Sanford, Michigan - The Sanford Meridian Girls Varsity basketball has not lost a game in the Jack Pine Conference since March 24th, 2021. The Mustangs (12-0) trotted past the Gladwin Flying G's (8-5) 76-41, Sanford Meridian's season high in points.
Junior Halen McLaughlin was the showstopper, racking up 32 points. McLaughlin, the first 1000-point scorer in program history, knocked down shots all night. Hitting three from beyond the arc, 4-for-4 from the free throw line, and a handful of mid-rangers.
Seniors McKenna Pratt and Grace Chinavare, both committed to play basketball at Mid-Michigan College, got the Mustangs going straight out of the gate. Pratt assisted Chinavare for six of the first eight points for Sanford-Meridian.
McLaughlin, Pratt, and Chinavare totaled 62 of the 76 points for the Mustangs. The trio has been vital for Sanford-Meridian's, now 52-5 record across this year and the past two seasons.
Tanner Smith, the head coach for the past five seasons inherited a winless program and transformed them to a current unbeaten.
"Be Relentless, has been the motto since the start," stated Smith. "Commitment has been the reason we have been successful. This group is committed to getting better."
A flood in 2020 largely destroyed Sanford, Michigan's downtown. The school has its lowest enrollment in history at 353. 25 girls are a part of the basketball program, with the school having both a junior varsity and varsity program. The JV defeated Gladwin's JV by three, after a buzzer-beater three by Kya McLaughlin.
Rounding Things Out
Gladwin's leading scorer was senior Samantha Musselman with 12, four three-pointers. Senior Elizabeth Haines added 10, six of the 14 scored in the second quarter by the Flying G's.
Sanford-Meridian senior Grace Chinavare finished with 24 points, and senior McKenna Pratt posted six. First-year Kam Fillmore contributed eight off the bench.
Audio for this game is unavailable due to technical issues. For past games from this high school season, listen here.
Up Next
Sanford-Meridian plays their third game of the week, hosting Shepherd on Friday, February 2nd at 7:30 p.m. Gladwin plays their first home game since January 16th, competing with Clare on Friday, tip-off at 7:30 p.m.
The next high school game on Sports Radio 100.9 The Mitt is between two boys squads in the Tri-Valley Conference. Bullock Creek (8-6) takes on Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central (11-3) on Friday, February 2nd. Game time is at 7 p.m., with coverage beginning at 6:50 from the Creek.
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