The Glen Lake High School girls basketball team clinched a Division 4 state championship title on Saturday – the first for the team in 45 years. The Lakers, playing against an Upper Peninsula team from Baraga, clinched the game with a score of 60-43 – and orchestrated a come-from-behind thrill ride to make it happen.

Though the Lakers were the top-ranked D4 team from the start of the season, a victory on Saturday was anything but assured. The last time Glen Lake High put a state-title-winning girls basketball team on the court was 1978, and last season, the Lakers missed a shot at the championship after a heartbreaking semifinal loss.

It looked like another heartbreaker might be in the cards for Glen Lake at Saturday’s game at Michigan State University’s Breslin Student Event Center. The Lakers struggled during the first half, going to the locker room with the score 27-22 in favor of Baraga. But Glen Lake’s players came back from the half with something to prove, taking the lead midway through the third quarter and never giving it back. The Lakers’ second-half performance – 38 points to Baraga’s 16 – was more than enough to clinch the trophy.

Particularly instrumental in the victory were Glen Lake seniors Maddie Bradford and Ruby Hogan, who ended the game with 28 points and 19 points, respectively.