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Wyoming basketball coach Thom Vander Klay reaches milestone 400th win; “Wyoming is an important piece of who I am”

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Wyoming Boys Basketball Coach Thom Vander Klay has won more than 400 games from that position on the sideline. (Photo Courtesy, Curtis Holt)



By Greg Chrapek

WKTV Contributor

While a student at Wyoming Park High School during the early 80s, Wyoming boys basketball coach Thom Vander Klay was influenced by a virtual who’s who of Wyoming Park coaches. It should have been no surprise that some 40 years later Vander Klay reached a coaching milestone when he won the 400th game of his head coaching career.

The only coach the Wolves have ever had for boys basketball and the former coach at Wyoming Park before it merged with Wyoming Rogers to form Wyoming High School, Vander Klay won game No. 400 when the Wolves defeated Holland Christian 51-49 on Jan. 30 this season. He was then recognized for the achievement during Wyoming’s victory against Grand Rapids Union on Feb. 9.

Wyoming Park grad and three-sport athlete

A 1982 graduate of Wyoming Park, Vander Klay was a three-sport athlete for the Vikings playing football, basketball and running track before heading off to Hope College where he played football and basketball.

Vander Klay credits his former coaches at Wyoming Park for getting him started down the path of coaching.

“We just had some fantastic coaches at Park,” Vander Klay said. “We had Jack Verduin for football and Rich Renzema for basketball and Frank Grimm was the track coach. Ron Engels was the baseball coach forever and Dick Locke was another outstanding coach. Those were some really, really good coaches in high school and I knew that I was going to pursue that.”


Coach Vander Klay hoists his team’s 2022 district trophy. (Photo Courtesy, Curtis Holt)


After graduating from Hope College in 1986, Vander Klay returned to Park where he began his coaching and teaching career. His first coaching jobs were with the junior varsity football and basketball teams at Wyoming Park.

“I was really a football guy and I planned to eventually coach the football team,” Vander Klay said, “but coach Verduin kept going and going and then our varsity Coach Kelly McEwen retired so I took over the basketball team in 1995. I worked under Coach Verduin in the fall and Coach McEwen in the winter and I learned tons of knowledge from both of them.”

Vander Klay parlayed that wealth of knowledge into a legacy of success at both Wyoming Park and later at Wyoming when Park and Rogers merged 12 years ago.


Coach Vander Klay talks to his team in 2019. (Photo Courtesy, Andris B. Visokis)


Whether at Park or Wyoming, the style of play has been very consistent.

“We usually have the same type of style,” Vander Klay said. “Our players are usually quite small, but they play quite fast. We have to play fast, shoot well and play hard. We play pressure defense and play up-tempo on offense. We play very fast on both sides of the court.”

During his coaching career Vander Klay has experienced plenty of highlights. A couple, however, stand out after all the years.

1998 team and Mr. Basketball Drew Neitzel stand out

“The run we had in 1998 when we came out of nowhere to win the league is one team that stands out,” Vander Klay said. “Of course, the teams that had Drew Neitzel, who won Mr. Basketball in 2004, stand out. That team was the only team to sell out the Breslin Arena when we played against Detroit Renaissance in the state semifinals.”

Those teams were not alone, however, in making memories that stand out.

“So many teams and players and moments to remember”

“There were so many teams and so many players and moments that you remember,” Vander Klay said. “It’s not only the successful teams either. I remember so many kids and teams. Looking back on all the kids you coach and the success they eventually have as adults. Those memories last with you. The relationships are what make it special. Also, our coaching staff. We have had such a consistent coaching staff throughout the years. The assistant coaches I’ve had have made it so easy for me as a head coach.”


Coach Thom Vander Klay and WKTV Sports Director Cris Greer share a laugh at a recent interview. (Photo Courtesy, Olivia Potter)



The memories flooded back for Vander Klay during the ceremony commemorating his 400th win during the union game.

“It was so nice when they had the little ceremony at the game,” Vander Klay said. “Seeing the former teams and the former players and receiving the plaque. It was surprising and fun. The 400 wins is a longevity thing. I’ve coached a long time so you are going to pick up some wins.

“Wyoming is really important to me. I grew up here and live here, my kids went here, my grandson went here. Wyoming is an important piece of who I am. In so many ways it’s what I was called to do.”

East Grand Rapids uses late run to hold off Wyoming in our WKTV Friday Game of the Week

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(WKTV)



By Greg Chrapek

WKTV Contributor


A fourth-quarter run proved to be the difference as the East Grand Rapids boys basketball team turned back Wyoming 67-52 in a non-league game at Wyoming in our WKTV Friday Game of the Week.

