Grand Ledge at St. Johns – – Girls Basketball – – The Bleacher Denizen – – December 1, 2022 – – by Chuck Krafft

Today has been a busy day for your Bleacher Denizen. He sings and plays piano when he is not blogging high school sports and today, he did a show at the Hazel Findlay home in St. Johns. It was only natural to drop by St. Johns High School (after a great sandwich at Ryan’s Roadhouse) to blog their game.
St. Johns has great memories for me. One of my personal favorites of all the over 1,000 articles in the Bleacher Denizen blogs (two of them, one on “Blogger” and now on my “TheBleacherDenizen.com” website) is this one. Back in 2011, the Redwings’ Scotty Besko had the game that every kid who has ever shot a basketball dreamed of. And here it is!! What a night for Scotty and all the St. Johns fans!!

https://thebleacherdenizen.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-bleacher-denizen-archive-article.html

Of course it is over eleven years later now. After all these years, that game (from the first full year of blogging) is still one that I remember. Scotty was amazing!!

I got to the game in time to see most of the freshman game as well as the JV and varsity games.

St. Johns won the freshman game 35-31.

In the JV game, the teams battled to a 10-10 tie after one quarter. Grand Ledge outscored St. Johns in the second quarter to take a 17-13 halftime lead. The Grand Ledge JVs won the third quarter by two points and the fourth quarter by three as they steadily worked their way to a 33-24 win.

Laila Wright and Abigail DeRosa led the St. Johns Redwings with 6 points each. Jaelah Medina added 5 points. Abigail Tisdale threw in three points. Aivree Baldwin and Rachel Jackson each tallied 2 points.

Abigail Fiero led the Grand Ledge Comets with 8 points. Genevieve Ketoia supported her teammate with 7 points and Elyse Sanders had 6 points. Ella Baird put in 4 points. Aviana Skinner, Kate Oberdank, Emily Burger and Tonila Geter each added 2 points.

As we wait for the game to start, maybe we can enjoy a tune from my You Tube Channel. In this original song, we learn the “Rest of the Story” about what really happened when “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vp3FW5dhL3E

P.S. If you like the song, it will be really helpful to me if you log into You Tube, like the video and subscribe to my channel. Oh well, enough self-serving advertising for now!!

I was able to get some great background information about the teams’ players from each of the coaches.

Beth Perez from Grand Ledge is always really pleasant to talk with; this is one of the reasons it is always fun to write up Comet games! Here is the information she provided.

Ava Scanlon is a four year starter in the post. She is one of the finest players in the Lansing area. She is quite tall and can do all the things like rebounding and post defense that we expect from a player with her height. However, she also has great hands and is a formidable scorer inside. Olivia Navin starts at the point. She provides the Comets with great leadership, fine passing, dependable ball handling and stout perimeter defense.

Alayna Armstrong is a fine defender and rebounder in the post. She works really hard on every possession and frequently causes chaos to opposing offenses. Grace Pribble is a versatile defender who is a problem for opponents either on the perimeter or in the post. She also slashes to the basket very aggressively. Gianna Naccarato is a guard who can play either the shooting guard or the point.

St. Johns Coach Joe Foster was also really helpful with information about his Redwing players. Josie Stehlik is a senior leader who handles the ball well and is an active perimeter defender. Jocelyn Kotowicz is an excellent three point shooter, who also slashes to the basket well and plays excellent defense on the perimeter. Isabel Thelen has heart, heart, heart. Even though she is one of the shortest players on the floor, she gets a lot of rebounds. Her poise is excellent and she handles the ball well, too.

Taylor Cook is a sophomore in her second year of starting for the Redwings. She plays fine defense, rebounds well and scores in the post. Lillian Sackrider is a strong post defender and rebounder who sets great screens.

Leah Kendall is a good perimeter defender. Natalie Palmer is a versatile defender who can match up with opponents either on the perimeter or inside. Catherine Lehner plays strong defense in the post, rebounds well and is a vocal leader.

It is now time to look at the events of this game through the somewhat clean lens of an Aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league when he attempted to play basketball back in the days of yore. To be fair, while people criticized his lateral movement on defense, I note that many people struggled to move well side to side in the plate armor that was part of our uniforms back in those ancient teams.

Grand Ledge wins the opening tap. The Comets miss an eight foot hook shot in the lane. St. Johns misses a three point shot from the wing. Josie Stehlik gets the offensive rebound for the Redwings. Gianna Naccarato steals the ball for the Comets. Taylor Cook steals the ball for the Redwings. Ava Scanlon steals the ball the ball for the Comets. There is a lot of theft going on here; I sure hope the school officials are on top of this!!

