Lansing Christian vs. Portland St. Patrick – – Girls Basketball District Final – – The Bleacher Denizen – – March 7, 2025 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, your Bleacher Denizen is excited to watch as two CMAC teams will square off in the Girls Basketball District final between the Pilgrims of Lansing Christian and the Shamrocks of Portland St. Patrick. Portland St. Patrick finished third in the CMAC with a 13-5 league record; the Shamrocks are 16-6 overall. Lansing Christian finished fourth in the CMAC with a 12-6 record; the Pilgrims are 17-6 overall. The teams each won at home when they played during the regular season.

St. Patrick got to the final game be winning this semifinal game over Potterville.
https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2025/03/06/portland-st-patrick-vs-potterville-girls-district-basketball-semifinal-the-bleacher-denizen-march-4-2025-by-chuck-krafft/

Lansing Christian earned its place in this final by beating Bellevue in the semifinal.
https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2025/03/06/bellevue-vs-lansing-christian-mhsaa-girls-district-basketball-semifinal-the-bleacher-denizen-march-5-2025-by-chuck-krafft/

As there are two Christian schools competing tonight, I’m going to seize the opportunity to post a couple Christian tunes from my You Tube Channel!

“John 3:16” is an original song that my father helped me to write!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYixQ0OWsd4

Here is “He Loves Us”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxrh1V9JJkE

I have seen both of these teams play and am a bit familiar with their players.

Here is a bit of information about Lansing Christian’s players.

Lydia Brogan is an excellent all-around player who is tall enough to rebound and defend the post well, but quick enough to control opponents on the perimeter. On offense, she is a versatile player who can slash to the basket to score in nearly any situation. She also has a strong three point shot. She injured her ankle earlier this week and was only able to play about a quarter of the semifinal game, but was really effective as she scored ten points in that time and helped the Pilgrims stop a Bellevue run before it got too far.

Ava Mustapha is a relentless perimeter defender who generates a lot of turnovers from Pilgrim opponents. She is great slashing to the basket to score as well. Alyssa Shank is another determined Pilgrim perimeter defender who can cause turnovers. On offense, she runs the point. She is a solid ball handler who can score layups off turnovers, slash to the basket or hit the three point shot.

Sophia Carrillo is the Pilgrims’ post presence. She is a tough defender near the basket and a great rebounder. Natalie Adams is a quick, determined perimeter defender. Sophie Hazelton has an accurate three point shot. Juliette Tallon defends the perimeter aggressively. Payton Korrey is a solid three point shooter. Abbi Pelle defends the post well. She has a strong basketball IQ and always knows where to be on both offense and defense. Grace Reusser, who would have helped the Pilgrim post defense is injured and can not play.

And here is some information about St. Patrick’s players.

Grace Rockey is an athletic player in her third year of varsity basketball even though she is a sophomore. She is tall and strong enough to be a huge factor scoring, rebounding and defending in the post. She is quick enough to defend the perimeter where her length helps her generate a lot of turnovers from Pilgrim opponents. On offense, she is a fine ball handler and passer. She is tough to stop when she attacks the basket and can also hit three point shots.

Mattie Honsowitz is a fine post scorer, defender and rebounder. She has great hands to catch the ball in the post and she uses her impeccable footwork to generate makeable shots in the post, where she is tough to stop. Macie Smith is a solid midrange shooter who can defend opponents on the perimeter or in the post.

Lily Sandborn is a tough perimeter defender who runs the point on offense. She is a solid ball handler who distributes the ball well and is starting to be a more aggressive scorer. Bella Russman plays in the post where she is a tough rebounder and defender. She scores points on putbacks and other layups. Naomi Hass is an aggressive perimeter defender.

It is now time to look at the events of this game through the occasionally open eyes of a tired old Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league back in the days when we only had outdoor plumbing. When he worked in a bakery, his superiors always rewarded him for making turnovers. When he did the same thing on the basketball court, his coach objected and cut his playing time. Alas, I suppose it was never meant to be – – –

Christian wins the opening tap. Macie Smith ties up the ball for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow looks away from her task in her short-handed restaurant kitchen. It is impressed by Ms. Smith’s hustle and awards the ball to St. Patrick. Alyssa Shank blocks a Shamrock layup and causes a tieup. The Possession Arrow is dismayed that an employee has spilled an entire pot of marinara sauce, but looks up and decides to award the ball to Christian.

