New Lothrop at Ovid-Elsie – – Girls Basketball – – The Bleacher Denizen – – February 3, 2025 – – by Chuck Krafft

Horace Greeley once gave us all this advice! “Go West, Young Man.” Of course, your Bleacher Denizen decided to head North and East from Lansing to Ovid-Elsie. (To be fair, at age 68, it could be argued that I am no longer “young” so maybe I’m not actually being all that disobedient!)

This Monday evening there will be a huge girls’ basketball game in the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference! The Hornets from New Lothrop are visiting Marauders from Ovid-Elsie as this game will be a collision between the top two teams in the league. Ovid-Elsie is 11-1 in the league and 13-2 overall. It’s only league loss is to New Lothrop. New Lothrop is a perfect 10-0 in the league and 11-1 overall.

While we wait for this game to start, I hope you will enjoy this video of “Down South in New Orleans” from my You Tube Channel. I was fortunate to have a Lansing-Area Musical All-Star team help me on this bouncy tune from the late 1950s!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QUZ5FrpeFA

For your Bleacher Denizen, this is a special night, not only because of the importance of this game in the league standings, but because the last time Ovid-Elsie Coach Shaun McKinney appeared in a Bleacher Denizen blog, he was playing in the State Finals against a Flint Beecher team featuring Monte Morris, who is still playing in the NBA today. Coach McKinney’s Laingsburg team had a chance to win the game on the final position, so they played this tough team really close!!

Here is the Bleacher Denizen play by play of that game!!

https://thebleacherdenizen.blogspot.com/2013/03/laingsburg-vs-flint-beecher-class-c.html

Tonight, instead of writing about Coach McKinney as a player, this article will report on the team he coaches. Coach McKinney gave me this information about his Marauder players. Ellyanna Carman provides leadership as well as a fine outside shot and outstanding scoring ability. She gets to the free throw line with great frequency.

Tava Kvalevog has a high motor. While she is a bit small for a post player, she makes up for it with intensity and determination. In addition to the inside scoring you would expect from a post player, she is also a threat to score from the perimeter. She is also an excellent leader. Kendal Tokar is a freshman who plays with great poise. She has a fine basketball IQ and is an effective three point shooter either off the dribble or off the catch.

The Marauders have a lot of depth and are very versatile; they have had many different starting lineups this year and as you can see from the record, they are all effective. They try to play a free flowing style.

New Lothrop Coach James Perry was also helpful with information about his Hornet players.

Ashlyn Orr is a four year varsity player and team captain. She is an All-League player who works in the post and is an excellent rebounder. She also excels in softball and volleyball. Laina Yates gives the Hornets another four year varsity player; she is also a team captain. She runs the point for the Hornets and defends very well on the perimeter. In addition to running the team, she can score on slashes to the basket and is a threat from the three point line.

Lexy Andres is in her third year on the varsity and also a captain. She is an energetic defender who also does well in cross country and track. Kelsey Kohlman is coming back from an ankle injury. She is an excellent scorer and has deep three point range. She is a junior playing her third year of varsity basketball. Katelyn Wendling is a sophomore who was an all-conference player as a freshman. She is a great scorer who is also a big contributor on defense. She is good enough in track to have qualified for the state final meet in numerous events.

I was at the gym in time to see the whole JV game. Ovid-Elsie got off to a 7-4 lead after one quarter. New Lothrop outscored Ovid-Elsie in the second quarter by a 12-6 margin and took a 16-13 halftime lead. New Lothrop extended its lead to 28-23 at the end of three quarters.

Ovid-Elsie started to come back in the fourth quarter and pulled to within three points at 34-31 on a basket by Adalyn Polash. Ava Sweet stole the ball for the Marauder JVs, but they missed a fast break layup. Chloe Czymbor hit a putback for New Lothrop with 1:51 to give her Hornets a 36-31 lead. Ovid-Elsie kept fighting and even stole the ball a couple times before the game ended, but there was no more scoring after Chloe Czymbor hit her putback.

New Lothrop won the JV game 36-31.

