Portland St. Patrick vs. Onekama – – MHSAA Division 4 Girls Basketball Semifinal – – The Bleacher Denizen – – March 19, 2026 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, your Bleacher Denizen is at the Breslin Center at Michigan State University where the Shamrocks from Portland St. Patrick will compete with the Portagers from Onekama in the Division 4 Girls Basketball Semifinal.

As we wait for this game to begin, I hope you will enjoy this cover video of “Down South in New Orleans”, a song that had a beat way ahead of its time in 1955, when it first appeared on the country charts! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QUZ5FrpeFA

St. Patrick finished fourth in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference and has a 22-5 record coming into the semifinal. The CMAC is a rugged conference where only two of the nine teams besides St. Patrick are in Division 4. One team, Pewamo-Westphalia is also a semifinalist in Division 3. The Shamrocks beat Concord in the quarterfinal to advance to this game. The MHSAA Finals Preview has provided these statistics about some of the players.

Grace Rockey averages 15.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game. Macie Smith scores 6.8 points and pulls down 4.8 rebounds per game. Lily Sandborn averages 7.9 points. Macie Leonard scores 6.4 points per game.

The Shamrocks have been quite gritty all year as they play tough defense. I’d also like to mention Mattie Honsowitz, who would have been a top player for the Shamrocks this year, but was injured after five games and is out for the season. While she played, she averaged 12.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game and was noted for her fundamental excellence at all facets of post play.

Onekama finished fourth in the Northwest Conference and brings a 19-7 record into today’s semifinal. Here are some of the statistics to help you learn about some of their top players. Ava Mauntler scores 10.5 points per game. Delaney McCarthy averages 9.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. Callie Sinke averages 9.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game. Hailey Hart averages 5.2 points per game.

It is now time to review the events of this game through the occasionally accurate lenses of an Aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league when he attempted to play ball in the ancient times when many considered him to be “young.”

He was showing a lot of potential as a dunker when the basketball powers that be ruined everything by raising the rim from five feet to ten feet. Alas, all that time perfecting dunk moves was ruined simply because the Bleacher Denizen’s leaping ability is equal to that of your average rhinoceros. When the interior scoring disappeared, so did the Bleacher Denizen’s playing time.

St. Patrick wins the opening tap. The Shamrocks misfire on a threeball from the side. Macie Leonard pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Macie Smith passes to Macie Leonard, who hits a three point shot from the side to get the Shamrocks the first three points of the game. Grace Rockey ties up the ball for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow ignores her great hustle and awards the ball to Onekama.

Addy Zeller passes to Delaney McCarthy, who hits a ten foot shot from the side of the lane for Onekama. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the side and fouls on the rebound. Macie Smith knocks the ball out of bounds; Onekama retains possession. Grace Rockey steals a Portager pass. St. Patrick misses a layup. Macie Leonard grabs the offensive rebound and relays the ball to Grace Rockey, who hits a layup to give the Shamrocks a 5-2 lead.

Onekama misses a ten foot shot off the dribble from the side and fouls on the rebound. St. Patrick misfires on a three pointer from the side. Grace Rockey gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Ava Mauntler steals the ball for the Portagers. Onekama loses a pass out of bounds. St. Patrick misses a layup. Macie Leonard hits a putback to give her Shamrocks a 7-2 lead.

Onekama misses a six foot banked shot from the side of the lane. Macie Leonard passes to Grace Rockey, who spins and is fouled on a layup to give St. Patrick a 9-2 lead with 3:52 remaining in the opening quarter.

Macie Smith’s tough defense forces a Portager traveling violation. Macie Leonard passes to Grace Rockey, who hits a ten foot shot in the lane for St. Patrick. Onekama misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Ava Mauntler pulls down the offensive rebound for the Portagers. Onekama misses a ten foot shot from the side of the lane. Grace Rockey passes to Macie Leonard, who hits a three point shot from the side to give the Shamrocks a 14-2 lead.

Callie Sinke passes to Addy Zeller, who hits a three point shot from the side for Onekama. St. Patrick commits a double dribble violation. Morgan Krieger for St. Patrick its the floor and causes a tieup. The Possession Arrow loves her hustle and awards the ball to the Shamrocks. The Shamrocks miss a threeball from the side. Onekama misses a ten foot shot off the dribble from the side of the lane. The Shamrock dribbler shuffles her feet and turns the ball over. Ava Mauntler passes to Callie Sinke, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key to cut the Shamrock lead to 14-8.

