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Tom Kohlmann's Hornets have utilized an uncanny ability to hit the long-range shot all season long and NL used the same formula to reach the state championship contest for the first time in school history. Shooting about 50% from beyond the arc might seem like a remarkable feat for most teams, but it has become a common occurrence and a not-so-secret weapon for the Hornets. Twenty-six straight opponents have been unable to find a way to stop the long-distance onslaught by a New Lothrop team that seems to contain a bevy of sharpshooters.

"I think that's been our strength for the entire season," said Kohlmann, whose team buried 8 of 17 treys against Mooney. "At any given time, we usually have at least four players on the floor who are capable of scoring from behind the line."

New Lothrop, which has shot the ball consistently all season long, was fittingly consistent in the semis contest, sinking 4 of 9 treys in the first half and hitting 4 of 8 triples after intermission.

Despite its superiority from the outside, the Hornets led just 14-10 at the end of the opening quarter and clung to a 23-21 edge at intermission as Cardinal Mooney dominated on the inside.

"We talked about it at halftime and put a big emphasis on rebounding going into the second half," commented Kohlmann in reference to Mooney's 24-12 advantage on the boards in the first half. "We did a much better job on that in the second half and I think that's why we held on to win."

New Lothrop shored up its inside game after intermission and managed to hold its own underneath, battling the Cardinals to a 17-17 stand-off in rebounding after intermission. With Mooney's second-chance points now limited, and with the Cardinals missing all but one of nine triple attempts in the contest, NL was able to steadily pull away to victory. The Hornets posted a 10-6 advantage in the third quarter to take a 33-27 lead and followed with a 16-10 edge over the final eight minutes of play.

Kayla Gross was the high scorer for New Lothrop, which had three players reach double figures in the scoring column. The talented senior guard scored 14 points, hitting a pair of triples along the way. Ashley Root and Amber Sammons each tallied 11 markers. Nine of Root's points came on treys and Sammons pulled down five rebounds for NL, which ended up being out-boarded by a 41-29 margin. Kayla Knieper sank eight points and dished out a team-high three assists. Monica Confer was the team's leading rebounder with seven boards.

Once again, the Hornets took good care of the ball, committing just eight turnovers in the contest.

Now, only Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart stands in the way of the Hornets and their season-long dream of winning a state championship.

"Sacred Heart is a very good team and their size is going to be a big concern for us. We're not very big," commented Kohlmann.

But the Hornets have a big heart, a sharp shooting eye, a stingy defense and the momentum of 26 straight wins going into Saturday's (yesterday's) 10 AM title match.

See next week's Citizen for detailed coverage of that Class D championship contest.

St. Charles cheer season ends on high note

MERRILL - The St. Charles High School competitive cheer team finished out its season on a high note earning fourth place regional honors for Division 4.

The Bulldog cheer gals placed at the top of the pack during the 14 team regional meet held at Merrill High School Saturday, March 1 by posting a total score of 654.428.

Pewamo-Westphalia took first place with a total score of 749.914, while Merrill earned second place honors with a total score of 681.788. Breckenridge was third with a total score of 673.600.

Chesaning wins regional, headed to state cheer finals

GOODRICH - The Chesaning Union High School competitive cheer team will defend its state championship title at this year's state cheer finals after capturing the Division 3 regional title Saturday, March 1.

The Indian cheer gals earned first place regional honors by posting a total score of 722.588 and besting 16 teams during the competition held at Goodrich High School.

Chesaning posted scores of 216.000 for the first round of competition, 215.088 for the second round, and 295.500 for the third round.

Ovid-Elsie took second place honors with a total score of 709.383.

The Indian squad goes into the state finals with the seventh ranked regional score out of the ten teams that will compete at the Grand Rapids Deltaplex (yesterday) Saturday, March 8.

Montrose placed tenth at the regional competition posting a total score of 573.328.

Area quartet still in title contention

Grapplers battle it out at MHSAA individual finals

AUBURN HILLS -- After the quarterfinals of the championship round, four area grapplers were still in title contention on Friday at the Michigan High School Athletic Association individual finals at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

Chesaning's Chad Reiber and New Lothrop's Justin Kupp, Allen Krupp and Ethan Bishop were still unbeaten at press time on Friday afternoon.

In Division 3, Reiber was 2-0 at 135 lbs. He opened with a 3:44 pin of Brad Wade of Dundee, and followed with a 1:04 pin of Big Rapids' Kyle Windquist.

