Fellowship Baptist holds off Rochester Hills Christian for MACS state title
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
CLARKSTON — Carson City Fellowship Baptist felt the disappointment of being upset last season in the Michigan Association of Christian Schools Division I state tournament.
The Falcons more than made up for it this season.
Going into the postseason with the No. 1 ranking, Fellowship Baptist put the finishing touches on its second girls basketball state title in school history Saturday with a 49-45 triumph over second-ranked Rochester Hills Christian in a contest played at Clarkston Springfield Christian.
Fellowship Baptist won its first title since 2006 after losing in the state semifinals the past two years, a memory fresh on the mind of Fellowship coach Marie McAlvey and her players.
“It feels great. This was a big hurdle for us because for the girls because we lost in the semifinals two years in a row,” said McElvey. “Coming back and winning last night and tonight means the world to the girls. Today, they were so excited from the beginning.”
DOWN THE LANE: Rochester Hills Christian senior guard Allise Dubay drives past Carson City Fellowship Baptist junior Amber Hopkins during junior Saturday's MACS Division I state championship match.
The Falcons (19-3) fought tooth-and-nail for a 15-14 lead after the first quarter and a 27-22 advantage at the half. Although Rochester Hills held a 44-36 edge on the boards, the smaller Falcons dominated on the offensive glass with 18 offensive rebounds in the first half and 24 for the game.
“Boxing out was huge (in building our lead),” noted McElvey. “We like to use the bodies that God has given us, and that is the (ability and understanding to box out).”
In the third quarter, the Eagles closed the gap to 27-24 just 35 seconds into the frame, only to see Fellowship Baptist go on an 11-4 run for a 38-28 lead with 2:29 left in the quarter. The Falcons held a 40-30 advantage with 1:11 left in the third, before Rochester Hills Christian began to mount a comeback.
Rochester Hills freshman guard Jenna Porter sank a three-pointer to end the period with her team down 40-33 and the Eagles ventured on an 8-2 run to trim the deficit down to 42-38 with 5:53 left in the contest.
Using a trapping defense, the Eagles continued to whittle into Fellowship Baptist’s lead and cut the deficit down to 46-45 with 47 seconds left on a putback from freshman forward Ashley Parker.
Senior guard Allise Dubay, along with Porter and Parker, keyed the Eagles’ comeback and forced the Falcons into five turnovers in the final seven minutes and 3-for-15 shooting in the fourth quarter. The comeback came up just short.
Rochester Hills Christian was whistled for an intentional foul and Fellowship sophomore center Alyssa Rogers and freshman guard Sara McAlvey combined for three free throws in the final 22 seconds to seal the victory.
“Ashley Parker hit the three-pointer and going into the fourth to bring us to within seven and points. After the free throws, we had to start fouling,” said Rochester Hills coach Paula Bronsing. “They did a god job of not getting the ball into their best player’s hands, but they still have other players.
“There was that flagrant foul at the end. I told the players that was not what the game came down to. We had some turnovers earlier in the game and we wouldn’t have been in that situation,” said Bronsing. “No one can blame themselves. We have to win and lose as a team. It can’t come down to one play or one mistake. It’s a whole game.”
Bronsing, who turned a one-win team five years ago into a squad that is 41-7 the past two years, saw her team come up just short for the second straight year. The Eagles were 22-2 last season, but were upset by Davison Faith Baptist in the state semifinals to go along with a loss to a Class B-sized school form Florida. They finished 19-5 this season.
The Eagles graduated eight players and four starters from that squad, with Dubay the only player coming back with significant varsity experience.
“I wasn’t totally surprised. I knew they were going to come in and shock everyone,” admitted Bronsing, who noted the talent in her team’s freshman and sophomore classes. “We worked really hard in the offseason. But losing Allise is going to be huge for next year. We’re going to have to work harder (to replace her) this summer.”
Dubay bowed out of her high school career as the school’s all-time assists and steals leader. She finished with five points, nine assists, five rebounds and two steals in her final prep game.
Porter scored a co-game-high 21 points with 15 rebounds and two blocks to pace Rochester Hills. Parker scored 13 points with 10 rebounds, sophomore Kindra Armitage followed with six points, four boards and three assists, and 6-foot-2 senior Kaylee Gajowiak supplied nine rebounds for the Eagles.
Fellowship Baptist was paced by 21 points with seven steals, seven rebounds and four assists from senior guard Anna McAlvey. Junior guard Charlie McAlvey added six points and nine rebounds and Rogers twined seven points with four boards for the Falcons.
