Leaving Their Mark

Farmington Hills Harrison saw its season come to a screeching halt on Thursday night as the Hawks fell in heartbreaking fashion in the regional final as Dexter hit a buzzer-beater 3-pointer in overtime.

But before Harrison's memorable season came to an end, the Hawks were able to achieve quite a bit of history, as they piled up some hardware for the first time in a very long time.

Actually, for the first time ever.

The Hawks started with winning their first division title since 1998 as they won the Oakland Activities Association White Division as Harrison beat out Rochester Adams, Oxford and Bloomfield Hills Andover along with other teams on its way to a sparkling 23-3 record this season.

Then, for the first time in Harrison's history, the Hawks picked up their first district title as they went on to beat North Farmington, Walled Lake Northern and Walled Lake Western, behind senior floor general Marissa Cotton, who scored 52 points during that three game stretch.

The Hawks then followed that up with their first regional semifinal win as they topped Hartland in a double-digit win to move on to their first ever regional final where their remarkable season came to an end.

The Hawks went on their historic run this season with one of the youngest teams you will find as Harrison had just one senior on the roster, while starting two freshman guards, Amber Stephens and Kristen Nelson as well as sophomore center Kyla Roland, who proved to be three of the best underclassmen not only in Oakland County, but in the entire state.

Harrison also had big contributions from sophomore Katie Conrad and junior Asia Campbell, who quietly flew under the radar all season long, but proved to be key players from start to finish.

While Harrison will definitely miss Cotton, the only senior that the Hawks had, who proved to be one of the best guards in Oakland County and also was a calming influence for Harrison this year, there is no doubt that the Hawks will be back in a position to make some noise in the next couple of years. With Stephens, Nelson, Roland, Conrad and Campbell all coming back next year along with six other returning players from this year's roster, Harrison will definitely have more than enough fire-power to make long playoff runs over the course of the next 2-3 years.