St. Patrick misses a driving eight foot banked shot from the side. Onekama misses a threeball from the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Portagers get another opportunity. Onekama misses a three point shot from the side. Emma Bradford grabs the offensive rebound for the Portagers. Onekama misses an eight foot shot in the lane. St. Patrick misses a long heave as the buzzer announces the end of the first quarter.

After one quarter, St. Patrick has a 14-8 lead.

Onekama inbounds the ball to open the second quarter. Hailey Hart drives and hits a layup for the Portagers. She is fouled on the play and hits her free throw to trim the Shamrock lead to 14-11 with 7:51 remaining in the second quarter.

Anna Bradford knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Ava Mauntler picks it up for Onekama. Macie Smith steals a Portager pass. Addy Zeller knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Hailey Hart picks it up for Onekama. Macie Smith gets her hand on the ball, but Onekama recovers.

Lily Sandborn steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a fast break layup; the rebound goes out of bounds and Onekama gets the ball. Lily Sandborn knocks the ball away from the Portagers and Macie Leonard picks it up for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Ava Mauntler drives and hits a layup for Onekama to slash the St. Patrick lead to one point at 14-13.

St. Patrick misses a layup. Grace Rockey pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing. Macie Smith grabs the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. She drives from the side and hits a layup to give St. Patrick a 16-13 lead.

Grace Rockey partially blocks a Portager threeball from the side. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the side. Lily Sandborn gets her hand on the ball; Onekama recovers. The Portagers miss a three point shot from the side. Delaney McCarthy blocks a Shamrock layup; St. Patrick recovers the loose ball. Macie Leonard passes to Macie Smith who hits a two point jump shot just inside the three point line to give St. Patrick an 18-13 lead.

Onekama misses a ten foot shot off the dribble from the side of the lane. Grace Rockey passes to Macie Leonard, who hits an eight foot shot from the baseline for the Shamrocks. Grace Rockey dives and dies up the ball for St. Patrick. The Possession Arrow is moved by her passionate defense and awards the ball to the Shamrocks. Grace Rockey is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws. With 1:00 remaining in the first half, St. Patrick has a 21-13 lead.

Morgan Krieger steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick fumbles a pass out of bounds. Hailey Hart passes to Ava Mauntler, who hits a three point shot from the side for Onekama to cut the St. Patrick lead to five points. St. Patrick misses a layup. Onekama does not have time to shoot before the halftime buzzer announces it is time for a break.

St. Patrick has a 21-16 lead at halftime.

Ava Mauntler leads the Portager scoring at halftime with 5 points.

Macie Leonard has 10 points for St. Patrick and Grace Rockey has 7 points.

As our readers cannot hear the halftime activities, I hope you will enjoy these videos from my You Tube Channel.

“Blues Stay Away from Me” was a hit for the Delmore Brothers, who wrote the song in the late 1930s. This song has been performed by many artists in various genres ever since. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TtsKUnqw7g

Your Bleacher Denizen has covered a lot of basketball games this season. Sometimes, he feels “Too Old to Cut the Mustard!” Here is my (hopefully humorous) cover of the 1950s country hit!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6GOgZAHqxI

Onekama inbounds the ball to get quarter number three underway. Marian Davlin’s tough defense forces Onekama to miss a layup. Lily Sandborn passes to Grace Rockey, who hits a layup for the Shamrocks. Onekama misses a layup. St. Patrick reciprocates and misses a layup. Marian Davlin hustles and knocks the offensive rebound to a Shamrock teammate. Grace Rockey passes to Macie Leonard, who hits a layup to give St. Patrick a 25-16 lead.

Macie Leonard knocks the ball away from the Portagers and Lily Sandborn picks it up for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misfires on a triple try from the side. Macie Smith blocks an Onekama eight foot shot from the side. Grace Rockey passes to Macie Leonard, who hits a layup for St. Patrick. Ava Mauntler passes to Addy Zeller, who hits a three point shot from the side to trim the Shamrock lead to 27-19.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds; initially the ball was going to St. Patrick, but the referee changed his mind and Onekama gets the ball. The Portagers miss a threeball from near the top of the key. The Portagers tie up the rebound. The Possession Arrow loves their hustle and awards the ball to Onekama. Marian Davlin knocks the ball away from Onekama and Macie Leonard picks it up for St. Patrick. Macie Leonard hits a fast break layup to boost St. Patrick to a 29-19 lead.

Onekama misses a jump shot from the side. The Shamrocks foul on the rebound. Onekama misses a driving layup. Lily Sandborn passes to Grace Rockey, who hits a layup for St. Patrick. Onekama misses a three point shot near the top of the key. Grace Rockey drives and hits a layup to give St. Patrick a 33-19 lead.

