EAST LANSING – After Newaygo’s 52-32 loss to Portland in the Division 2 girls basketball state finals Friday at the Breslin Center, dozens of Lions fans gathered around the team bus outside the arena.
Players received congratulations and hugs, and they took photos with fans. Some even signed autographs.
The Lions are heroines in their community. While they fell short of realizing their top goal of bringing home a state title, the team with only eight players captured everybody’s imagination.
They dared to dream. They made longtime Newaygo community members remember the magical days of the “Little Lions,” when the program won state titles in 1984 and 1985.
“The ultimate goal, obviously we didn’t quite get, but I told them in the locker room, when it sinks in and the years go by, they’re going to feel better,” Newaygo coach Nate Thomasma said. “Right now, I could offer this team a million dollars or the trophy and they’d rather have the trophy – the one they wanted -- but they’re competitors.”
Newaygo won 21 games this season and lost just two, both to Portland (20-2). After the Lions fell on the road to Portland, 38-33, on Feb. 24, they reeled off 15 straight victories.
They were hoping to apply lessons learned in that defeat to the rematch in the state finals, but Portland’s defense was too tough and Newaygo struggled against the wide-open shooting backdrop inside Breslin. The Lions shot 20. 9 percent (9-of-43), including 5-of-32 from their top three players: Jaylee Long, Jaxi Long and Emmerson Goodin.
Newaygo head coach Nate Thomasma talks with his team after losing to Portland, 52-32, in the MHSAA Division 2 state championship game at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, on Friday, April 9, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com
“We knew it was going to be a big place and it’s definitely different. It was cool playing here. Shots didn’t fall today. I don’t know if the arena affected us, but they just didn’t fall today,” said Jaylee Long, the senior leader, who shared co-team-high scoring honors with Goodin and Anna Brummel at eight points apiece.
“We just needed to be solid with the ball. They run the ball really well and we needed to stop those easy buckets, and we just weren’t able to stop them today.”
Newaygo was able to make so many memories this season, however. Among them were the six wins the Lions posted along their state-tournament run to the Breslin.
Among the highlights for unranked Newaygo during that stretch:
- Handing No. 7 Montague its only loss of the season, 47-37, in the regional semifinals.
- Knocking off unbeaten, second-ranked Grand Rapids West Catholic in the regional finals, 55-48. West Catholic was missing its top two players, but that wasn’t the Lions’ fault.
- Handling Wayland in the quarterfinals, 51-35, and holding down its star player.
- Wearing down traditional power Detroit Country Day, 55-39, on the bigger stage of Van Andel Arena in the semifinals.
“I told them, it’s a cheesy quote, ‘Don’t cry because it’s over, be happy because it happened,’ you know,” Thomasma said. “Who even thought this was going to happen 2 ½ months ago, right? It feels so quick now, the journey. I think (Kent City boys coach David) Ingles said, ‘It’s the longest, shortest year’ of his coaching career, but this has been more than worth it for me.”
Long is hoping that young girls in Newaygo were watching and see that if they put in the work like she did, then they can chase their dreams, too. Maybe they can be the ones who lead the Lions back to their next state title.
Newaygo's Emmerson Goodin (14) goes up for a shot against Portland's Breckyn Werner (24) during their MHSAA Division 2 state championship game at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, on Friday, April 9, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com
Thomasma defined this Newaygo team with “toughness.” Long, a Cornerstone University signee, was one who set that tone.
While Long is a fierce competitor and really wanted to win Friday, she is trying to keep things in perspective.
“I’ll just remember my team -- they’ve got my back. It was the bus rides, making the shots … we were just always there together, so I’ll remember my team. I won’t remember winning, I won’t remember losing, I’ll just remember my teammates,” she said.
“I don’t know, I’ll definitely remember losing a little bit, but just right there with my friends -- my teammates were standing there right next to me with their arms around me. I’ll remember them just being together. It was an amazing time and run to be with them.”
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Portland last girls basketball team left standing in Division 2 after season of COVID
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With flair for dramatic, Portland punctuates D2 girls basketball state final win over Newaygo
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