MAPLE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Ruby Hogan used to go to daycare, where she was the only girl. Even as one of the younger kids, she would play sports against the boys frequently.
Those lessons developed a level of toughness that helped the Maple City Glen Lake senior point guard lead her Lakers team to a Division 4 girls basketball state championship and the Division 4 Associated Press Player of the Year honors.
The kids the future 5-foot-7 guard would play against would go on to be successful Glen Lake athletes in their own right, including All-State and Saginaw Valley football player Duke Angers, All-State basketball players Reece Hazelton (Ferris State) and Luke Hazelton (Michigan Tech), Laker basketball players Peyton and Brady McDonough along with her older brother Finn, who is a starting wide receiver at Central Michigan.
“We’d play tackle football and basketball all day in the yard,” Hogan said. “I’d get knocked around a lot. I owe a lot to that.”
The McDonoughs’ mom, Julie, ran the daycare.
“Ruby basically grew up there,” Hogan’s father, Max, said. “We called it the McDonough’s Sports Camp because they were always outside playing sports, yard games, sledding or building forts. She was normally the only girl and she had to be tough and good to hang with those older boys. They always included her and she loved it.” Hogan capped off her senior year with a state championship after Glen Lake took steps toward that feat over her four years.
The COVID-19 pandemic ended a season while Glen Lake was awaiting a regional championship game against Manton. The team advanced to the state quarterfinals when he was a sophomore and lost in the semifinals last year.
“I only had one place to go and that’s the state finals,” Hogan said. “I was doing everything in my power to make that happen.” She said finally winning the title was the best way to end her high school basketball career.
“The biggest emotion was relief,” she said. “I know it sounds weird, but there was relief that I didn’t have to cry my eyes out if we didn’t do it.” Hogan finished her Glen Lake career with a 91-7 varsity record, including 53-1 in the Northwest Conference. She led the program to four league titles, four districts championships, three regional titles and a state championship.
She averaged 18.9 points, 5.3 assists, 5.3 steals and 4.7 rebounds per game as a senior, falling one rebound short of a triple-double in the state semifinals against Adrian Lenawee Christian.
“Ruby has a competitive edge that you can’t teach,” said Glen Lake coach Jason Bradford, the Division 4 Coach of the Year. “It’s something you’re born with. The intensity she brings on the court defensively is unmatched. Ruby is that pesty defender that never gives her opponents a break.” Hogan has several college offers, including from Lake Superior, where she could join former teammates Grace and Maddie Bradford.
The rest of the first-team Division 4 All-State includes Fowler senior Emma Riley, Bellaire senior Jacey Somers, Mackinaw City senior Madison Smith, Maple City Glen Lake senior Maddie Bradford, Midland Calvary Baptist Academy senior Caitlyn Dickerson, Midland Calvary Baptist Academy, Ewen-Trout Creek senior Kate Borseth, Baraga senior Corina Jahfetson, Colon junior Reese Williams and Natalie Wandrie, a senior at Indian River Inland Lakes.
The 2023 Associated Press Division 4 girls basketball All-State team as selected by a panel of 10 Michigan sportswriters.
Player of the Year
Ruby Hogan, Maple City Glen Lake
First Team
Emma Riley, Fowler, Sr. Jacey Somers, Bellaire, Sr. Madison Smith, Mackinaw City, Sr. Ruby Hogan, Maple City Glen Lake, Sr. Maddie Bradford, Maple City Glen Lake, Sr. Caitlyn Dickerson, Midland Calvary Baptist Academy, Sr. Kate Borseth, Ewen-Trout Creek, Sr. Corina Jahfetson, Baraga, Sr. Reese Williams, Colon, Jr.
Natalie Wandrie, Indian River Inland Lakes, Sr.
Coach of the Year
Jason Bradford, Maple City Glen Lake
Second Team (nominees receiving two or more votes from the voting panel)
Avery Sluss, Adrian Lenawee Christian, Sr. Destanee Smith, Petersburg-Summerfield, Sr. Ava Mallar, Pittsford, Soph. Angelina Tringall, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, Sr. Leah French, Engadine, Sr. Delaney St. George, Kingston, Jr.
Coach Tyler Larson, Baraga
Voting panel
Doug Donnelly, Adrian Daily Telegram; Brian Calloway, Lansing State Journal; James Cook, Traverse City Record-Eagle; David Goricki, Detroit News; George Pohly, Macomb Daily; Jason Juno, Ironwood Daily Globe; Fred Kelly, Midland Daily News; Brandon Watson, Sturgis Journal; Matthew Mowery, Oakland Press; Patrick Nothaft, Grand Rapids Press.
