Macomb County, Wayne County

South girls hoops team advances to state quarterfinals

By Jon Malavolti
C & G Sports Writer

» click to enlarge « File photo by David Schreiber Chippewa Valley guard Tiffany Misch scored 30 points, but it wasn't enough as Grosse Pointe South downed the Big Reds 69-48 in a March 8 regional final at Utica Ford II. File photo by David Schreiber Chippewa Valley guard Tiffany Misch scored 30 points, but it wasn't enough as Grosse Pointe South downed the Big Reds 69-48 in a March 8 regional final at Utica Ford II.

STERLING HEIGHTS — Grosse Pointe South’s girls basketball team leapt into the state quarterfinals round after a big second quarter against Chippewa Valley March 8 in a regional final at Utica Ford II.

The Blue Devils outscored the Big Reds 29-10 in the second to propel themselves to a 69-48 victory and a regional championship.

“That really took the wind out of their sails,” South coach Kevin Richards said.

Chippewa opened the game strong and stuck with South down the stretch, but could never really recover.

“We just went away from what we were successful with in the first quarter,” Chippewa coach Jackie Mauer said. “We just got down, and they could never really regain the momentum that we had in the first quarter.

Junior guard Tiffany Misch led Chippewa with 30 points. Senior forward Patti Pensko added six points for the Big Reds, who finish with a 14-10 record.

Junior center Claire Deboer scored 20 points to lead South. Senior guard Caitlin Moore added 19 for the Blue Devils, while freshman guards Cierra Rice and Aliezza Brown chipped in with 15 and seven points, respectively.

South improved to 21-3 on the year and advances to play Waterford Kettering in a March 13 Class A quarterfinal at Calihan Hall on the campus of the University of Detroit-Mercy. The time of the game has yet to be announced. Visit www.mhsaa.com for more details.

“There’s eight teams left,” Richards said. “Obviously, we’re going to have a tough one next ... but we believe in ourselves.

“I have a feeling every team’s good that’s left,” the coach continued. “We’re going to have to play well. I definitely feel good about the group we have.”
 

You can reach C & G Sports Writer Jon Malavolti at jmalavolti@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1040. Follow Jon on Twitter.