The setback prevented Wyoming from breaking into the win column this season. The Wolves started the new season facing a strong string of opponents. Wyoming fell to Unity Christian and Coopersville in the first two contests and then dropped a five-point decision to Grand Rapids Christian in a game the Wolves led heading into the final minute.

Tied 32-all at the half with EGR

The game with East was much closer than the final score. Wyoming led 14-12 at the end of the first quarter and the contest was tied 32-32 at halftime.

East Grand Rapids pulled ahead of the host Wolves in the third quarter and headed into the final stanza with a 48-41 lead. Wyoming tied the game in the final quarter before East pulled away late with the bulk of its points coming at the free-throw line in the final minutes.

“It was a fairly close game, but we had to put them on the free-throw line at the end,” said Wyoming Coach Thom VanderKlay. “Defensively we broke down quite a bit in the second half. Our field-goal percentage was also not very good. The shots we took were decent and we did get 15 offensive rebounds so we had some second chances, but we just could not put the ball in the basket.”

Wyoming finished the game shooting 27% from the field and also had 16 turnovers. The Wolves did a solid job on the boards with 37 rebounds while the defense created seven turnovers.



Wyoming junior Avonte’ Wiggins from last year. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



Avonte’ Wiggins led Wyoming in scoring with 22 points and Brayden Williams added 10. Wiggins also led the Wolves with eight rebounds.

Shooting woes have been the main drawback for the Wolves this season.

“Coming into the season I expected us to be a pretty good shooting team,” VanderKlay said. “We can spread the floor and do a pretty good job of running the floor. On defense we work hard and can run pretty well and can create a fast pace.”

The Wolves also have more experience this season with several players returning from last year including a trio of returning starters.

Wyoming returns three senior starters in Warren Williams, Donavyn Edwards and Gage Behrenbrinker. Rounding out the starting lineup are freshman Brayden Williams and Wiggins, a junior.

Wyoming also is a deep team this season with 12 players on the roster who are all capable of contributing.

Wyoming also returns seniors Maxi Morales, Buster Cross and Chris Jackson along with senior Brendan Nesbary, who is new to the team. Rounding out the squad are juniors Zy Debose, Tarren Calvert and Duane Droughn.

“We have some good depth this season,” VanderKlay said “Any of the guys on our roster can step in and play well. All 12 of them can play.”

That depth will come in handy during the long 22-game season especially when OK Green Conference play begins. As usual, the league will be solid from top to bottom.

“Zeeland West, Reeths-Puffer and Muskegon are all very good teams,” VanderKlay said. “Mona Shores also looks much improved. I also think we can be in the mix. We’ve had our moments this season, we just have to be more consistent.”  


Wyoming free throws help Wolves grab win over Zeeland East Friday in WKTV Game of the Week

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Alyjah Chandler (No. 10) and Quintin Williams (not pictured) scored 23 points apiece in the win. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



By Greg Chrapek

WKTV Contributor

Wyoming built a big lead against Zeeland East playing with plenty of fire and intensity, but in the end, it was their ability to stay cool as ice at the free-throw line that put away an 82-78 win in OK Green action Friday evening.

With the Wolves clinging to a three-point lead with 29 seconds remaining in the game, senior Alyjah Chandler drained a pair of free throws to give Wyoming an 80-75 lead. After Zeeland East responded with an old-school, three-point play, Avonte’ Wiggins put the game on ice for Wyoming by dropping two more free throws that hit nothing but net with five seconds remaining in the game.

“I just tried to stay calm in that situation,” said Chandler, who also scored a team-high 23 points. “We had some close games early in the season so I just tried to stay composed and hit those free throws.”

Momentum was on Zeeland’s side late in the game as the Chix battled back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter and tied the game with a pair of free throws of their own with 2:14 remaining in the game.

Adding more momentum to the Zeeland comeback was when Wyoming senior guard Quintin Williams was called for his fifth foul with 2:28 remaining in the game after coming back in a minute earlier. Williams tied Chandler for high-scoring honors for the Wolves with 23 points and his defense also was a big part of Wyoming’s early success.

Wyoming subs come through

While the Wolves lost Williams, their subs off the bench came in and stepped up, stemming the tide of the Zeeland comeback.

“Our bench guys came in and did a nice job,” Wyoming Coach Thom Vander Klay said. “We have a good rotation and those guys really stepped up for us down the stretch.”