Danica Levey led the Ovid-Elsie JVs with 13 points. Kyra Witt supported her teammate with 8 points. Carly Williams and Khloee Milledge each scored 4 points. Adalyn Polash had 2 points.

Chloe Czymbor led the New Lothrop JVs with 9 points. Addison Phillips supported her teammate with 8 points. Cassie Green contributed 6 points. Anna Kurney added 5 points. Grace Krupp put in 4 points. Gabbi Kitchen and Ashley Krupp each tallied 2 points.

The Ovid-Elsie Pep Band opened the game with the National Anthem and did a fine job. (As the Bleacher Denizen was a part-time professional musician for most of his adult life, he loves commending student musicians on a job well done!!)

It is now time to review the events of this game through the occasionally alert eyes of an aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league in the ancient times when many considered him to be “young.” He was never totally able to buy into the concept that you should only throw the ball to players wearing the same color shirt as you. He felt that this restricted his creativity and resisted doing that. His coach responded with lectures about “turnovers” and when the Bleacher Denizen was slow to adjust, his playing time was drastically limited.

The opening tap gets knocked out of bounds. Ovid-Elsie gets the first possession of the game. The Marauders miss a threeball from the side. New Lothrop misses a driving layup. Lexy Andres is fouled on a putback; she hits one of her free throws, but it is disallowed because of a lane violation. The Marauders misfire on a triple try from the wing. New Lothrop reciprocates and misfires on a triple try from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Hornets get another possession. Tava Kvalevog draws a charging foul from the Hornets.

Ovid-Elsie is called for an offensive foul. The Marauders’ Dannika Campbell and Kendal Tokar put on a fierce double team and force a Hornet turnover. Dannika Campbell drives and dishes the ball to Kendal Tokar, who throws in a threeball from the corner to give her Marauders a 3-0 lead.

New Lothrop misses a six footer from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Hornets get another opportunity. Katelyn Wendling races to the backcourt to retrieve the ball and prevent a Hornet turnover. New Lothrop misses a driving layup. Ashlyn Orr hits a putback to trim the Ovid-Elsie lead to 3-2.

Ovid-Elsie misses a driving layup. Alyson Moore blocks a New Lothrop layup. Ovid-Elsie is assessed with a traveling violation. Katelyn Wendling passes to Ashlyn Orr, who hits a layup to give New Lothrop a one point lead. Ovid-Elsie misses a threeball from the side; the rebound goes out of bounds and New Lothrop takes possession. Katelyn Wendling is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to boost the Hornets to a 5-3 lead with 3:34 remaining in the opening quarter.

Ellyanna Carman drives and hits a layup for Ovid-Elsie to tie the game. New Lothrop misses a fast break layup. The Marauders misfire on a threeball from the side. New Lothrop misses a fast break layup. Ovid-Elsie misses a three pointer from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Marauders get another opportunity. Ashton Ehle ties up the ball for Ovid-Elsie. The Possession Arrow is planning its spring vacation and misses the play; the ball is awarded to New Lothrop.

Dannika Campbell blocks a Hornet layup. The loose ball goes out of bounds and Ovid-Elsie gets the ball. Ashlyn Orr steals a tipped Marauder pass for the Hornets. Kendal Tokar knocks the ball away from New Lothrop and Lily Bates picks it up for Ovid-Elsie. The Marauders miss a three pointer from the wing. New Lothrop misses a jumper off the dribble from the free throw elbow. The rebound goes out of bounds and Ovid-Elsie takes possession.

Ashlyn Orr’s fierce defense forces Ovid-Elsie to call timeout to avoid losing the ball. Katelyn Wendling blocks an Ovid-Elsie layup. Katelyn Wendling is fouled and hits one of her two free throws to give New Lothrop a 6-5 lead with 4 seconds to play in the opening quarter.

Ovid-Elsie misses a rushed fifteen foot shot off the dribble just before the final buzzer.

After one quarter, New Lothrop holds a 6-5 lead.

