Pirates Hold Off Lovejoy’s Huge Night to Defeat ATAP 61–57 and win the D3 State Championship!!

Pewamo Westphalia celebates as they slap their name as champions on the MHSAA bracket board. Photo by Chris Carpenter.

The Pirates came out aggressive right from the opening tip and wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Grady Eklund scored the first points of the game, setting the tone early. Moments later, Trent Piggott was sent to the free-throw line and knocked down both shots to give Pewamo-Westphalia a quick 4–0 lead early in the first quarter. Pewamo kept the momentum going as Eklund attacked the rim again for a layup, extending the lead to 6–0 with 5:39 remaining in the opening quarter. ATAP finally answered when Lewis Lovejoy connected on a jumper to cut the deficit to 6–2. But the Pirates weren’t slowing down. In one of the biggest early moments of the game, Grady Eklund threw down a poster dunk, electrifying the crowd and pushing the lead to 8–2 with 3:34 remaining in the first.

Lovejoy responded quickly with another jumper to bring the game within four. Shortly after, Ty Thelen went to the free-throw line after drawing a foul from Lovejoy and calmly sank both shots, making it 10–4 Pewamo with 2:37 left. ATAP kept fighting. Devonte Grandison found space down low and converted a layup to bring the score to 10–6, but the Pirates answered immediately. Logan Farmer and Ty Thelen connected on a quick transition opportunity to stretch the lead back to 12–6, forcing ATAP to call a timeout with 2:12 remaining in the quarter. The Pirates stayed aggressive coming out of the timeout. On the very next possession, Eklund found Farmer for an easy jumper right over the center-court Big Ten logo to make it 14–6. It was clear Pewamo-Westphalia had come into the game with something to prove. Nearly 90% of the Pirates’ roster also played football, and many of them were still fueled by the heartbreak of their dramatic semifinal loss to eventual Division 6 state champion Menominee in football. They wanted hardware this time around.

By the end of the first quarter, the Pirates held a 17–7 lead.

Sam Thelen hits a wide open three. Photo by Chris Carpenter.

ATAP came out firing to start the second quarter. Lewis Lovejoy drilled a three immediately, cutting the lead to 17–10. However, the Pirates quickly pushed their advantage back to double digits, extending it to 21–10 less than a minute later.

ATAP refused to go away. Jaiden Price knocked down a jumper to make it 21–12, and moments later Lovejoy buried a deep three to bring the deficit down to six points at 21–15 with 5:21 remaining. Lovejoy stayed hot. Just under a minute later he hit another wide-open three, keeping ATAP within striking distance at 25–18.

For several minutes the score remained stuck there as both teams tightened up defensively. Eventually, Eklund broke the drought with a tough fadeaway jumper to extend the Pirates’ lead to 27–18, forcing another ATAP timeout. ATAP regrouped and closed the half with better energy behind Lovejoy’s scoring surge, but Pewamo-Westphalia still carried a 28–23 lead into halftime.

Lewis Lovejoy stands at the top of key on saturday slowing the pace of the game. lovejoy had 41 pts. Photo by Chris Carpenter

The second half began with Lewis Lovejoy taking over. He quickly knocked down a three to cut the Pirates’ lead to 28–26 with 7:31 remaining in the third quarter. Lovejoy continued to attack, keeping ATAP within reach and making the score 30–28 with 5:45 to go. At that point, Lovejoy had already scored 23 of ATAP’s 28 points, carrying nearly the entire offensive load. Pewamo-Westphalia responded to the pressure. With 4:42 left, the Pirates pushed the lead back to 36–30, but Lovejoy answered again with a jumper to make it 36–32. Eklund responded with a big moment of his own, drilling a three-pointer to stretch the lead to 39–32 with 3:22 remaining. But ATAP wasn’t finished. The game tightened quickly. With 1:55 left in the third, the Pirates called a timeout as ATAP had stormed back to make it 40–38. At one point ATAP had trailed by 11, but suddenly it had become a track meet. Out of the timeout, Sam Thelen knocked down a deep three for Pewamo, but Lovejoy immediately answered with another big three of his own.

Then chaos struck.

Devonte Grandison jumped a passing lane, stole the ball, and raced in for a layup to tie the game at 43–43 with 41 seconds remaining in the quarter.

ATAP had completely flipped the momentum. With just four seconds left, Lovejoy drove to the basket, drew the foul, and converted the and-one, giving ATAP its first lead of the night, 46–45. By the end of the third quarter, Lovejoy had an astonishing 35 points.

Pewamo-Westphalia's bench celebrates after a big play saturday. Photo by Chris Carpenter.

ATAP opened the fourth quarter looking to keep the pressure on but came up empty on their first possession. The Pirates grabbed the rebound, and Eklund went to the free-throw line. He split the pair to tie the game at 46–46 with 7:17 remaining.

Less than a minute later, Trent Piggott put Pewamo back in front with a strong finish inside, making it 48–46. The Pirates continued to execute. Eklund delivered a beautiful assist to Logan Farmer for an easy basket, pushing the lead to 50–46 with 5:32 remaining.

Moments later, Piggott struck again with another strong layup off the glass, giving the Pirates a 52–46 advantage with 4:37 to play. ATAP fought back once again. Jaiden Price knocked down a massive three to cut the score to 52–49, then came up with a steal on the next possession that led to an easy Lovejoy layup, making it 52–51.

The momentum had shifted yet again. With 2:44 remaining, ATAP slowed things down looking for the right shot, but couldn’t convert. The Pirates responded when Eklund drilled a clutch three with 2:13 left, extending the lead to 54–51. After a missed three by Price, Piggott grabbed the rebound and was immediately fouled. Pewamo called a timeout to settle things down with a narrow lead. Coming out of the timeout, Logan Farmer broke free in transition and laid in an easy basket to push the Pirates ahead 56–51 with 1:29 remaining.

Lovejoy answered once more, drawing a foul and hitting both free throws to make it 56–53.

The drama wasn’t over. Eklund drove to the basket and converted a tough bucket while drawing the foul, stretching the lead to 58–53. Lovejoy immediately responded with a jumper of his own with 51 seconds remaining, cutting the deficit to 58–55.

With 34 seconds left, ATAP forced a turnover as Lovejoy stole the inbound pass, setting up a potential game-tying possession. But his three-point attempt missed.

Eklund was fouled shortly after and made the first free throw to give Pewamo a 59–55 lead, though he missed the second. ATAP grabbed the rebound and Lovejoy quickly scored again to make it 59–57 with 13 seconds left. ATAP fouled Logan Farmer, who stepped to the line and calmly knocked down both free throws, pushing the lead to 61–57 with nine seconds remaining. Lovejoy attempted one last shot, but it missed. The Pirates held on.

Final Score: Pewamo-Westphalia 61, ATAP 57

The pirates host their trophy! photo by chris carpenter

Despite an incredible 41-point performance from Lewis Lovejoy, the Pirates’ balanced scoring and clutch plays down the stretch secured the victory. Leading Scorers:

Pewamo Westphalia: Grady Eklund: 26 Logan Farmer: 14 Trent Piggott: 11 ATAP: Lewis Lovejoy: 41 Devonta Grandison: 7