GVSU women’s hoops signee sets Three Rivers records in win over Allegan

ALLEGAN, MI - With a crisp first-quarter entry pass to forward Kali Heivilin, Three Rivers senior Hadley Miller stamped her name in program history by becoming the Wildcats’ career assist leader.

Before halftime of Tuesday's game against Allegan, Miller added another chapter to her storied legacy by breaking a second Three Rivers' record -- this time the school's career steals mark.

It was a memorable game for the future Grand Valley State Laker, who finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and five assists in the Wildcats' 63-36 win.

In both categories, the 5-foot-9 guard surpassed 2011 graduate Morgan Stuut, who had 204 assists and 267 steals in her four-year career, before going on to earn first team NAIA All-American honors in her junior and senior seasons at St. Xavier University in Chicago.

Before the game, Three Rivers head coach Jason Bingaman told Miller she was closing in on the two program records, but didn't specify that she needed just one assist and two steals to put her name atop the career lists.

Not that it would've mattered for Miller, who had blocked out any thought of the historic feats by the opening tip.

"That wasn't my intention going into the game," she said of breaking the records. "I just wanted to pass when I had the opportunity to pass and shoot when I had the shot."

"It feels awesome," Miller added of being the new school record holder. "Being able to shoot and score is really good, but being able to see the court and get other people involved is something I want to be good at too."

Miller now has 209 career assists and 272 steals during her four-years on the varsity squad, and with 1,135 points for her career, she's within reach of Three Rivers' all-time scoring record held by 2014 grad Teagan Reeves at 1,619 points.

"Hadley's a really good player, and we've know that for four years," Allegan coach Josh Holman said after the game. "She was up as a freshman, and she gave us fits, and she's continued to be the player we knew she could be.

"Not only is she gifted athletically, but she knows the game, she plays it the right way, she makes those passes and looks ahead. She's not afraid to mix it when she gets in there, so she's an extremely tough matchup. When you close the driving lanes, she can shoot the 3, and when you contest, she's smart enough to go around and make that drop off.

"She's a good player, and I'm excited to see where she can take it down the road."

Before she was a four-year varsity starter for the Wildcats, Miller's love for the game of basketball made her stand out in Three Rivers' youth program, and that passion has fostered the type of work ethic required to establish herself among the best to ever wear the Purple and White.

"I think the first thing you look for are off-the-court things. Are you a hard worker? Do you have the right mindset on what athletics is about? Do you use your time wisely in terms of getting better as much as you can?" Bingaman said.

"She had those three attributes right away, and then it was just a matter of getting involved and meshing the offense and defense to the strength of your players, and that's definitely where we're at right now, with Hadley especially.

"She's been able to grow, and I think it's a tribute to her with where she's at for the assists and the points. She does what she can to help us as a team, and that's important. She's not just out there trying to do everything by herself."

Ranked as the state's No. 4 team in the latest Associated Press Division 2 poll, Three Rivers (7-0, 4-0 Wolverine) has a strong supporting cast outside of Miller, headlined by Heivilin, a junior forward and University of Alabama softball commit, who tallied 24 points, 13 rebounds and six steals against Allegan.

"I think there are times where we look really athletic and are in the right spots, but we're still a team that is kind of searching to see what we can become," Bingaman said. "In the locker room at halftime and after the game, we were pointing out things that we're going to attack and work on tomorrow, but I think the confidence is there. We try not to read too much in the hype that everyone is putting on us, and we know that each night we step on the court, it's a chance for us to play together, work hard as a group of girls that like each other."

As a captain and the only senior on Three Rivers' roster, Miller takes her leadership role seriously and takes pride in the fact that team chemistry is a strength this year.

"As a team, I just want to play good basketball and have good chemistry on and off the court," Miller said. "We're 7-0 and I think that speaks to how we communicate and treat each other, and that's something I want to enforce as a captain.

"I think we're confident in ourselves but we don't want to overlook any team we're going to play. It's just game by game, and we're focused on Sturgis next."

Three Rivers hosts the Trojans on Friday, while Allegan hosts Paw Paw on Friday.

The loss drops Allegan to 3-6 overall, but the future is bright for the Tigers, who started a freshman at center (Aubrie Evans) and a sophomore at forward (Madison Groth) alongside senior standout Alison Bishop, who led the team with 14 points.

"The message is to continue to stay the course," Holman said. "We're going to do things that have made us successful in the past and things that will make us successful in the future, and we're really young. We start a freshman, we start a sophomore, and we'll have nine people coming back from this year's roster.

"We've got a bright future. We just have to stay the course and not be deterred by results that may not be what we want. The best thing an athlete can have is a short-term memory, and we'll get after it tomorrow."

Three Rivers scorers

Kali Heivilin - 24 points, 13 rebounds, 6 steals

Hadley Miller - 20 points, 10 rebounds, 6 steals, 5 assists

Rylie Kelly - 9 points, 4 rebounds

Natalie Barnes - 4 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals

Alivia Knapp - 3 points

Illyana Taylor - 2 points, 5 rebounds

Macy Ivins - 1 point, 3 steals

Allegan scorers

Alison Bishop - 14 points

Kaitlyn Fulton - 9

Ana Allen - 5