The Sun and News, Saturday, March 2, 2024/ Page 9Vikings fend off Trojans in regular season finale
Brett Bremer
Sports Editor
And that’s a wrap on the
2023-24 varsity girls’ basket-
ball regular season.
Viking seniors Cadence
Poll, Alivia Everitt, Joee
Harton and Audrey Hillard
took their turns kissing the
logo at center court in the
Lakewood High School gym-
nasium during a time out with
8.2 seconds left in their
non-conference ballgame with
visiting Thornapple Kellogg
Thursday.
The Lakewood varsity girls’
basketball team had a lead as
large as 13 points late in the
third quarter trimmed down to
one point with 1:53 to go in
the fourth quarter. Hillard
scored to bump her team’s
lead back to three points as the
clock went under a minute and
a half to play, and Poll rejected
a TK three-point attempt lead-
ing to a triple by Everitt at the
other end of the floor.
Lakewood held on from
there for a 45-38 victory mov-
ing its season record to 11-11.
The 2023-24 Viking squad
had six seniors as the four who
pressed their lips to the Viking
logo were joined by class-
mates Autumn Williams and
Sydney Teff.
“Six seniors, and five of
them have been playing
together since they were prob-
ably in fourth grade,”
Lakewood head coach Kelly
Meints said. “Kind of a mem-
orable moment for them. I am
glad we were able to hold
some composure there at the
end and actually nail down
some free throws.”
The Vikings have as many
more ballgames together as
they can win. They travel to
Portland Monday to face
Hastings in the opening round
of their MHSAA Division 2
District Tournament. Tip-off is
scheduled for 7 p.m. The
Vikings scored six points in
the final five seconds to take a
one-point win over the Saxons
in Hastings earlier this season.
The winner of Monday’s ball-
game faces 19th-ranked
Lansing Catholic Wednesday
in the district semifinal back in
Portland.
Portland and Charlotte meet
in the district’s other semifinal
match Wednesday.
Everitt’s late triple made
her the Vikings’ leading scorer
for the night. She finished with
11 points. Poll had ten points
to go with 15 rebounds and
Hillard finished with ten
points too. Williams had seven
points and Teff two. Freshman
guard Mariana Grant was the
only non-senior to score for
the Vikings finishing with five
points.
The Vikings controlled the
glass, played wisely against
the Trojans’ full-court pres-
sure, and maybe most impor-
tantly to Meints mostly played
with composure when things
got a little chippy between the
two squads from time to time.
“Tuesday night [at East
Lansing] we struggled with
rebounding,” Meints said, “so
we talked about coming into
this game to make sure we
were dominating and getting
into the paint and getting those
boards while being clean
about it. We knew [Poll and
Everitt] had to be in the game.They couldn’t be in the bench
in foul trouble, so I thought
they played a smart game.
Cadence, this is probably the
most composed she has been
all season so I am proud of her
for that.”
Lakewood honored its
seniors a few ballgames ago,
but that didn’t stop pregame
handshakes and high fives
from turning into hugs
Thursday. The ballgame start-
ed like a good senior night
should, five seniors started on
the floor and Teff replaced
Harton after a few trips up and
down the floor, and Lakewood
shot out to a 13-1 lead going
into the second quarter.
Thornapple Kellogg got to
within 20-11 by the half, but
wasn’t much closer than that
until junior guard Emma
Geukes drilled a three-pointer
half a minute into the fourth
quarter. TK was within 33-
after a steal and a lay-up from
sophomore guard Tealy Cross.
Lakewood’s only points in
the first six and a half minutes
of the fourth quarter came atthe free throw line. The
Vikings were 6-of-8 during
that stretch, which was just
enough to stay in front.
Back-to-back three-pointers
by Cross and TK guard Lydia
Schilthroat took a 39-
Lakewood lead down to 39-
before Lakewood was able to
stretch its lead in the end with
TK’s shooters once again
going cold behind the arc.
“We were prepared for their
press. We talked about making
sure we were looking up and
seeing the floor before coming
into the trap,” Meints said.
“They have been experiencing
that all season, and we have
had games where we have
walked right into that and
thrown the ball away. Tonight,
they were mentally ready I
think. They really wanted to
walk off feeling victorious
tonight and they took a little
better care of the basketball.”
Lakewood had lost four in a
row heading into the ballgameincluding a tough 67-26 con-
test at East Lansing Tuesday.
Ionia bested the Vikings 55-
in Ionia last Friday, Feb. 23, to
close the Capital Area
Activities Conference White
Division season. The Vikings
finished their return to the
CAAC-White with a 7-
record finishing fourth in the
conference.
Thornapple Kellogg didn’t
shoot the ball particularly well
Thursday, and at times got too
deep into the teeth of the
Viking defense. Poll and
Everitt did an excellent job of
contesting the Trojans’ at the
rim.
Cross finished with a game-
high 15 points. Geukes and
Schilthroat had eight points
each.
While Lakewood is a
senior-heavy squad, the Trojan
team is still a young one. Eva
Corson was the only senior to
see court time for TK Thursday
and she is just one of threeseniors on the roster joined by
classmates Katie Comeau and
Brittney Roodvoets.
The Trojans close the regu-
lar season at 10-12 having
dropped their last six ball-
games. Grandville took a
40-34 win over the visiting TK
ladies Tuesday night and
Cedar Springs bested the
Trojans in the OK Gold
Conference finale 51-46 in
Middleville last Friday, Feb.- The TK ladies were 4-
in the OK Gold this winter.
TK will host a 7-14 Forest
Hills Central team to start their
MHSAA Division 1 District
Tournament Monday. The
winner of that game heads to
Lowell to face the Red Arrows
in the district semifinals
Wednesday. Caledonia and
Ottawa Hills meet in that dis-
trict’s other opening round
game Monday with the winner
heading to Lowell to face East
Grand Rapids in the other dis-
trict semifinal Wednesday.
TK head coach Brandi James talks things over
with her girls during a break in the action during the
second half at Lakewood High School Thursday.
(Photo by Brett Bremer)Thornapple Kellogg sophomore guard Tealy Cross finds a little gap in the lane
to attack the basket during her team’s loss at Lakewood High School Thursday to
close out the regular season. (Photo by Brett Bremer)Thornapple Kellogg sophomore guard Marlee Shuford (right) chases Lakewood
senior Autumn Williams in the back-court during their regular season finale at
Lakewood High School Thursday. (Photo by Brett Bremer)