Ava Mustapha passes to Lydia Brogan, who drives and hits a layup to give Christian the first two points of the game. Grace Rockey passes to Lily Sandborn, who hits a layup for St. Patrick to tie the game. Lydia Brogan passes to Sophia Carrillo who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws to give Christian a 3-2 lead with 6:37 to play in the opening quarter.

St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Natalie Adams passes to Lydia Brogan, who hits a three point shot from the side for Christian. Alyssa Shank steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Sophia Carrillo passes to Ava Mustapha, who banks in a threeball from the wing to give Christian a 9-2 lead. (I know I heard her yell, “BANK!!”)

Sophia Carrillo knocks the ball away from St. Patrick, but the Shamrocks recover. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Christian misses a fast break layup. Alyssa Shank steals the ball from St. Patrick and draws a foul in the process. Sophie Hazelton is fouled on a fifteen foot shot off the dribble from the side for Christian. She hits one of her two free throws to give her Pilgrims a 10-2 lead with 4:00 remaining in the opening quarter.

St. Patrick misses a sixteen foot shot from the side. Bella Russman grabs the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a layup. Bella Russman grabs another offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. The Shamrocks miss a layup. The rebound is tied up. The Possession Arrow looks up from the sauce it is stirring and awards the ball to St. Patrick. Grace Rockey is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to trim the Pilgrim lead to 10-3 with 3:27 to go in the first quarter.

Christian misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Natalie Adams steals a Shamrock pass. Mattie Honsowitz steals a Pilgrim pass. St. Patrick misses a layup. Bella Russman ties up the rebound. The Possession Arrow is distracted trying to keep its souffle from falling and misses the play; the ball is awarded to Christian. Christian misses a threeball from the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Pilgrims get another opportunity.

Mattie Honsowitz ties up the inbound pass. The Possession Arrow had gotten its souffle out of the oven (without it falling) and was able to give its full attention. The ball is awarded to St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a driving layup. Lily Sandborn pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Esther Lee steals the ball for Christian and hits a fast break layup to boost the Christian lead to 12-3.

Macie Smith passes to Mattie Honsowitz who is cutting to the basket. The pass is perfectly timed and placed; Mattie Honsowitz hits a layup for the Shamrocks. Grace Rockey steals the ball for the Shamrocks. The Shamrock pass is too long and goes out of bounds with just .5 seconds left in the opening quarter. Christian misses a long heave and the first quarter buzzer announces that it’s time to rest.

After one quarter, Lansing Christian has a 12-5 lead.

Christian inbounds the ball to start out the second quarter. Grace Rockey steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the side. Christian misses a layup. Lydia Brogan blocks an eight foot Shamrock shot off the dribble in the lane. The loose ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets another opportunity. Grace Rockey is fouled on an up and under layup and hits one of her two free throws to shave the Pilgrim lead to 12-6 with 6:18 left in the half.

Ava Mustapha fakes a jump shot and drives the baseline to hit a layup for Christian. Sophia Carrillo knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Alyssa Shank picks it up for Christian. Lily Sandborn forces a tieup. The Possession Arrow looks away from the boiling vegetable soup and awards the ball to the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misfires on a triple try from the top of the key. Grace Rockey taps the offensive rebound to Macie Smith, so the Shamrocks get another chance. Macie Smith throws in a threeball from the wing to cut the Christian lead to 14-9.

Lily Sandborn steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks get another opportunity. Ava Mustapha steals the ball for Christian. Natalie Adams hits a twelve foot shot off the dribble from the baseline for Christian. Megan Myers passes to Mattie Honsowitz, who is fouled on an eight footer in the lane. Mattie Honsowitz hits one of her two free throws for the Shamrocks. Christian misses a layup. Mattie Honsowitz is fouled on the rebound and sinks two free throws to trim the Pilgrim lead to 16-12 with 2:51 left in the opening half.