In Division 4, Justin Krupp also had two wins at 103 lbs. He opened with a 7-0 decision over Ryan Abrigo of Manchester, and then had a 2:40 pin of Bangor's Matt Melvin.

Allen Krupp opened with a 1:03 pin of Farwell's Chris Weber at 119 lbs., then added a 14-4 major decision over Scott Nobles of Clinton.

At 215 lbs., Bishop won by a 4-2 decision over Mike Rueda of Blissfield in the opening round, then pinned Andy O'Leary of Kent City in 3:07 of the quarterfinals.

In the Division 3 consolation brackets, Brad Boone, Corey Madden and Cody Wray were still in contention for Montrose.

At 189 lbs., Brad Boone opened with a 6-7 loss, then won 4-2 and 10-5 in overtime to advance for the Rams.

At 125 lbs., Wray started with a 1:10 pin win, then lost 4-5. His third match was incomplete at press time.

At 130 lbs., Madden was pinned in 5:55 of the opening round, the battled back with a default win. His third match was also incomplete at press time.

Montrose's Brad Smith (112) and Brandon Boone (171), along with Chesaning's Jaxon Wirgau (160) were all eliminated. Wirgau and Brandon Boone were 1-2 at the tournament, while Smith was 0-2.

In Division 4, Kyle Trent and Blake Birchmeier were still in contention in the consolation finals.

At 160 lbs., Trent was pinned in 1:15 of the opening round, then battled back with an 18-3 technical fall and a 2-1 decision.

Birchmeier opened with a 6-4 decision at 112 lbs., then lost a 6-4 decision. His third match was incomplete at press time.

Marc Confer (171) went 1-2 at the tournament, while Kelly Krupp (130) and Tom Wenzlick (152) were 0-2.

Hornet grapplers hang with Hesperia, but come up short

BATTLE CREEK -- New Lothrop's varsity wrestling squad entered last Saturday's Divsiion 4 semifinals as an underdog, but the Hornets proved they belonged.

Hesperia defeated the Hornets 40-33, but the Hornets kept things close through the first six weight classes.

"We once again saved our best wrestling for the end of the year," said New Lothrop coach Jeff Campbell. I believe it is very important to peak at the right time and we try to set everything up so that we do."

He added, "We only gave up five bonus points against a very good Bronson team (on Friday), and we followed it up by getting four pins against a powerful Hesperia line-up. A lot of people believed that Hesperia would run us over, but we showed those people what kind of heart we have in this little town.

In the semifinals contest against the eventual state champ, the Hornets earned wins from Kyle Trent (171), Ethan Bishop (215), Allen Krupp (119), Kelly Krupp (125), Taylor Copes (130) and Tom Wenzlick.

The Panthers went on to defeat Manchester 48-24 in the finals.

"I would like to thank our team parents and community for the outstanding season," Campbell said. "I am truly fortunate to get the opportunity to work with these people."

Complete results are as follows:

Hesperia 40, New Lothrop 33

WT HE NL MATCH RESULT

160 6 0 Dan Yates (HE) fall Joe Lane (NL), 1:28

171 6 3 Kyle Trent (NL) dec Lee Maynard (HE), 7-0

189 9 3 Jake Whelan (HE) dec Marc Confer (NL), 15-10

215 9 9 Ethan Bishop (NL) fall Andy Murphy (HE), 4:18

285 15 9 Rudy Spaulding (HE) fall Donny Dawes (NL), :51

103 21 9 Collin Zeerip (HE) fall Justin Krupp (NL), 4:32

112 24 9 Jordan Bosma (HE) dec Blake Birchmeier (NL), 6-2

119 24 15 Allen Krupp (NL) fall Cody Wiseman (HE), 1:08

125 24 21 Kelly Krupp (NL) fall Jon Hren (HE), 4:41

130 24 27 Taylor Copes (NL) fall Jordan Bates (HE), 4:56

135 30 27 Malcolm Martin (HE) fall Ben Burtch (NL), 1:00

140 34 27 Adam Wiseman (HE) maj dec Luke Dawes (NL), 12-0

145 40 27 Brandon Zeerip (HE) fall Jacob Emmendorfer (NL), 1:00

152 40 33 Tom Wenzlick (NL), void

Hesperia (30-1), New Lothrop (20-8)