Portland girls basketball defeats Ionia to extend district title streak
LAKE ODESSA — The Portland girls basketball team entered the season young and inexperienced at the varsity level.
But the Raiders grew up quickly on the court. And behind junior guard and leader Malia Thelen, they continued the program’s winning tradition.
Portland defeated county rival Ionia, 45-26, on Friday in a MHSAA Division 2 district championship game at Lakewood High School.
The Raiders allowed just three points in the second quarter and outscored Ionia 25-13 in the second half to claim their fourth straight district title.
The Raiders (15-8) advance to face Grand Rapids West Catholic (23-0) in a regional semifinal at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Comstock Park.
Portland coach Jason Haid said his group had its sights set on a district championship all year. Last year’s team graduated five senior starters, and this year’s squad doesn’t have a senior on the roster. The youth and inexperience didn’t matter for Portland..
“These girls always competed really hard at the middle school and youth level,” Haid said. “We knew we had some kids coming. We had a few kids on our team last year that got to see firsthand what it takes to win a championship.
“I’m not too surprised we ended up in the position we are now just because of our leadership and the ability of our young kids to grow up fast.”
Portland led 12-10 after the first quarter. Thelen hit a 3-pointer — her lone points of the first half — to start the second quarter for the Raiders. They scored just eight points in the second quarter but held the Bulldogs (14-10) to just three. while leading 20-13 at halftime.
Portland outscored the Bulldogs 16-6 in the third quarter. The Bulldogs cut the deficit to eight, 26-18, before Portland embarked on a 10-0 run — starting with a Thelen 3-pointer and capped by a pair of free throws from sophomore guard Paige Spedoske. The Raiders led 36-19 after three quarters before cruising to victory in the fourth.
“For them to muster up the energy, to put all that aside, dig deep and get through this this week of districts that they did, I’m so proud of them with the way they were able to do that,” Haid said of his team. “They showed a lot of maturity and a lot of competitiveness — just wanting to win.”
Ionia coach Laurie Hoppough believed her team was “out of sync” Friday.
“We couldn’t pull it together unfortunately,” Hoppough said. “They were the better team tonight.”
Thelen led the Raiders with 16 points, including 13 in the second half.
— Contact reporter Evan Sasiela at esasiela@sentinel-standard.com. Follow him on Twitter @SalsaEvan.
This article originally appeared on Ionia Sentinel-Standard: Portland girls basketball adds to district title streak