“Each girl gives 100 percent and each girl contributes,” said McAlvey, who counts three seniors on her 10-player varsity. “Every girls plays and (the depth) is a big part for us.”
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Though the title “holds off” accurately described the last quarter, the title “upsets” might have been more appropriate. Though ranked #1, Fellowship is a Division II school playing in Division I with the likes of Rochester Hills,a school with the student body over 4 times the size of Fellowship. With only 19 girls in Fellowship’s high school, the fact that you could get 10 of them- a bunch of farm girls who spend their summer doing chores, running mowers, and mucking stalls instead of camps or AAU- to play together the way they did gave this finals game a March Madness “Cinderella” atmosphere, and the slipper fit.
As the coach of Rochester Hills Christian girls, I would like to clear up a few things. First of all, you have 19 girls in your high school, we have 35 – that would actually be LESS THAN TWICE your number, not FOUR TIMES your number. Second, I do not have ONE GIRL on my team that plays or ever has played AAU basketball. We did NOT attend one basketball camp as a team last summer except the one that I put on for us. Just because our girls are doing other activities instead of “running mowers” and “mucking stalls” doesn’t mean they aren’t busy with other things. They all have jobs, they all have families, they all have obligations; but they are all willing to put in the time for summer workouts and one-on-one sessions to better themselves as players and as a team. Third, a “Cinderella story” is one of an unexpected rise to the top. What is more Cinderella-like, a team of girls who have been playing together all their lives and are seeded #1 (Fellowship) getting to the championship, or a team of only 5 returning players and 1 returning starter (Rochester) fighting its way back to the top to get into the championship?
This article is written on a website entitled “North Oakland Sports.” Rochester is located in Oakland County. Is Fellowship? No. This site has been covering our team all season and continued with this article. Just because it is written from the perspective of Oakland County schools and residents does not mean that it is not accurate. If someone from your area wrote an article about this same game from your perspective on a website called Carson City Sports, then maybe the article would have been written differently, but again, with no less accuracy. (And I would not have written a reply to try to take away credit from your girls and make them feel like they didn’t accomplish as much as they did.) This article is written by a man who has dedicated his time and effort to covering sports for small schools in our area and we appreciate the exposure he has given us. Sorry you do not have the same advantage, but that is not the fault of me, our school, our team, or our girls. And sorry you didn’t like the title, but please don’t try to take away the amazing things that my girls did this year. I’m sure your girls accomplished things too, and I would never diminish that for them the way you have for my girls. I have nothing against your girls, their team, or Fellowship as a school. I simply disagree with and do NOT appreciate this one man’s comment. I love playing good competition and I thought that our championship game was the most exciting one of the day. Why? Because of BOTH of the teams working and playing as hard as they did.
If any of my girls or their families are reading this, please ignore it all. You guys are awesome, had an amazing game, and accomplished more than anyone thought you could this season. I am proud of all of you despite what others may say or think about us. And I am going to keep this article and hang it up in our school as a reminder of how hard work and dedication DO pay off.
Hey, coach! Thanks for your response. Though I never referenced you or your team specifically, I did reference your school once in giving enrollment numbers. It was not my intent that any further discussion of the Fellowship team include any reference of you or your team, and I apologize for any miscommunication. My statements on enrollment were TOTALS and were taken as follows: The RHCS website listed enrollment at 290, and an inquiry to Fellowship listed their enrollment at 78- making RHCS 3.7 times the size of Fellowship. Sorry for the confusion on that. I saw your game against Fellowship, and I wholeheartedly agree with you that it was the best game of the day there at the MACS finals. Again, sorry for any miscommunication, and I also would like to commend Dan and the folks at northoaklandsports.com for their excellent work.
Thanks for clearing that up for us, and sorry if I read a little too much into it. I love my girls, our team, and our school and will defend them to the end! We really enjoyed playing your team and hope to see in the finals again next year. No hard feelings on this end!
Nice to see that resolved. I’ve thrown down with Chuck on a number of occasions and know him to be a man not given to belittling or mocking anyone. None who saw the game would doubt the effort of either team in the contest. Concerning Ricks comment, it seems he might be overrating the progeny of the McAlvey clan on this team. Perhaps he did not see the tenacious defense of Copeland and the Hopkins sisters. Certainly he could not have missed the great job Norris, Rogers, and Brace did sweeping the boards. Regardless, every girl on the team obviously had their heart and mind set on giving their all, no matter their surname. Above all, I would say that God was pleased with the attitude of these teams. Congratulations to Rochester Hills and Fellowship on great seasons.