Mattie Honsowitz blocks a Pilgrim layup. St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Macie Smith hits a putback to cut the Pilgrim lead to 16-14.

A Christian dribbler trips in the lane. Grace Rockey and Mattie Honsowitz quickly tie the ball up. The Possession Arrow is interviewing a prospective dish washer and misses the play; the ball is awarded to Christian. Christian misses a ten foot shot off the dribble from the baseline. Sophia Carrillo knocks the ball away from a Shamrock dribbler and out of bounds. St. Patrick retains possession. Sophia Carrillo gets a hand on the ball and Lydia Brogan picks it up for the Pilgrims.

Grace Rockey knocks the ball out of bounds; Christian retains possession. Christian misses a ten foot shot from the side. St. Patrick misfires on a triple try from the wing. Christian reciprocates and misfires on a triple try from the wing. The second quarter buzzer assertively lets us know that the half is over.

Lansing Christian has a 16-14 halftime lead.

Macie Smith and Mattie Honsowitz each have 5 points to lead St. Patrick.

Ava Mustapha and Lydia Brogan each have 5 points to lead Lansing Christian.

As there is no halftime entertainment, I hope you will enjoy this original Christian song from my You Tube Channel. “Christ’s Army is written to sound like an early Beach Boys song, but it is original material!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdCgG0k5bLg

And here is another original Christian song, “Jesus Came to Save Us.” Even though it is nominally a Christmas song, I think (and hope) the message works all year round.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGipc4NwzN8

Lansing Christian inbounds the ball to get quarter number three underway. The Pilgrims miss a three point shot from the top of the key. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing. Macie Smith pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a layup. Grace Rockey is fouled on a putback and hits two free throws to tie the game at 16-16 with 7:05 to play in quarter number three.

Alyssa Shank passes to Lydia Brogan, who is fouled on a layup and hits two free throws for the Pilgrims to retake the lead. St. Patrick misses an eight foot shot off the dribble from the side of the lane. Christian misses a driving layup. St. Patrick misses a sixteen foot shot from the wing. Bella Russman fights and ties up the rebound for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow is explaining perseverence to one of the dishwashers and is delighted by Ms. Russman’s example. The ball is awarded to St. Patrick.

Alyssa Shank blocks a Shamrock ten footer from the side. The loose ball goes out of bounds and Christian takes possession. The Pilgrims misfire on a triple try from the side and foul on the rebound. The Shamrocks are whistled for traveling. Christian misses a threeball from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and Christian gets another possession. Alyssa Shank inbounds the ball to a Pilgrim teammate, who is fouled on a twelve foot shot from the side, but misses her free throws. With 4:42 to play in quarter number three, Christian holds an 18-16 lead.

The rebound goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks take possession. Esther Lee knocks a Shamrock pass out of bounds; St. Patrick retains possession. Lydia Brogan gets her hand on the ball, but the Shamrocks recover. Lydia Brogan steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Macie Smith steals the ball back for the Shamrocks. Grace Rockey is fouled on a driving layup and makes two free throws to tie the game at 18-18 with 3:19 to go in quarter number three.

Mattie Honsowitz blocks a Pilgrim shot. Christian recovers quickly, but the Shamrocks tie up the ball. The Possession Arrow looks up from the prime rib it is slicing and awards the ball to St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a driving reverse layup. Bella Russman hits a putback to give St. Patrick a 20-18 lead.

Christian misses a jump shot from the side. St. Patrick throws a pass out of bounds. (Okay, this was actually a Shamrock player and not the Saint, himself.) Alyssa Shank is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to trim the Shamrock lead to 20-19 with 1:58 left in quarter number three.

Ava Mustapha and Alyssa Shank dive to tie up the ball for Christian. The Possession Arrow takes a moment off from filling water glasses to award the ball to the Pilgrims. Macie Smith taps the ball away from Christian and Lily Sandborn picks it up for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a threeball from the side. Christian misses a driving layup. The rebound is tied up.

