By Mikey Sullivan & Paul Kuhna ’13 | Photo Editor & Staff Writer

Despite an inspired comeback in the second half of the Class A state championship game, the Lady Blue Devils came up short in overtime losing to Grand Haven 60-54.

“We executed the game plan to the best of our ability,” said Head Coach Kevin Richards. “I’m extremely proud of the girls.”

This game was the exact opposite of last year’s heartbreaker when the girls blew an 18-poing lead. This year they overcame a nine point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Poor shooting was the downfall of the devils who shot 27 percent on 78 shot attempts and only 17 percent from beyond the arch.

Grand Haven star Abby Coles’ foul trouble in the third helped the Lady Blue Devils chip away at Grand Haven’s lead. The 6-foot-5 Cole sat on the bench for the end of the 3rd quarter, which allowed South to get the inside points, something that has helped them win games for the all season.

“She was fouling so I thought to keep going at her,” said leading scorer Cierra Rice who had 24 points. “I wanted to get her out of the game because she is a huge player.”

South forced 32 turnovers and only turned the ball over five times in return.

With their poor shooting, it was the only thing keeping them in the game.

“I think our pressure really helped,” said Claire DeBoer ’13 who had a triple-double with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 steals.”We felt if we went out there and put enough pressure on them we could get the ball back and get turnovers.”

After a slow start to the fourth, South seemed to start gaining momentum.

Better pressure on the ball led to more fast break opportunities and confusion on Grand Haven’s part. Gretchen Shirar ‘13 and Bre’nae Andrews ‘15 started hitting threes and swung the momentum in the fourth.

After tying the game in the fourth quarter on a Shirar three, each team turned the ball over in their last possession and a DeBoer last effort half court shot fell short forcing the game into overtime.

Overtime proved to be troubling again for the Lady Blue Devils. South connected on only one field goal and missed all seven of their three pointers.

After a loss in their first regular season game, South won an astonishing 25 straight until their loss to Grand Haven. Their final record stands at 25-2.