2003-2004 Boys Basketball

In his first year at the helm, Coach Ron Marlan knew that his team had potential, but few people expected this historic tournament run.  After a 13-7 record in the regular season, DeWitt had just finished third in an extremely competitive Capital Area Activities Conference (CAAC) Division 3 league race. The team quickly avenged an early season loss to Ionia with a 25-point blowout victory to start the post-season tournament.  After two disappointing losses to archrival Haslett in league play that year, the boys turned the tables with a 57-44 win over the Vikings to capture the district title. DeWitt crushed #7-ranked Bridgeport 70-47 in the regional semi-final round before beating Essexville-Garber by 17 points to secure the Class B Regional Championship for the first time since 1997. The Panthers continued to embrace their underdog role as they pulled off another upset, this time a 56-49 victory over Flint Powers Catholic in the state quarterfinals to earn a trip to the Class B Final Four in East Lansing. In what felt like a home game, DeWitt shocked #3-ranked Muskegon Heights 59-55 in overtime to advance to the program’s first ever state final appearance. The next night, the Breslin Center was rocking again as unranked DeWitt led #1-ranked and heavily favored Detroit Renaissance at the end of one quarter, but the Panthers ultimately fell 61-42 to the Phoenix, who were ranked third nationally by USA Today. The Panthers finished the season with a 19-8 record. Members of the 2003-2004 Varsity Boys Basketball Team included: Dan Blemaster, Todd Colville, Todd Decatur, Chadd Fletcher, David Flood, D.J. Hitchingham, Dan Jorgensen, Erik Kangas, Mat Kellogg, Highland McKenna, Paul Pulice, Jeff Reed, Nick Stratton, Assistant Coach Paul Frank and Head Coach Ron Marlan.