Exchange student Pauline Galand takes the court in girls' Hoopla! game

BRUNSWICK — It's been a long trip and a long wait for Cloverleaf senior Pauline Galand. The exchange student from Belgium was not able to play basketball this year because her senior class in her home country had already graduated. Galand finally got the chance to take the floor with a few teammates during the "Hoopla!" senior all-star game. The Dark team, consisting of players from Black River, Cloverleaf, Highland and Wadsworth, defeated the Light team, made up of players from Brunswick, Buckeye and Medina, 74-51. Galand, who was hesitant to shoot, finally got on the board when fellow Colt Tori Smith (9 points, 7 rebounds) passed up an open layup with 44 seconds to play. She dished to Galand, who converted from the left side, bringing roars from players on both sides. "It was so much fun," Galand said. "I was nervous to miss the shot, but I made it. I had so much fun with the basketball team, and all the girls were so nice to me. It was a good experience." The up-and-down pace allowed many of the players to have a shoot-first mentality. For Highland guard Delaney Lawson, that led to her winning the MVP award. Lawson, whose career high was 12 points, scored 14 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out three assists to take home the hardware for the Dark squad. "It was really fun to get to play with everyone from the different schools," Lawson said. "We've been playing against them since middle school, and some of the schools we've had a rivalry with. It was kind of cool to get to be on the same team as some of them and nice to get to know them." Regan Simpson (Wadsworth) led all scorers with 18 points and also had five rebounds and three assists as the Dark outscored the Light 46-23 in the second half. Buckeye post Autumn Meyer led the Light with 16 points and 11 rebounds while making four trips to the line — she went 4-for-8 — in a mostly whistle-free game. For Meyer and many of the players, the individual stat lines and the final score weren't as important as taking to the court for the last time. "It was amazing," she said. "I loved playing with my friends. I was in an all-star game on Monday and I knew nobody. It was nice to actually get on the court one last time with Teagan (Widenmeyer) and Alyssa (Sibley)." Blue Devils guard Katie Jarold joined Meyer in double figures for the Light with 10, and Wadsworth's Celia Lambert made it three in double-digits for the Dark with 10. Prior to the opening tip, a sophomore stole the show in the 3-point contest. Brunswick guard Ashlyn Dyson took the crown, scoring 14 points in the opening round and 15 in the final to get past Smith, who had 12 and nine. Contact Chad Grant at sports@medina-gazette.com. Dark 74, Light 51 Hoopla! Senior All-Star Game DARK&emsp;&emsp;16 12 22 24 — 74 LIGHT&emsp;&emsp;17 11 13 10 — 51 Dark — Regan Simpson 7-17 0-3 18, Pauline Galand 1-2 0-0 2, Tori Smith 4-6 0-0 9, Kiersten Hendershot 2-3 0-0 4, Delaney Lawson 5-10 0-0 14, Ky'Sonna Won 2-3 0-0 4, Celia Lambert 5-12 0-0 10, Laurell Brown 3-5 1-2 7, Maddie Miller 2-8 0-2 6. TOTALS: 31-66 1-4 74. Light — Leora Owings 3-11 1-2 7, Teagan Widenmeyer 0-2 0-0-0, Autumn Meyer 6-12 4-8 16, Katie Jerold 4-10 0-0 10, Hailey Tripp 3-6 0-0 7, Nikki Johnson 1-6 0-0 2, Savannah Marchinksy 2-3 0-0 5, Alyssa Sibley 2-3 0-0 4. TOTALS: 21-63 5-10 74. 3-point goals — Dark 11-24 (Lawson 4-6, Simpson 4-9, Miller 2-4, Smith 1-3, Galand 0-1, Lambert 0-1), Light 4-29 (Jarold 2-7, Marchinksy 1-2, Tripp 1-11, Meyer 0-1, Sibley 0-1, Widenmeyer 0-1, Johnson 0-3, Owings 0-3). Rebounds — Dark 38 (Smith 7), Light 38 (Meyer 11). Assists — Dark 15 (Lawson, Simpson 3), Light 9 (Tripp 3). Turnovers — Dark 7 (Lawson, Simpson 2), Light 11 (Sibley 4).