Ava Scanlon is obviously not worried about any legal recriminations as she spins and hits a hook/layup for the Comets to give them the first two points of the game. St. Johns misses a ten foot runner from the baseline. Grand Ledge misses an eight foot hook shot in the lane. Gianna Naccarato ties up the rebound. The Possession Arrow was spreading Gray Poupon on its sandwich at the critical moment and misses the play. It decrees that St. Johns shall have the ball.

St. Johns misses a jump shot from the free throw elbow. Josie Stehlik sprints back on defense, tips the ball, ruins a possible layup and causes Grand Ledge to lose the ball out of bounds. On the other end, Josie Stehlik passes to Jocelyn Kotowicz, who swishes a threeball from the side to give the Redwings a 3-2 lead.

Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the corner and fouls on the rebound. Jocelyn Kotowicz passes to Isabel Thelen, who hits a three point shot from the side for St. Johns. Grand Ledge misses a driving layup. Alayna Armstrong gets the offensive rebound for the Comets. Olivia Navin inbounds the ball to Ava Scanlon, who spins and is fouled on a layup. She hits one of her two free throws to trim the St. Johns lead to 6-3 with 3:55 remaining in the first quarter.

St. Johns misses a jump shot from the free throw elbow. Josie Stehlik gets the long offensive rebound for the Redwings and hits a ten foot jump shot. Grand Ledge misses an eight foot baseline runner. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Johns takes possession. St. Johns misfires on a threeball from the side. Grand Ledge misses a layup; the rebound goes out of bounds and Grand Ledge gets another opportunity. Taylor Cook knocks a Comet pass out of bounds; Grand Ledge retains possession.

The Comets commit an offensive foul. Hannah Smith blocks a St. Johns layup; the loose ball goes out of bounds and the Redwings get another possession. Mariah Poff passes to Jocelyn Kotowicz, who hits a three point shot from the side to push the Redwing lead to 11-3.

Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the side. St. Johns misses a three pointer from the wing. Gianna Naccarato passes to Olivia Navin, who sinks a three point shot from the side for Grand Ledge. St. Johns throws a pass out of bounds. Lexi Raska drives and hits a layup for Grand Ledge. Isabel Thelen hits a twelve foot shot in the lane at the buzzer.

After one quarter, St. Johns holds a 13-8 lead.

Grand Ledge has the ball to open the second quarter, but the inbounder steps on the sideline and turns it over. St. Johns missises a runner. Jocelyn Kotowicz gets the offensive rebound for the Redwings. St. Johns misses a three pointer from the wing; the Redwings pull down the offensive rebounds. (Your Aging Bleacher Denizen was not able to see who made that fine play; my apologies to the offensive rebounder.) Lexi Raska steals the ball for the Comets. Jocelyn Kotowicz steals the ball for the Redwings. Isabel Thelen hits a fast break eight foot runner in the paint to give the Redwings a 15-8 lead.

Morgan Bagneschi bounces a pass to Kiara Page for a Comet layup. Isabel Thelen drives the lane and is fouled on a runner. She hits both her free throws to give her Redwings a 17-10 lead with 6:32 remaining in the half.

Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the side. St. Johns throws a pass out of bounds. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the side. Kiara Page pulls down the offensive rebound for the Comets. Grand Ledge misses a short scooping layup and fouls on the rebound. St. Johns turns the ball over against the Grand Ledge press. Taylor Cook steals a Comet pass. Paityn Chant passes to Taylor Cook who hits a fifteen foot shot from the side that gives the Redwings a 19-10 lead.

Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the corner. Gianna Naccarato gets the offensive rebound for the Comets. Grand Ledge turns the ball over. Grace Pribble steals the ball for the Comets. Grand Ledge misses a twelve foot turnaround shot in the lane. The get the offensive rebound, but miss a twelve footer from the baseline. The Comets are fouled on a putback, but miss two free throws. Kiara Page works to tie up the rebound, but the Possession Arrow is posting a video to Tik Tok and misses the play. The ball is awarded to St. Johns. Josie Stehlik hits a jumper off the dribble from the free throw elbow to push St. Johns to a 21-10 lead.

Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Johns takes possession. Gianna Naccarato’s tough defense forces a St. Johns traveling violation. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Ava Scanlon pulls down the offensive rebound for the Comets. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Ava Scanlon gets her hand on the ball and causes a tieup. The Possession Arrow has been shamed by the exposure of its previous laziness and awards the ball to Grand Ledge.

The Comets misfire on a triple try from the corner. St. Johns is whistled for traveling. Josie Stehlik steals the ball for the Comets. Josie Stehlik passes the ball to a teammate who is fouled on a layup, but misses both her free throws. With 54.4 seconds remaining in the first half, the St. Johns lead remains at 21-10.

The Redwings get the offensive rebound. Jocelyn Kotowicz drives and hits a layup for St. Johns. Grand Ledge misses a short hook shot; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Comets get the ball back. Olivia Navin passes to Ava Scanlon, who hits a layup, is fouled and misses her free throw. With 12.8 seconds left in the quarter, the St. Johns lead is at 23-12.

Olivia Navin pulls down the offensive rebound from the missed free throw. Isabel Thelen gets her hand on the ball, but Grand Ledge is able to recover. Olivia Navin passes the ball to Ava Scanlon, who banks in a three point shot from the top of the key at the buzzer. (I’m absolutely certain I heard her shout “bank”!!)

At halftime, St. Johns has a 23-15 lead. If basketball conventions are held up, St. Johns will probably also have this lead (with the same score, of course) at the start of the third quarter.

As we wait for the third quarter to begin, we can listen to this popular Christmas song from my You Tube Channel!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msk3US5xeZc

It’s time for the third quarter to start. Your Bleacher Denizen eyes the scoreboard and it appears that St. Johns DOES continue to have a 23-15 lead as the quarter starts!!

St. Johns has the ball to open the second quarter. Gianna Naccarato knocks the ball away from the Redwings, but St. Johns briefly recovers before Hannah Smith steals the ball for Grand Ledge. Isabel Thelen has enough of that and steals the ball back for St. Johns. Gianna Naccarato gets her and on the ball and it goes out of bounds. St. Johns retains possession. Olivia Navin steals the ball and passes to a teammate who is fouled on a layup and misses both her free throws. With 6:43 to play in the third quarter, the St. Johns lead remains at 23-15.

Isabel Thelen passes to Jocelyn Kotowicz, who hits a three point shot form the wing to extend the Redwing lead to 26-15.

Grand Ledge misses a short hook shot. Ava Scanlon pulls down the offensive rebound. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Grace Pribble steals the ball for the Comets. Grand Ledge misfires on a triple try from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Johns takes possession. Grace Pribble steals the ball for the Comets. Grand Ledge misses a fifteen foot shot from the baseline. Gianna Naccarato gets the offensive rebound for the Comets. The Comets misfire on a threeball from the corner. Gianna Naccarato steals the ball for Grand Ledge. Grand Ledge misses a layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and Grand Ledge gets the ball back. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the wing.

(Sorry about the long paragraph, but it didn’t seem right to split up what was a long Grand Ledge string of possessions.)

St. Johns reciprocates and misses a three point shot from the wing. Grand Ledge reciprocates and misses a three point shot from the wing. Gianna Naccarato breaks up the string of missed three pointers from the wing by knocking the ball away from St. Johns. Grace Pribble picks it up for Grand Ledge. Olivia Navin passes to Gianna Naccarato, who hits a three point shot from the wing to cut the Redwing lead to 26-18.

Gianna Naccarato knocks the ball away from St. Johns, but the Redwings are able to recover. Ava Scanlon blocks a Redwing shot and Olivia Navin picks up the ball for the Comets. Josie Stehlik steals the ball for the Redwings. Bella Henrys and Olivia Navin go to the floor to tie up the ball. The Possession Arrow is enamored of their aggressive hustle and awards the ball to the Comets. Olivia Navin drives and hits an eight foot hook shot in the lane for Grand Ledge. Abigail Handy passes to Lillian Sackrider, who is fueled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws. With 1:20 to go in the third quarter, St. Johns has a 27-20 lead.

The rebound from the missed free throw goes out off Grand Ledge and St. Johns gets the ball. St. Johns loses a pass out of bounds. Olivia Navin, who seems to be heating up, hits a three point shot near the top of the key for Grand Ledge. Lillian Sackrider dives to prevent a St. Johns turnover. Olivia Navin knocks the ball away from St. Johns and Ava Scanlon picks it up for Grand Ledge. Grand Ledge misses a driving layup. Lexi Raska knocks the ball away from St. Johns and out of bounds at the buzzer.