The Possession Arrow is dealing with a disgruntled diner and is starting to get frustrated by all the interruptions from the basketball game. It quickly awards the ball to St. Patrick and goes back to getting yelled at by the diner. Sophia Carrillo blocks a Shamrock layup. The loose ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball back. The Shamrocks misfire on a threeball from the side as quarter number three comes to a close.

With three quarters behind us, St. Patrick holds a 20-19 lead.

Christian inbounds the ball to open the fourth quarter. Mattie Honsowitz gets her hand on the ball, but the Pilgrims recover. Lily Sandborn’s tough defense causes a Christian traveling violation on a drive. St. Patrick commits an offensive foul. Christian misses a ten foot shot off the dribble. Ava Mustapha grabs the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims.

Christian misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing. Christian reciprocates and misses a threeball from the wing. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing and fouls on the rebound. Christian misses an eight foot driving banked shot from the side. Macie Smith drives and hits a reverse layup to give her Shamrocks a 22-19 lead.

Grace Rockey knocks the ball away from Christian and Mattie Honsowitz picks it up for St. Patrick. Ava Mustapha ties up the ball. The Possession Arrow is startled by the interruption. After filling a sugar bowl with salt, it looks up and awards the ball to St. Patrick. Grace Rockey is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to boost the Shamrock lead to 23-19 with 3:52 left on the clock.

Ava Mustapha drives the baseline and dishes the ball to Sophie Hazelton, who knocks down a threeball from the corner to slash the Shamrock lead to one point. St. Patrick misses a layup. Lydia Brogan tosses the ball to Sophie Hazelton, who tosses a threeball from the wing through the hoop to give the Pilgrims a 25-23 lead.

Lydia Brogan gets her hand on the ball, but the Shamrocks are able to recover. Lydia Brogan steals the ball and hits a fast break layup to give Christian a 27-23 lead.

Grace Rockey drives and hits a layup to cut the Pilgrim lead to two points. Christian misses a driving layup. the rebound goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks take possession. Ava Mustapha ties up the ball. The Possession Arrow is on break, sees the play and awards the ball to Christian. Christian is fouled.

Unfortunately for St. Patrick, this is Grace Rockey’s fifth foul and the Shamrocks will have to play the final half minute or so without one of the top players in the Lansing area. Christian misses its free throws. With 33.4 seconds to go, the Pilgrims hold a 27-25 lead.

Naomi Hass pulls down the crucial defensive rebound for the Shamrocks. The Shamrocks fumble a pass out of bounds. Macie Smith ties up the ball for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow awards the ball to St. Patrick. Mattie Honsowitz is fouled on a twelve foot shot in the lane and hits one of her two free throws to close the Pilgrim lead to 27-26 with 15.2 seconds left.

Bella Russman grabs a crucial offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a layup, but Mattie Honsowitz is there to grab the fiercely contested rebound; she hits a putback to give St. Patrick a 28-27 lead.

Christian misses a driving layup. Lydia Brogan gets the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Christian misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. The rebound is tied up. The Possession Arrow gives the ball to the Pilgrims with just 2.5 seconds to go. Lily Sandborn knocks the Pilgrim inbound pass out of bounds; Christian gets the ball back with just 2.0 seconds to play. Christian misses a rushed three point shot from the side as time expires.

St. Patrick wins this game by the final score of 28-27 and will play Concord in Monday’s Regional Semifinal game.

Lydia Brogan led the Lansing Christian scoring with 9 points. Sophie Hazelton hit two clutch threeballs to Christian a lead late in the game and finished with 7 points. Ava Mustapha added 5 points. Natalie Adams and Esther Lee each scored 2 points. Alyssa Shank and Sophia Carrillo each tallied 1 point.

Grace Rockey had 9 points to lead the St. Patrick scoring. Mattie Honsowitz contributed 8 points and Macie Smith chipped in with 7 points. Lily Sandborn and Bella Russman each had 2 points.