semifinals against Fruitport.

8. Wayland (16-4)

Wayland dropped a surprising game to South Christian and just squeaked past Hastings last week. They have a tough game against Holland Christian on schedule for their first playoff matchup.

9. Kent City (18-2)

The Eagles have struggled against strong Class C opponents lately, falling to Western Michigan Christian two weeks ago and Calvin Christian last week. They’re in a strong district and could potentially have a rematch with Calvin Christian on Friday.

10. Holland Christian (15-5)

The Maroons regained some momentum last week, taking down both Zeeland East and West. They took care of OK-Green foe Hamilton last night, but have a tough game against Wayland on deck.

Honorable Mention (alphabetical order)

East Kentwood

Hamilton

West Catholic

Western Michigan Christian

Wyoming Park

“Both teams were very intense — you could see it on the faces of the players and the coaches,” Defender’s head coach Mike Keeler said.  “We all wanted the game and everybody was going at it, and tonight was our night.”

Last season marked the first year in a decade and a half that the Tri-Unity Christian Defenders failed to rule the River Valley Conference, knocked off the top of the mountain by the West Michigan Christian Warriors.  The tension was noticeable early in the contest, as both teams struggled to a measly six points in the first quarter, which was marred by turnovers and missed shots attributed to tough, physical defense.

“We were both playing tough defense and we were under a bunch of pressure, you could see it early’” Keeler said.  “This game was for us to win it outright, and we were not in a sharing mood tonight.”

The game turned in the third quarter when Warrior senior guard London Burris and junior guard Jaylyn Gordon were relegated to the bench with foul trouble.  Despite the efforts of Warrior senior forward Omari Lewis, the Defenders were able to ratchet up their defensive effort and make some timely shots, finally taking the lead at 32-29 and never relinquishing it.

The host Defenders were led by senior forward Jordan Buffman’s 13 points, many of which he attained when he buried open jumpers from the elbow in the fast-paced third quarter.  Sophomore guard Joey Blauwkamp was also impressive with his grit on the glass and tallying 11 points.  The third amigo was senior guard “All year long we have had consistent and balance play,” Defender head coach Mark Keeler said.  “We had eight guys with five points of more, and when that happens, you never know who is going to step up and make it happen for us”

Lewis, who finished with 13 points, eight of which came in the first half, paced the visiting Warriors.  Lewis was able to utilize his lanky frame and his athleticism to secure open looks at the basket both inside and on the wing, but he was unable to hammer any jumpers home, instead scoring all of his points around the basket.

Straddled with foul trouble, Burris was never able to establish himself, finishing with only five points.  In the first half he was unable to find his shooting stroke from beyond the arc, missing all six attempts, and his cold shooting continued into the second half until he was forced to sit with four fouls with 4:17 remaining in the third quarter.  Credit for Burris’ icy night needs to be attributed to Defender senior guard Durant Vega and the Defender’s strong team defense, which hounded Burris every time he touched the basketball and contested every shot he took.

With the victory, the Defenders have reclaimed the River Valley Conference title, which is their 16^th conference title in the last 17 years.  Each team has one conference game remaining.

The West Michigan Conference may just have been decided tonight up at Montague as the Wildcats took down the visiting Shelby Tigers for the second time this year. The 71-48 final score pretty much tells the story as this game wasn’t particularly close after the 1^st quarter. The two schools, which are separated by 13 miles over on the northern lakeshore showed their bitter rivalry tonight as the gym was packed from the start of the girl’s game at 5:30. This was undoubtedly the loudest game I have covered all year long!

Sophomore Brandon Moore shows off his sweet stroke.

Both sides showed up in bunches and from the opening tip the home Wildcats looked to run and pressure the Tigers right out of the gymnasium. Super sophomore Brandon Moore was the story early on as he knocked in a face up triple to start the game followed by a fast break dunk after a nice steal by the Cats. Moore however showed his youth as he pointed to the crowd while still hanging on the rim and was called for a technical foul just minutes into the game. Moore soon picked up his second foul and was sent to the bench until the 2^nd period.

Shelby took advantage of the slight momentum swing as they found a way to keep it close behind the sharp shooting of JR James who was able to get things going for the Tigers. As the second quarter began Moore picked up his third foul just over a minute into the quarter and was relegated to the bench until the second half. Montague found a way however to extend their lead and much of it had to do with the sharp shooting of senior Dylan Ode who stroked in 4 deep balls to contribute to his 20 total points. We had a 10 point game going to the half but didn’t seem that close.

Senior leader Paul Lombard had a rather quiet game and still went for 14 points 7 boards and 4 blocks (yes that is actually a quiet game for Lombard). Montague’s pressure proved to be too much over the course of the game as the Cats extended their lead in the 3^rd quarter by 10 more and finished with a 23 point victory in league play. Shelby now sits at 12-3, 8-2 in the WMC with the pair of league losses coming at the hands of the Wildcats. Montague is now 11-0 on the year and look to be a legitimate playoff contender from the west side of the state.

Moore finished with 17 points and has a lot to learn on the court, but is an insanely gifted athlete who can also knock down the outside shot. Lombard is a beast inside and will prove to be an asset to the Cats as they face other large centers throughout the playoffs. Montague has an interesting match-up with Western Michigan Christian next, the Warriors are a tough team and shouldn’t be over looked.