Hey, coach! Thanks for your response. I’d like to clarify a few things to clear up any miscommunication. Though I did not mention you or your team specifically, I did mention RHCS in regards to enrollment. Any further comments about the Fellowship team were not intended to include any reference to you or your team. I apologize for not making that clear. My enrollment statements were not clear as well. Fellowship reported to MACS a girls high school enrollment of 19 and a total enrollment of 78. RCHS’s website listed total enrollment at 290- 3.7 times that of Fellowship. I apologize for the confusion on that. I couldn’t agree with you more that your game against Fellowship was the best game of the day at the MACS finals. Your team fought hard right to the end. Congratulations to you and your team on your season, and my thanks to Dan and the staff at northoaklandsports.com for great coverage. I thought they covered the game well.
Sorry for the repetition. I thought my response was dropped before it got posted, so I sent another one.
Take nothing away from FBA. The girls played extremely well as if they had been together as a team all of their lives which in fact, they had. The FBA girls team is primarily a team bred from the loins of the McAlvey brothers to be what they are today, a hard working precision like organization. With 40 percent of the team named McAlvey, the family influence in girls sports can be seen in every facet of the school’s existence. While these girls come from a rural setting, they certainly take advantage of family connection to play year round.
Most kids from Christian school leagues in Michigan simply cannot afford to go to the AAU camps mentioned in the response. What an absolute bonus for any coach to have an entire family of sports minded girl athletes on their team. This might be the reason even the coaches has the last name is of course, McAlvey.
As mentioned before, take nothing away from this team. They have been crushing teams all year by large margins but to be honest, steel toed work boots are more apropos than the feign of glass slippers. In the fairy tale Cinderella didn’t show up to the ball two years in a row.
MACS All-State Basketball: http://northoaklandsports.com/2012/03/05/macs-all-state-basketball/
Crossing the Bridge: Maplewood Baptist topples Springfield Christian to win first MACS crown: http://northoaklandsports.com/2012/03/05/crossing-the-bridge-maplewood-baptist-topples-springfield-christian-for-macs-ii-title/
Fellowship Baptist fends off Rochester Hills Christian for MACS D-I crown: http://northoaklandsports.com/2012/03/03/fellowship-baptist-holds-off-rochester-hills-christian-for-macs-state-title/
CLARKSTON SPRINGFIELD CHRISTIAN FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/ClarkstonSpringfieldChristianHsEaglesAthletics
TROY BETHANY CHRISTIAN FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Troy-Bethany-Christian-Bruins-Athletics-Michigan/117873761673689
ROCHESTER HILLS CHRISTIAN FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rochester-Hills-Christian-Eagles-Athletics-Michigan/225710744191883
LAKE ORION BAPTIST FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-Orion-Baptist-Lions-Athletics/372100702804382
FUNDAMENTAL BAPTIST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fundamental-Baptist-Athletic-Conference/150385711709886?ref=ts
DUBAY IS ROCHESTER HILLS CHRISTIAN’S SPARK PLUG: http://northoaklandsports.com/2012/03/02/aotw-dubay-is-rochester-hills-christians-three-sport-sparkplug/
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As a member of both of the “Cinderellas” that never made it to the ball, it was a great experience to watch my freshman sister as she did something I was never able to accomplish. Please don’t take away from what my sister and cousins have been able to do by simply crediting their ability to their last name. They, along with every other member on that team, have put it long hours and hard work to achieve what they have. They didn’t simply inherit it. And please don’t take away from the other girls accomplishments on that team. I’ve seen each and every one of those girls walk away from disappointing seasons, and I’ve seen each and every one of them come back harder the next year. I had the opportunity to play with a majority of those girls, and they work hard for what they want. They come in early on No School days to practice, they go running when everyone else is out swimming in July. They’ve been waiting a long time for this, please don’t spoil what they’ve worked so hard for. Please don’t do the same for Rochester Hills. I have the great opportunity to now attend school with some girls from Rochester and Coach, there is no greater testimony for a team, coach, and school, when you can say your girls not only could perform on the court with character, but could perform in life with character, and they are doing just that now. Rochester suffered the same loss my team did last year in semis, so just by the fact that they made it to the finals this year, speaks of the hard work and determination of their girls. Congratulations to both teams. Please don’t think I’m calling anyone out here. I just remember the pain in that locker room last year, and I’m so proud of my sister, cousins, and former teammates for coming back, and getting the job done.