Wyoming benefited from a total-team effort right from the opening tip. Playing aggressive defense and pushing the ball on offense, the Wolves dictated the tempo of the game as they took a 17-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Wyoming kept its foot on the gas during the second quarter as the lead grew to 31-18 before Zeeland East charged back at the end of the first half. Relying on its one-two combination of sophomore wing B.J. Walker and junior center Layne Risdon, East cut the Wyoming lead to 36-30 at halftime.

Walker proved to be a steady source of points the entire game for Zeeland as he finished with 33 points, while Risdon scored 19 points as he utilized his height advantage in the paint.

“Every game we try to start with a lot of pressure,” Chandler said. “We try to use our speed to our advantage and I thought we did a pretty good job of that tonight.”

Wyoming continued to utilize its quickness in the third quarter as it quickly built its lead back to double digits. Steals by Williams led to fast-break buckets on the other end of the floor as the Wolves built a 45-32 lead early in the third quarter. The Wolves were up 55-43 midway through the third before East began to chip away at the Wyoming lead and foul trouble began to hamper the Wolves.

“We tried to dictate the pace of the game like we always do,” Vander Klay said. “When we couldn’t that’s when they made their run. Having Quintin in foul trouble really stung us, too. There sophomore, number two, (Walker) took over and he’s a really nice player and their big guy (Risdon) was a load for us to handle, but we stayed calm and hit our free throws at the end.”

Williams also scores 23 for Wyoming

Along with 23 points from Chandler and Williams, the Wolves received 13 points from Wiggins, eight points apiece from Warren Williams and Maxi Morales and seven points from Gage Behrenbrinker.

With the win, Wyoming improved to 4-8 overall, 3-4 in the conference, while Zeeland West fell to 10-4 overall, 5-3 in the league.

Wyoming returns to action Tuesday when it hosts Holland Christian and then travels to Grand Rapids Union next Friday.

          

South Christian girls beat Catholic Central 65-64 in OT thriller

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South Christian’s Ashley Thomasma led the Sailors with 20 points, including six 3-pointers. (Courtesy, South Christian)



By Cris Greer

WKTV Managing Editor

greer@wktv.org



South Christian Coach Kim Legge summed up her team’s 65-64 OT victory over Grand Rapids Catholic Central Tuesday with three words.

“What a game.”

Down by two points in regulation with five seconds remaining, South Christian’s Lily Nitz sank two free throws to tie the game at 56 apiece.

The Cougars, however, weren’t quite ready for overtime.

After the free throws, they inbounded the ball and took it downcourt for a chance to win. Catholic Central made a layup at the buzzer, but it was called off sending the game into overtime.

Off to overtime

“In overtime, both teams went back and forth with scoring,” explained Legge. “With 1:30 on the clock it was once again all tied up at 62. We hit 4-of-8 field goals and they had 2 out of 5, but also had 3-for-6 on free throws.

“We always have a lot of respect for Catholic Central. Going into the game we knew we would have to put together four solid quarters in order to compete. We have been learning from each game we play and seem to build on those experiences. Our team has talked a lot about consistency and composure in the past few weeks and the team really leaned into that last night.”

Legge talked about Catholic Central’s inside/outside game.

“Grace McKinney and Emily VanTimmeren are both extremely talented and have great moves in the paint,” Legge said. “They also have kids that can shoot the ball so we worked a lot on our closeouts in order to be ready for their shooters.”

VanTimmerman led the Cougars with 20 points.

Ashley Raredon had 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Sailors. (Courtesy, South Christian)



“We are a team that also has an inside and outside game with Ashley Raredon inside and shooters like Ashley Thomasma and Lizzie Wolthuis to name a few.,” Legge explained. “We shot extremely well in the first quarter connecting on 4-of-5 3-pointers.”

Thomasma led South Christian with 20 points, including six 3-pointers. Her biggest trey of the night came with 1:13 left in overtime from the corner on an assist from Raredon to give the Sailors a three-point lead.

Raredon had 16 points and 14 rebounds, while Sophia Prins added 13 points and six boards.  

   

Quintin Williams scores 27 points to lift Wyoming over Holland Tuesday

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Wyoming’s Quintin Williams (4). (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



By Greg Chrapek

WKTV Contributor



A breakout game by senior guard Quintin Williams helped Wyoming to a big win as the host Wolves defeated Holland 72-54 in OK Green action Tuesday evening.

Williams erupted for a season-high 27 points to pace the Wyoming offense as the Wolves came on strong in the second half to earn their second win in the last three games. Williams had a previous high-scoring game of 17 points this season, but against Holland, Williams filled the scorebook with buckets as he attacked the basket off the dribble.

“I tried to get to the rim,” Williams said. “I feel that I was checking up too much before. Tonight, I tried to get to the basket consistently.”

