Gladstone junior Addy Blowers celebrates making a free throw on March 12, 2025 at St. Ignace High School. ("The Big Dog" Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

In this line of work it’s rare that you have the same day twice.

Some days are bland and boring. Some days make you scratch your head and make you wonder what in the world just happened.

Then there are what I call “career days”. These are days that, no matter what I do in life, are days I will never forget.

Days like a 11-hour round trip through three different states to cover a college football game, riding shotgun in a drag race, a Saturday covering a highly competitive high school basketball game kicked off by a Special Olympics scrimmage, are just a few days that I consider a “career day”.

There’s one that happened back in March. A 15-hour work day which saw Gladstone girls’ basketball win its first regional championship since 2012.

That day was March 12, 2025. Let me tell you all about it.

But first, how did I get to that point?

It’s March 10, 2025. I’m at Sault Ste. Marie High School. The Braves and Blue Devils are primed for a regional semifinal showdown. 

During pregame warmups I had a tight eye on Gladstone sophomore Eva Pankonien. I watched her put up 14 3-point shots before the game. Of those 14, she drained nine. I knew at that moment that she was going to pop off.

She finished with 15 points as the Braves won 68-36 regional semifinal win over Sault Ste. Marie. 

Gladstone sophomore Eva Pankonien (10) watches her 3-point shot attempt during a MHSAA Division 2 regional semifinal game against Sault Ste. Marie on March 10, 2025 at Sault Ste. Marie High School. This shot was the fourth made 3-point attempt for Pankonien, who earned 15 points in a 68-36 win over the Blue Devils. (Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

As my tape recorder finally turned off after my post-game chat with Gladstone girls’ basketball head coach Andy Cretens he offered me a chance to ride with the team to their regional championship game. I told him I’d think about it.

If we’re being honest I really enjoy driving in general. It’s one of my go-to stress relieving activities. Plus, a lot of the views here in the Upper Peninsula are more than worth seeing.

Also, people can’t complain about my taste in music if they don’t ride with me, right?

That night I finished my work, and I decided to watch tape on Fremont, the Braves foe in the regional championship game.

As I watched the tape while sitting at the kitchen island in the home of Therese and Mitchell Zaborowski (huge thanks to them for making their residence my home away from home for the last two years) I began to smile. I knew deep down that Gladstone was going to win. And win big.

And as I drove down M-28 the next morning I began thinking about how that game could go. It was a fun drive too. Forest for miles and miles is so calming, especially on a crisp, March morning.

The forest proved to be ideal in blocking blistering winds as I filled my car with a fresh dose of engine coolant on the side of the road. My wonderful sportsmobile was overheating and losing coolant, but by some miracle I made it back to Escanaba with no issues. 

Once I got back I immediately texted Cretens to take him up on his offer. I was going to spend a nine-hour round-trip to Houghton Lake and back with eight high school girls and Gladstone’s coaching staff. Not my usual routine by any stretch of the imagination. 

But if there’s one thing I learned throughout my career, it’s that adjusting on the fly and maximizing every opportunity that comes my way are incredibly crucial. Besides, as my boy Timmer Turner famously said “what could possibly go wrong?”

How was the trip you may ask? Well, here’s what I’m willing to share.

I’ve watched nearly every home game these young ladies played this season. I had a hypothesis on what each one of these eight players was like before we hit the road. And while I didn’t get to interact with every player on the trip, I was able to understand some of the players a lot better.

One of my favorite players to watch was senior Mayce Hanson, and it’s not solely for her play on the floor.

Gladstone junior Addy Blowers (1) celebrates a win over Houghton with senior Mayce Hanson on Dec. 19, 2024 at Gladstone High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

My Dad was the fourth born of six kids in a cattle farming family. Basketball is a huge sport, especially for a family that’s die hard fans of Michigan State University. From what I can tell, Hanson is cut from a similar cloth, and is down to earth as a human being. If there’s one player I feel like I understand best on this team, it’s Hanson, who hopefully had a better 4-H career than me. 

There’s also Addy Blowers. 

Gladstone junior Addy Blowers attempts a 3-point shot during a game against Kingsford on Feb. 18, 2025 at Gladstone High School. (Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

Some coaches told me you can make a sitcom solely on her, and after the trip I understood.

She’s a one of a kind human being. Never in my near decade as a journalist have I met a student athlete with Blowers’ combination of energy, spunk and curiosity. 

There’s also Lillie Johnson. You know, the girl who’s been smashing records like The Incredible Hulk smashed Loki inside of Stark Tower in “The Avengers”.

Gladstone junior Lillie Johnson cracks a smile during shootaround on March 12, 2025 at St. Ignace High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

I’ve made my feelings about her obviously apparent, but this was when I understood Johnson the human being. The level of humility she possesses is basically on par with her basketball ability. 

Yes, she’s a big reason why the Braves’ are getting new alternate jerseys for winning a district title and, after the win over the Packers, getting new striped tear-away warm-up pants after winning a regional title.

But she’s simply part of the team. She’s simply part of the sisterhood. Not every player with her ability is like this. 