Addy Zeller passes to Anna Bradford, who hits a jump shot from the free throw line for Onekama. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the side. Macie Smith pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Addy Zeller steals the ball for the Portagers. Onekama misses a fast break layup.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Grace Rockey knocks a Portager pass out of bounds; Onekama retains possession. The Portagers miss a jumper from the free throw elbow. Grace Rockey passes to Marian Davlin, who is fouled as she shoots a layup. Marian Davlin sinks two free throws to give St. Patrick a 35-21 lead with 37.4 seconds remaining in quarter number three.

Grace Rockey steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Marian Davlin is fouled on a putback and hits one of her two free throws for St. Patrick with just 7.1 seconds to play in quarter number three. Onekama misses a three point shot from the wing as the third quarter comes to a halt.

After three quarters, St. Patrick has a 36-21 lead.

St. Patrick inbounds the ball to open the fourth quarter. Lily Sandborn passes to Macie Smith, who hits a layup for the Shamrocks. Callie Sinke drives and hits a layup for the Portagers. Lily Sandborn alertly saves a bad Shamrock pass from becoming a turnover. Lily Sandborn passes to Marian Davlin, who hits an eight foot shot from the side to boost the Shamrock lead to 40-23.

Onekama misses an eight foot banked shot from the side. St. Patrick misses a layup. Marian Davlin ties up the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow ignores her toughness and awards the ball to the Portagers. Macie Leonard gets a hand on a Portager pass; Onekama recovers. Delaney McCarthy is fouled on a driving layup and hits two free throws to trim the St. Patrick lead to 40-25 with 4:51 left on the clock.

Hailey Hart blocks a St. Patrick driving layup; the loose ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets another possession. The Shamrocks are foul, but miss two free throws. Grace Rockey is fouled on the rebound and hits one of her two free throws to boost St. Patrick to a 41-25 lead with 3:44 remaining.

Onekama misses an eight foot banked shot from the side. Callie Sinke steals the ball for the Portagers. The Portagers miss a three point shot from the corner. Addy Zeller knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Delaney McCarthy picks it up for Onekama. The Portagers miss a twelve foot shot from the side of the lane. The rebound is tied up and the Possession Arrow says St. Patrick gets the ball. Grace Rockey is fouled and hits two free throws to give St. Patrick a 43-25 lead with 2:17 to go.

Onekama misses an eight foot shot off the dribble from the side. Grace Rockey is fouled and hits one of her two free throws for St. Patrick. Morgan Krieger grabs the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Macie Leonard is fouled and hits one of her two free throws for St. Patrick. With 1:38 remaining, the Shamrock lead is at 45-25.

Jordyn Lansdell ties up the rebound for the Shamrocks. The Possession Arrow is indifferent to her effort and awards the ball to the Portagers. Onekama throws a pass out of bounds. St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Morgan Krieger gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks and passes to Jordyn Lansdell, who hits a layup for St. Patrick. Onekama misses a three pointer from the side. Macie Leonard is fouled and hits one of her two free throws to give the Shamrocks a 48-25 lead with 31.5 seconds to play.

Hazel Sedelmaier passes to Ava Skocelas-Outman, who is fouled as she shoots a layup. Ava Skocelas-Outman hits one of her two free throws for Onekama. Alice Newman is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws for St. Patrick with just 2.7 seconds to go. Onekama misses a last second heave.

St. Patrick wins this game 49-26 and will play Ishpeming in Saturday morning’s state final! Congratulations to both these teams on an excellent tournament run!

Addy Zeller led the Onekama scoring with 6 points. Callie Sinke and Ava Mauntler each added 5 points. Delaney McCarthy scored 4 points. Hailey Hart tossed in 3 points. Anna Bradford tallied 2 points. Ava Skocelas-Outman had 1 point.

Macie Leonard led St. Patrick with 18 points. Grace Rockey joined her teammate in double figures with 17 points. Macie Smith contributed 6 points. Marian Davlin contributed 5 points. Jordyn Lansdell chipped in with 2 points and Alice Newman added 1 point.

Also, St. Patrick is not the only team from the Central Michigan Athletic Conference who will be playing in the state final on Saturday. Pewamo-Westphalia won their semifinal game earlier this afternoon and will be playing Jackson Lumen Christi for the championship. Here is the play by play of the P-W semifinal!https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2026/03/19/pewamo-westphalia-vs-roscommon-mhsaa-division-3-girls-basketball-semifinal-the-bleacher-denizen-march-19-2026-by-chuck-krafft/