After three quarters, St. Johns has a 27-23 lead.

Grand Ledge inbounds the ball to get the fourth quarter underway. Olivia Navin drives and hits a runner in the lane to trim the Redwing lead to two points. Taylor Cook hustles to prevent a Redwing turnover. Isabel Thelen passes to Taylor Cook, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws to give the Redwings a 28-25 lead with 7:07 remaining in the contest.

Taylor Cook knocks the ball away from Grand Ledge and Jocelyn Kotowicz picks it up for St. Johns. Olivia Navin steals the ball for the Comets. Grand Ledge loses a pass out of bounds. St. Johns misses a twelve foot shot from the baseline. Grand Ledge mislaunches a threeball from the top of the key. Ava Scanlon gets the offensive rebound. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Alayna Armstrong is fouled on a putback and hits two free throws to chop the St. Johns lead to one point at 28-27 with 6:08 to play.

Jocelyn Kotowicz gets her hand on the ball to prevent a Comet layup. Grand Ledge recovers; Olivia Navin drives in for a layup that gives the Comets a one point lead. The Redwings misfire on a threeball from the wing; Lillian Sackrider hits a putback to give the lead back to St. Johns. Grand Ledge misses a three pointer from the side. Ava Scanlon gets the offensive rebound for the Comets. Josie Stehlik steals the ball for St. Johns. Olivia Navin steals the ball for Grand Ledge. After the Comets miss a threeball from the wing, Olivia Navin hits a putback that gives Grand Ledge a 31-30 lead.

Isabel Thelen is fouled and hits both ends of a one and one free throw opportunity to boost St. Johns to a 32-31 lead with 3:50 left on the clock.

Lillian Sackrider nearly steals the ball for St. Johns, but it goes out of bounds and Grand Ledge retains possession. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Ava Scanlon pulls down the offensive rebound for the Comets. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the wing. St. Johns is fouled on the rebound, but misses the first shot of a one and one free throw opportunity. With 3:03 left in the game, the St. Johns lead remains at 32-31.

Grand Ledge misses a layup. Olivia Navin gets the offensive rebound for the Comets. Jocelyn Kotowicz steals the ball for the Redwings. St. Johns misses a layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Redwings get another opportunity. St. Johns misses a runner in the lane. The rebound goes out of bounds and Grand Ledge gets the ball. The Comets mislaunch a threeball from the side. St. Johns is fouled on a shot, but misses two free throws. Grand Ledge misses a layup. Taylor Cook is fouled and hits one of her two free throws to push the St. Johns lead to 33-31 with 1:24 remaining.

Josie Stehlik gets the offensive rebound for the Redwings. St. Johns is fouled, but misses two free throws. Josie Stehlik taps the ball away from Grand Ledge and Isabel Thelen grabs it for St. Johns. Isabel Thelen is fouled on a fast break layup and hits two free throws to boost St. Johns to a 35-31 lead with 55.3 seconds left on the clock.

Jocelyn Kotowicz blocks a Comet layup; the ball goes out of bounds and Grand Ledge gets another opportunity. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the wing. Alayna Armstrong gets the offensive rebound.. Grand Ledge misses a shot and Alayna Armstrong is fouled on the rebound. She hits one of two shots in a one and one opportunity to trim the St. Johns lead to 35-32 with 33.1 seconds to play.

Josie Stehlik is fouled and hits one of her two free throws for St. Johns. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the corner. Alayna Armstrong is fouled on a putback and hits one of her two free throws. With 17.1 seconds left, St. Johns’ lead is at 36-33.

Two seconds later, Lillian Sackrider is fouled going for the rebound and hits one of her two free throws. Grand Ledge misses a three point shot from the wing. Isabel Thelen gets a huge rebound for the Redwings and is fouled. She hits one of her two free throws with 1.9 seconds and then gets the offensive rebound from the miss to seal the win for her Redwings.

St. Johns wins this tightly contested contest by a 37-33 score.

Olivia Navin led the St. Johns scoring with 14 points. Ava Scanlon supported her with 8 points. Alayna Armstrong scored 4 points. Gianna Naccarato added 3 points. Lexi Raska and Kiara Page each put in 2 points.

Isabel Thelen had 14 points to lead St. Johns. Jocelyn Kotowicz joined her teammate in double figures with 11 points. Josie Stehlik added 5 points. Taylor Cook scored 4 points and Lillian Sackrider tallied 3 points.