Notebook: Eight Catholic Central players have won state titles in different sports
Grand Rapids Catholic Central players warm up before playing Grand Rapids Christian in a state quarterfinal game at Hamilton on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Carter Meerman (11), Matt Sokorai (4) and Collin Lott (55) each won state titles in different sports. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).
HAMILTON, Mich. - When Durral Brooks drained a 3-pointer with 26 seconds left in Tuesday’s state quarterfinal game, it was the final bucket of his high school career.
But the Grand Rapids Catholic Central senior won’t graduate without a championship trophy. There are eight players on the Cougars basketball roster who are still state champions. Not all in basketball, however.
Brooks, who is the 2024 Michigan Mr. Basketball, and teammate Carter Meerman were freshmen in 2021 when Catholic Central won the Division 2 basketball state title. Brooks started the game and had 10 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. Meerman was called up for the playoffs and drained a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the game.
The Catholic Central football team won the Division 5 state title in the fall - beating Corrunna 21-7 - and four basketball players were on the roster: Ace Natte, Collin Lott, Kamal Hillard and Will Schetz.
There’s also two golf state champs for the Cougars. Junior Matt Sokorai and sophomore Tommy Jandernoa helped Catholic Central to the Division 3 state title last spring.
So Catholic Central didn’t win the basketball state title this year, but many of them are still champs.
Brooks ends his career as the all-time leading scorer in school history. He recently passed Kaden Brown, who had 1,577 points in his career. Brooks averaged 27 points this season and finished his career with 1,661 points.
CATHOLIC CENTRAL: Jack Karasinski has entered the transfer portal. The Catholic Central grad played the past two seasons at William & Mary College, but he only played nine games this year.
CALVIN UNIVERSITY: Jalen Overway (Holland Christian) was named MVP of the MIAA for the second-straight year. The sophomore averaged 19.7 points and 10.4 points per game for the 25-5 Knights.
CORNERSTONE UNIVERSITY: Cory Ainsworth (Wayland) reached 2,000 career points on the same day that the Golden Eagles won the WHAC Tournament title for the first time since 2017. Cornerstone made the NAIA National Tournament for the first time since the 2018-19 and plays Carroll College on Friday in Idaho.
FERRIS STATE: Junior guard Ethan Erickson (Forest Hills Northern) was chosen as the GLIAC's Sixth Man of the Year, becoming the first player in league history to earn the recently-created award. He also was named All-GLIAC First Team after leading the team in scoring with 14.4 points coming off the bench. The Bulldogs won the GLIAC Tournament title this week and advance to the NCAA Division II tournament.
OLIVET COLLEGE: Freshman center Conner Schipper (Zeeland East) was named to the All-MIAA Second Team. He averaged 12.9 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game. His 161 rebounds and his 52 blocks ranked first among all players. "We're obviously very proud of Conner being able to represent himself and our team with this award," said Olivet head men's basketball coach Sam Hargraves.
TRI-UNITY CHRISTIAN: The Defenders are heading back to The Breslin for the fourth-straight year. Tri-Unity Christian beat St. Joseph Our Lady of the Lake Catholic 65-29 in a D4 quarterfinal on Tuesday. Jordan VanKlompenberg drained seven 3-pointers for 21 points and Keaton Blanker 13 for the Defenders (22-5). Tri-Unity will play St. Ignace on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at The Breslin. The Defenders won the state title in 2022 and reached the title game last year.
UNITY CHRISTIAN: Senior Colin Nieuwenhuis has committed to play soccer at Calvin University. He helped lead the Crusaders to the Division 3 state title in the fall. He also plays golf and has been the starting point guard on the basketball team all four years.
ZEELAND WEST: The Dux dominated a Muskegon team for three quarters and held on for a 53-52 win on Tuesday in a Division 1 quarterfinal. Zeeland West lost twice to the Big Reds during the regular season. Zeeland West plays North Farmington on Friday at 2 p.m. at The Breslin. The Dux (20-7) actually played North Farmington (23-2) earlier in the season. On Dec. 16, the Raiders beat the Dux 66-57 at the Winter Shootout at Northville. One of North Farmington’s only losses was to Northview on Jan. 27 at the 2K24 Showcase at Aquinas College.