Williams turned in a consistent offensive performance against Holland as he scored seven points in the first quarter, seven points in the second quarter and finished the game strong with 11 points in the final quarter.

“Quintin did a nice job of controlling the ball,” said Wyoming Coach Thom Vander Klay. “He did a nice job of getting to the rim and pulling up when it wasn’t there. I think he was a little pumped up early, but he settled down and did a nice job.”

Wyoming senior guard Alyjah Chandler (10) sets up the offense against Holland. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)

Williams had plenty of help both on offense and on the defensive end as the Wolves needed a total-team effort to overcome some early foul trouble that kept the game tight in the early going.

Wyoming led 15-14 at the end of the first quarter. The Wolves led throughout the second quarter and a three-point play on a drive to the hoop at the end of the first half by Williams gave Wyoming a 34-27 halftime lead.

“I thought that our kids off the bench did a great job,” Vander Klay said. “We had a little bit of foul trouble in the first half and we needed a lot of kids to come off the bench. They gave us some quality minutes and played their roles really well.”





Wyoming began to take command of the game during the second half. The Wolves outscored Holland 7-3 to start the second half and take a 41-30 lead. Some stingy defense also was key for the Wolves during the third quarter as the Wyoming defense limited Holland to eight total points in the third quarter. Wyoming protected the double-digit lead it built and went into the final quarter leading 46-35.

A 7-0 run to start the fourth gave the Wolves some breathing room. The run was capped by a three-point shot by Maxi Morales that put Wyoming up 53-35.

Holland cut the Wyoming advantage to 55-41 midway through the fourth quarter before the Wolves put the game on ice with an 8-0 run that increased the Wyoming lead to 63-41.



Maxi Morales (3) of Wyoming tries to get open during OK Green action against Holland. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)

“This was a big win for us,” Williams said. “We’ve had an up and down season and this win can help turn our season around.”

The win improved Wyoming to 3-6 overall for the season and 2-2 in the OK Green.

“We keep getting better and better,” Vander Klay said. “We are getting better, but sometimes the kids are not so sure when you don’t get the wins. I think the kids feel good to get this win.”

Along with 27 from Williams, Wyoming received eight points from Logan Marvin and seven points apiece from Maxi Morales and Alyjah Chandler. Avonte’ Wiggins added six points, while Donavyn Edwards and Warren Williams added five each, Jacob Reeder, three points and Buster Cross and Gage Behrenbrinker, two apiece.

Holland fell to 2-8 overall, 0-4 in the Green. Cameron Ferguson led the Dutch with 12 points.





Wyoming returns to action Friday when it hosts state-ranked Muskegon, which entered play Tuesday at 8-0.

Carson Vis scores 28 to lead South Christian past Wyoming

Citizen Journalism, Sports, West Michigan, , ,
The Sailors emerged with a 78-60 win Tuesday night. (Courtesy, Ty Marzean)

By Zach Fanko

WKTV Contributor

Less than a month after winning a D-4 state championship in football, South Christian sophomore Carson Vis is doing his part to lead the Sailors on the hardwood.

Vis poured in 28 points to lead South Christian (2-2) to a 78-60 non-conference victory over Wyoming on Tuesday.

“Hit some tough threes early and he has great skill around the basket,” Sailors coach Taylor Johnson said. “He does a great job of getting to the rim.”

Carson Vis scored a game-high 28 points to lead the Sailors over Wyoming. (Courtesy, Eric Walstra)

The Sailors led by just two points after a quarter, but a 26-10 run in the second quarter extended their lead to 43-25 at the break.

The Wolves fought back, getting to within eight points in the fourth quarter, but South Christian was able to break the Wyoming press for some easy buckets to push its lead back to double-digits.







“I think the difference in the game was that they were just more physical than us,” Wyoming Coach Thom VanderKlay said. “It was an up and down game and they were able to finish their buckets.”

Seniors Alyjah Chandler and Quinton Williams led the way for the Wolves with 16 and 15 points, respectively. Sophomore Avonte’ Wiggins added 15 points.

Other high-scorers for the Sailors were Sam Weiss with 15 points and 6-foot-6 Sam Mendendorp with 12 points, who had two alley-oop dunks during South Christian’s run in the fourth quarter.

“They kept pressing us and we just kept trying to get the ball to the middle,” Johnson said. “Proud of the guys fight and we did what we needed to get the win tonight.”

The Sailors are on the road again this Friday for a rivalry game against Hudsonville Unity-Christian, while Wyoming (0-2) travels to Jenison.