Ovid-Elsie inbounds the ball to start the second quarter. The Marauders lose a pass into the lane out of bounds. Dannika Campbell knocks the ball away from New Lothrop, but the Hornets recover. New Lothrop bounces a pass through the lane and out of bounds. Lexy Andres steals the ball for the Hornets. Katelyn Wendling is fouled on a fast break layup and hits one of her two free throws to give the Hornets a 7-5 lead with 6:50 to play in the second quarter.

Ovid-Elsie misses a layup. Kendal Tokar steals the ball for the Marauders. Ovid-Elsie misses a fast break layup. Alyson Moore hits a putback for Ovid-Elsie to tie the game. New Lothrop commits a traveling violation. Ovid-Elsie misses a driving layup. Addison Phillips alertly saves the ball to prevent a Hornet over and back violation. Laina Yates drives and hits a layup to give New Lothrop a two point lead. Kendal Tokar is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to trim the New Lothrop lead to 9-8 with 5:02 remaining in the half.

New Lothrop misses a driving layup. Alyson Moore passes to Kendal Tokar, who hits a three point shot from the wing to give Ovid-Elsie a two point lead. New Lothrop misses a layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and Ovid-Elsie takes possession. The Marauders misfire on a threeball from the side. Ashton Ehle ties up the rebound. The Possession Arrow is checking hotel prices for its vacation and misses the play; New Lothrop is awarded the ball.

The Hornets miss a driving layup. Madyson Schneider ties up the ball for New Lothrop. The Possession Arrow is shocked by the hotel prices for this year and misses the play. Despite Ms. Schneider’s great, aggressive hustle, the ball is awarded to Ovid-Elsie. The Marauders miss a three point attempt from the side. New Lothrop misses a fast break layup. Kendal Tokar passes to Ashton Ehle, who is cutting to the basket. Ashton Ehle is fouled on a layup and hits two free throws to boost her Marauders to a 13-9 lead with 2:20 remaining in the half.

Madyson Schneider is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws for New Lothrop. Lexy Andres steals the ball for the Hornets. Alyson Moore knocks the ball away from the Hornets and Kendal Tokar picks it up for the Marauders. Ovid-Elsie misses a three pointer from the wing. New Lothrop fails to get the ball past midcourt in the required ten seconds and turns the ball over.

Ovid-Elsie misses a triple try from the wing. Lily Bates pulls down the offensive rebound for the Marauders. Ovid-Elsie misses a layup. New Lothrop misses a threeball from the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Hornets get the ball back. New Lothrop misses a driving hook shot. Laina Yates draws a charging foul from the Marauders.

New Lothrop throws a long pass out of bounds with four seconds to play in the half. Laina Yates knocks the ball away from an Ovid-Elsie dribbler. The second quarter buzzer makes its presence known before anyone can pick the ball up.

Ovid-Elsie will take a 13-10 lead into the locker room at halftime. Your Bleacher Denizen will make the bold prediction that the Marauders will also lead 13-10 at the start of the third quarter.

Ashlyn Orr leads the New Lothrop scoring at halftime with 4 points.

Kendal Tokar leads Ovid-Elsie with 7 points.

The Ovid-Elsie Pep Band entertains at halftime and does a fine job!

As the third quarter gets ready to start, your Bleacher Denizen glances at the scoreboard and sees that Ovid-Elsie continues to lead 13-10!!! Your Bleacher Denizen nearly pulls every muscle in his shoulder while patting himself on the back.

New Lothrop ignores the Bleacher Denizen’s smug (if misplaced) pride and inbounds the ball to open Quarter number three!! Alyson Moore steals the ball for Ovid-Elsie and is fouled on a fast break layup. She hits one of her two free throws to give the Marauders a four point lead. Kendal Tokar steals the ball for Ovid-Elsie. The Marauders miss a threeball from the wing. Dannika Campbell snares the offensive rebound for the Marauders.

Laina Yates steals the ball for New Lothrop. The Hornets lose a pass in the lane out of bounds. Madyson Schneider knocks the ball away from Ovid-Elsie and Lexy Andres picks it up for New Lothrop. Kendal Tokar steals the ball for Ovid-Elsie, quickly takes the ball to the other end and throws in a fast break threeball from the wing to boost the Marauder lead to 17-10.

