Tears were shed. No emotions were spared.
This was the aftermath of an emotional two-hour team meeting called by the Hartland’s girl’s basketball team that has turned its season around. They met inside the old high school gym during a rough patch of the season.
The Eagles had lost in an embarrassing fashion on their home floor against bitter rival Brighton. They were 1-3 against rivals Howell and Brighton and that did not sit well inside a program with so much tradition.
Hartland (13-10) has won three or its last four games since the Brighton loss. That included Monday night’s Class A district opening victory over Fenton, 56-40 at Hartland High School.
Fenton was no match for the new-look Eagles who now carry a “We Are Family” approach for the remainder of the tournament. The Eagles seek their seventh straight district title.
“We are a little more hungry, I think,” said Hartland Coach Reyna Luplow. “And we are definitely learning how to play together.”
What’s the difference besides the team meeting? Senior guard Liv Linden is playing the best basketball of her career before packing her bags for Lawrence Tech University where she will play. Linden scored a career high 26 points against Fenton a few days after scoring a career high 22 during a 54-44 victory over Dearborn.
The Eagles also welcomed back 6-foot-3 center Sarah Rekowski (ankle) who missed much of the season with the injury. She is still getting her sea legs back, but bolsters the team with inside might and fight.
“She definitely gives us a physical inside presence, which I appreciate,” Luplow said.
After the team bonding meeting the Eagles appreciate and trust each other more. Although the meeting was not all roses and hugs, players left uplifted and ready to show the world the real Hartland team.
That was evident in the crisp passing that set teammates up for open three-point looks. Lexi Moyer (nine points) and Linden combined for five-for-11 shooting from deep.
The team bonding continued on the defensive end where Hartland players seemed to get their hands on every pass while putting Fenton on lockdown. Fenton scored just 14 first-half points and five in the second quarter.
This wasn’t much of a match for much of the game. The final score looked respectable only because Luplow emptied her bench in the third quarter with her team up 45-20. The move sparked Fenton which went on a 19-5 run to cut into the lead, 50-39 midway through the fourth quarter. A nervous Luplow put her starters back in.
Hartland quickly took control again.
It’ one thing to beat over matched Fenton, but the real test comes Wednesday (7 p.m.) against Brighton (14-8), ranked eighth in the west by The Detroit News.
“We really struggled playing together as a team,” Moyer said. “We did things outside of basketball connecting with each other. It helped us. We trust each other. We are confident in each other. Today it really showed that we are different in the last few games and we are ready for Brighton and Howell.”
KEY MATCHUP
A great sidebar to the Brighton-Hartland game will be the matchup between senior guard Mary Copple of Brighton and Linden. They are the same players in different bodies and it should be fun watching these competitors battle one another.