Younger kids I beg you: please learn from her.

At 12:45 p.m. we officially hit the road. Every player and coach had their own two seats on the bus. There were ground rules though.

No eating anything overly sugary before the game. Go crazy after the game, but not before. 

Second, feel free to nap on the way down. But once we crossed the Mackinac Bridge, nap time was over.

Like any other bus ride with high school kids there were plenty of debates. But the biggest one of the day was where to eat before the game. This debate took a few hours to settle.

As players drift to sleep for pregame naps shortly after leaving the school, the coaching staff goes through hand crafted words of encouragement created by one of the middle school’s classes. The artwork and writing is exactly what you’d expect from fifth graders. It was perfect.

While the team slept I was able to begin to understand the Braves’ coaching staff. 

Oh boy, where do I start with this group of six people?

The best way to describe the coaching staff is a group of siblings. It’s also a group that views the word “mine” as a swear word.

Seriously, if one of them got tricked into saying the word “mine” it was 10 push-ups. This happened on the way down.

By 3:02 pm we arrived at St Ignace High School for a shootaround. Manton, who ultimately lost to Calumet later that evening, was leaving the school as we pulled in. St. Ignace was also shooting around, preparing for their regional title game which got moved to its home floor after the water well at the original host site malfunctioned.

All eight girls get shots off. Coaches, on the other hand, have different roles at this time. Cretens, Kaitlyn Hardwick, Tasi Martinez and Megan Lukezich are observing and chatting about what they see. 

Daren Landis decides to take a quick rest on the stage. 

Gladstone assistant coach Daren Landis attempts to get rest on March 12, 2025 at St. Ignace High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

Zach Rose, on the other hand, attempts to bring the energy. If there’s one thing I learned he dislikes, it’s an “energy vampire”.

He heckles Blowers and Johnson as they attempt free throws. To say it was successful would be saying that a trout scaled Mount Everest on a solo trip. Success was not accomplished. 

He also attempts to complete what they call a “sweet 16” in 63 seconds. 

So, Rose sprints from one side of the game floor to the other. 16 touches of a sideline are necessary to complete the drill. He completes it with a couple of seconds to spare.

With the energy still high we take off to cross the bridge, only a few hours away from Houghton Lake. 

By the time 6 p.m. rolled around everyone’s hair was done. The dinner debate, which was settled by deciding on Jimmy John’s, was devoured. It was time to exit the bus and enter a date with destiny.

Gladstone junior Lillie Johnson steps off the bus before a MHSAA Division 2 regional championship game against Fremont on March 9, 2025 at Houghton Lake High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

About 35 minutes later Gladstone’s spectator buses arrive. Students poured in like a child adding chocolate syrup to a bowl of ice cream with Mom’s back turned away.

Both teams begin their warm-ups. It was clear that Gladstone’s fans brought the energy. A Fremont player’s 3-point attempt became wedged between the backboard and rim. Everyone saw it. Everyone made noise.

This environment was going to be off the chain. This was going to be fun.

The Gladstone student section attempts to rattle Fremont’s Mia Clemence during a MHSAA Division 2 regional championship game on March 12, 2025 at Houghton Lake High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

And by the time halftime rolled around the Braves were successful in cracking the Packers’ vaunted full-court press. The Braves also clung to a 22-16 lead after shooting 0-for-18 from 3-point range. 

Yes, Gladstone had the lead at the half. But man, there were not a lot of happy faces entering intermission.

Then Johnson, like she famously does, took over the game. Fremont didn’t have a response. 

For the first time since 2012, the Braves were regional champions. 

Members of the Gladstone student section rush the floor after a regional championship win on March 12, 2025 at Houghton Lake High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

Gladstone added a new trophy, and they unlocked new pants for next season in the process.

By 9:15 p.m we’re back on the road. At this point I have all of my photos toned, cropped and posted on Instagram.

For those of you unaware I post all my photos on my Instagram page (@themantheycallmitch) for the world to see. This was the first time I’ve been able to see how people legitimately react to my work.

Man, the reaction on that bus is something I will never forget. Hardwick turns to me and asks “where were you at when I was in High School?”

Yeah, the post-game Taco Bell hit even harder than usual.

By 11:35 p.m. we crossed over the Mackinac Bridge. We were greeted by a member of the Mackinac County Sheriff’s office. We received an escort through Mackinac County.

I originally planned on recording the whole escort. I’m glad I didn’t because as someone who is a “defected troll” I didn’t realize how large Mackinac County was. At 12:35 a.m. we officially left Mackinac County.

By 1:44 a.m. we arrived back at Gladstone. At exactly 2 a.m. I finally unlocked the front door to my apartment. My 15-hour day of work was done. My excitement to have my head smack my pillow was high.

But man, that day was one for the ages. 

There are some days where nothing really happens, just bland, boring office work. Then there are days like that day in March.

Those are days I call “career days”. These are days that, for better or for worse, stick with me forever with strong memories firmly cemented in my mind. 

As I finally drifted to sleep I was met with mixed emotions. On one hand the day brought a lot of fun. On the other hand, one of my “career days” was officially… over.