Alyson Moore steals a Hornet pass. Ovid-Elsie misses a three point attempt from the wing. Madyson Schneider passes to Katelyn Wendling, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws to trim the Ovid-Elsie lead to 17-11 with 5:34 remaining in quarter number three.

Kendal Tokar completes a long pass to Ellyanna Carman, who hits a fast break layup for the Marauders to give them an eight point lead. New Lothrop misfires on a threeball from the side. Lexy Andres grabs the offensive rebound for the Hornets. Madyson Schneider passes to Ashlyn Orr, who hits a layup for New Lothrop to trim the Ovid-Else lead to 19-13.

Ovid-Elsie misfires on a triple try from the side. New Lothrop misses a fast break layup. Laina Yates steals the ball for New Lothrop. Ashlyn Orr passes to Madyson Schneider, who is cutting to the basket; Madyson Schneider hits a layup for the Hornets. Ashlyn Orr knocks the ball away from the Marauders and Katelyn Wendling picks it up for the Hornets. New Lothrop is whistled for a moving screen.

Madyson Schneider steals the ball for the Hornets. New Lothrop misses a layup. Ovid-Elsie misses a three pointer from the wing. Kendal Tokar steals the ball for the Marauders and draws a Hornet foul in the process. Ovid-Elsie misses a three point attempt from the corner. New Lothrop misses a three point attempt from the side. Ellyanna Carman hits a fast break layup for the Marauders. Katelyn Wendling is fouled on a fast break layup and hits two free throws to cut the Marauder lead to 21-17 with 1:48 to play in quarter number three.

Ashlyn Orr blocks an Ovid-Elsie fast break layup. New Lothrop loses a pass out of bounds. Ovid-Elsie misses a driving six foot banked hook shot. New Lothrop misses a layup. The Marauders misfire on a triple try from the side. The Hornets miss a fast break layup. Ovid-Elsie misses a three pointer from the corner. Ashlyn Orr is fouled on the rebound and hits two free throws to chop the Ovid-Elsie lead to 21-19 with 5.5 seconds remaining in quarter number three.

Ovid-Elsie misses a jump shot off the dribble from the three point line as the third quarter buzzer decides to end the period.

With three quarters in the books, Ovid-Elsie holds a 21-19 lead in this intense defensive struggle.

Ovid-Elsie has the ball to begin the fourth quarter. The Marauders miss a three point attempt from the corner. Tava Kvalevog grabs the offensive rebound for the Marauders and passes to Alyson Moore, who sinks a threeball from the corner to boost the Marauder lead to 24-19.

A New Lothrop ball handler shuffles her feet and is whistled for traveling. Lexy Andres blocks a Marauder driving layup. Ovid-Elsie retains possession. Ashlyn Orr blocks an Ovid-Elsie layup. New Lothrop misses an eight foot banked shot from the side of the lane. An Ovid-Elsie ball handler steals on the baseline against the New Lothrop press. Katelyn Wendling drives and hits a reverse layup for the Hornets to trim the Marauder lead to 24-21.

Lexy Andres steals the ball for the Hornets and Laina Yates hits a fast break layup to cut the Ovid-Elsie lead to one point. Ovid-Elsie travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches can be interesting; somehow I doubt that traveling without the ball would be terribly newsworthy.) Kendal Tokar steals the ball for the Marauders. Madyson Schneider steals the ball for the Hornets and passes to Lexy Andres, who hits a fast break layup that gives New Lothrop a 25-24 lead.

Laina Yates steals the ball for the Hornets. New Lothrop misses a fast break layup. The rebound is tied up. The Possession Arrow looks up from its Hotel Guide and awards the ball to New Lothrop. Alyson Moore steals the ball for the Marauders and hits a fast break layup to give Ovid-Elsie a one point lead. Alyson Moore steals the ball and hits another fast break layup to give the Marauders a 28-25 lead.

