The Goodrich girls basketball team fought valiantly against St. Clair in regional action Nov. 22 at Imlay City.
However, the Saints held on for a 63-57 win against the Martians, advancing to the regional finals Nov. 26 against Flint Powers. The loss ended the Martians? season at 20-4.
The Martians took an early 9-4 lead at the start of the game, but the Saints scored 13 unanswered points to take a 17-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. Goodrich fought back in the second quarter, but St. Clair answered to take a 34-26 lead at halftime.
Goodrich had its troubles shooting in the first three quarters, as the Martians were only 10-of-44 (22.7 percent) in that time span. Goodrich coach Jason Gray said St. Clair’s defense had a lot to do with that statistic.
‘A lot of those were shots we normally make,? he said. ‘They played tough defense. Obviously, they shot real well and that was a big difference.?
The Martians mounted a comeback after the Saints took a 48-30 lead late in the third quarter. Junior Nykole Pfaff led the charge for the Martians, converting three three-point shots. However, it was not enough to overtake St. Clair.
‘We got a couple shots to go in, and we were stopping them on the defensive end, so it wasn’t a case of we scored, they scored,? Gray said.
Pfaff led the Martians with 18 points, including five 3-pointers, while senior Maribeth Barns capped off her Goodrich career with 16 points. Rachelle Mathys had 19 points for St. Clair (24-0).
The Martians advanced to regionals by winning their district championship, defeating Williamston 54-34 on Nov. 19.
Goodrich’s win was a team effort, with 10 players scoring in the contest. Barns led the charge with 19 points, while freshman Kortni Elsworth added nine points off the bench.
The game started out in Goodrich’s favor, as they took a 17-10 lead at the end of the first quarter. Although the Hornets kept it close during the first half, the Martians pulled away to take a 27-19 lead at the end of the first half.
Gray said the thing he will remember most about the season is the way the Martians responded to adversity in midseason.
‘We had a tough stretch in the middle of the year where we lost to Hamady, New Lothrop, and Grand Blanc,? he said. ‘The girls rededicated themselves to making it a good year. Following the Grand Blanc game, we played real well. We put up a good fight against a quality team in St. Clair. It was definitely our biggest highlight, finishing the way we finished.?
The Martians lose four players from this year’s team: Barns (a first-team all-league selection), Julie Owen and Michelle Elliott (both honorable mention all-league selections), and Andrea Howell, whom Gray said played very well down the stretch.
‘While we have a lot of players coming back, we’re losing a couple of key contributors,? Gray said. ‘These girls who are coming back know how hard the seniors worked.?