Avery Wolters scores 30, but Marysville girls basketball falls short in regional semi

HAZEL PARK — At this point in the postseason, the talent gap between teams is often narrow. Strategy and style may differ, but ability usually offsets ability.

Sometimes it's just a matter of shots — whose fall and whose don't.

The Marysville girls basketball team suffered the latter Tuesday, as it fell to Warren Fitzgerald, 60-54, in a Division 2 regional semifinal at Hazel Park High School.

Avery Wolters was brilliant scoring a game-high 30 points for Marysville, which finished the season at 20-5.

"Give Fitzgerald credit," Marysville coach Ryan Rathje said. "They're having a great season and they're extremely athletic. They made a few more plays than we did. I was proud of the start our girls got off to. We kept getting down a chunk against a team that can score in bunches. And so I was really proud of how our girls kept battling back throughout the game. They kept fighting until the end."

It was the Vikings who threw the first punch. Ava Grant (12 points) opened the scoring on fast-break layup just seconds into the game. That began an 8-2 Marysville run over the first three minutes.

But the Spartans recovered and closed the first period on an 8-3 tear. This back-and-forth pattern would continue all night.

Fitzgerald scored the first eight points of the second quarter to grab an 18-11 lead. And then Wolters flipped the switch.

"I thought Avery was on a mission tonight," Rathje said. "She has another gear and she was scoring every which way — driving to the basket, outside shots, getting steals and getting layups. She took it in strong to the basket and not only scored, but she got fouled and got to the free-throw line."

Wolters scored seven points in the period alone, as Marysville cut the deficit to one at halftime, 22-21. The Spartans' defense had no answer for her.

"She really just played her heart out tonight," Rathje said. "And that was super fun to watch."

The junior resumed her dominance in the second half with 19 points. However, the Vikings struggled to find offense elsewhere. And that spelled trouble as Fitzgerald's jump shooters got into a rhythm.

Marysville tied the game for the final time, 43-43, on a Wolters free throw with 5:23 left in the fourth quarter. But the Spartans went on a 15-6 spurt over the next four minutes to seal the victory.

While the Vikings had aspirations to replicate last year's run to a state quarterfinal, they had no shortage of accomplishments this year.

"I couldn't be more proud of this team," Rathje said. "We went up a league and won (the MAC Blue title). We won the MAC tournament. We won a holiday tournament. We won our district."

Marysville also clinched a 20-win season for the second year in a row. Not bad for a team that graduated eight seniors in 2022.

"Our first game of the year was a tough start," Rathje said in reference to a 52-35 loss to North Branch. "But I'm amazed with the improvement of the girls throughout the season. Yes, we lost a lot of players from last year. But the ones that came back, they just kept coming and working super hard every day in practice. In every game, their effort and heart is unquestionable."

Fortunately for the Vikings, most of those players will return for next season. Marysville only has four seniors on the current roster in Grant, Kara Miller, Meghan Winston and Allison Fraley.

"We had an amazing season," Rathje said. "I couldn't ask to spend time with a better group of girls and I'm very fortunate every day. I was happy that they got to have a lot of success through their season and all their efforts. I could not be more proud of them."

Sandusky 47, Otisville LakeVille Memorial 41

For the second time in four days, Grace Guibord dropped a team-high 17 points to lead the Wolves to victory.

She was one of three players to score in double figures for Sandusky, which improved to 22-3 overall and has won its last nine games. Brooke Jansen contributed 12 points, six rebounds and four steals while Helena Long added 12 points and seven points.

The Wolves advanced to Thursday's regional final against Cass City. Tipoff is 7 p.m. at Sandusky High School.

Goodrich 60, Yale 32

The Bulldogs' longest postseason run since 1994 came to an abrupt end.

Sadie Dykstra led the charge with nine points for Yale, which finished the season at 16-10 overall. Alyssa Barr totaled seven points and Gracie Ostrander chipped in six.

The Bulldogs kept pace with Goodrich for the first eight minutes, trailing just 14-11 after the opening quarter. But Yale was outscored 12-5 in the second period and never got back within striking distance.

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.