New Lothrop misses a three point shot from the wing. Ashlyn Orr hits a putback to trim the Marauder lead to one point. Dannika Campbell is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to boost Ovid-Elsie to a 29-27 lead with 3:03 left on the clock.

New Lothrop misses a driving layup. Ashlyn Orr grabs the offensive rebound for the Hornets. New Lothrop is fouled on a layup, but misses two free throws. Madyson Schneider taps the ball away from the Marauders, but Ovid-Elsie recovers. The Marauders misfire on a threeball from the side. Kendal Tokar gets the offensive rebound for the Marauders. Kendal Tokar inbounds the ball to Tava Kvalevog, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws to push the Marauders to a 30-27 lead with 2:04 to go.

Katelyn Wendling drives from the side and hits a layup for New Lothrop. Lily Bates passes to Tava Kvalevog, who hits a layup for Ovid-Elsie. Kendall Wendling swishes a clutch three pointer from the wing for New Lothrop to tie the game at 32-32.

Ovid-Elsie misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and New Lothrop gets the ball. New Lothrop misses a driving layup. Lily Bates gets the offensive rebound for the Marauders. Ovid-Elsie calls time out with just 6.5 seconds left in this defensive battle for first place.

The New Lothrop defense forces Ovid-Elsie away from its plans; the Marauders miss a desparation heave from midcourt as time expires.

There will be OVERTIME in this important battle for first place in the Mid-Michigan Athletic Conference!!!

New Lothrop wins the tap to begin overtime. Ashlyn Orr passes to Katelyn Wendling, who is fouled on a reverse layup and hits two free throws to give New Lothrop the lead. Ovid-Elsie misses a threeball from the wing. Katelyn Wendling is fouled and hits two more free throws to give New Lothrop a 36-32 lead with 2:14 left in overtime.

Ovid-Elsie misses a three pointer from the wing. Alyson Moore grabs the offensive rebound for the Marauders. Ovid-Elsie misses a threeball from the wing. Tava Kvalevog makes an athletic leap over the baseline and knocks the ball to Ellyanna Carman, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws for Ovid-Elsie. Katelyn Wendling is fouled on a driving layup and hits two free throws to give New Lothrop a 38-33 lead with 1:34 to play in overtime.

Kendal Tokar passes to Ellyanna Carmen, who hits a three point shot from the wing to chop the Hornet lead down to two points. New Lothrop is whistled for traveling. Madyson Schneider draws a charging foul from Ovid-Elsie on a drive to the basket. Katelyn Wendling is fouled and hits one of her two free throws to give the Hornets a 39-36 lead with 31.5 seconds left in the extra period.

Ellyanna Carman is fouled on a twelve foot shot and hits one of her two free throws to trim the Hornet lead back to two points. Tava Kvalevog makes an athletic leap on the baseline to prevent the ball from going out of bounds and in one motion directs the ball to Alyson Moore, who hits a three pointer from the wing to give Ovid-Else a 40-39 lead.

Ellyanna Carman steals the ball and is fouled with 2.8 seconds left. She hits one of her two free throws. New Lothrop misses a shot from the midcourt line as time expires.

Ovid-Elsie wins this game 41-39 to move into first place in the league.

(Ovid-Elsie has one game left and New Lothrop has three games left. Both teams have one loss in the league right now. Both of them would be favored to win all their remaining games, so the odds are that there will be a tie for first place in the league.)

Katelyn Wendling led the New Lothrop scoring with 20 points. Ashlyn Orr joined her teammate in double figures with 10 points. Laina Yates tossed in 4 points, Madyson Schneider added 3 points and Lex Andres tallied 2 points.

Alyson Moore led the Ovid-Elsie scoring with 13 points. She had 10 of them in the fourth quarter and overtime. Ellyanna Carman supported her teammate with 12 points. She had 6 of them in overtime. Kendall Tokar hit three triples in the first three quarters to keep the Marauders in the game; she finished with 10 points. Tava Kvalevog added 3 points. Ahston Ehle scored 2 points and Dannika Campbell had 1 point to go along with a bunch of fine defensive plays noted in the play by play!!