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Community gathers to send off Kent City girls basketball team playing for chance at state championship

Kent City plays Bishop Foley at 2 p.m. on Thursday at the Breslin Center. They hope to have another chance at the state championship.

KENT CITY, Mich. — A small town team hits the big stage Thursday afternoon.

Kent City High School sent off its girls basketball team to the state semifinals on Wednesday night.

No matter where they're at, any high school will be proud of its athletic teams successes. But in Kent City, a town of barely a thousand people, that community support just means a little bit more.

"It's just something that's small town, you know?" says Rick Stockhill, a Kent City sports fan and school board member. "Everybody knows everybody."

And it seemed like everybody in town was in the High School parking lot to send off the girls basketball team to East Lansing for their second state semifinal appearance in a row.

"You think it's once in a lifetime, now it's twice in a lifetime," says Stockhill. "And you know, who knows if this will ever happen again."

Stockhill is what you'd call a Kent City super fan.

"I go to every game I can if I'm not out of town," he says. "This is where I live. It's where I love. And I love everything about our school."

He was one of the many who show their support from the stands each and every week.

"On Tuesday and Friday nights, that's the thing to do, quite honestly," he says.

And for the girls, that love doesn't go unnoticed.

"I'm super, super grateful for all the support," says senior Emmalyn Geers. "We have a lot of them come out, it's great, it makes you want to play not only for your team or for your game, but for the community too."

Not only playing for the community, but representing it in a way that makes the fans proud.

"They play unselfishly, and it just embodies all the good things about our community," says Stockhill.

Senior Taryn Preston was on the semifinal team last year. But she says something feels different in town this time around.

"So many people coming up to you and saying good luck, like you guys are gonna kill it," says Preston. "And I don't know, it's just a totally different atmosphere today. And it was awesome."

An awesome experience Stockhill knows the girls will take with them for a lifetime.

"Enjoy the moment," says Stockhill. "You earned your chance, play your heart out, let the chips fall where they may, but enjoy the moment."

Kent City plays Bishop Foley at 2 p.m. on Thursday at the Breslin Center. The school announced an early release from class for students to travel to the game that day.

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