At the end of each sports season there is truly only one team that is happy when it is all said and done.

That would be the state champion.

But I want to take this opportunity to congratulate the Brandywine girls basketball and Cassopolis boys basketball teams for the outstanding seasons.

Neither team is happy with the fact that they did not accomplish their goals of winning a state title, but both can take comfort in the fact that they were the last teams standing in southwest Michigan.

There were plenty of other teams that would have loved to trade places with the Bobcats and Rangers, who were eliminated in the quarterfinal round by the eventual state champion — Pewamo-Westphalia.

The Pirates defeated Flint Hamady in the girls championship game 40-33, while the boys basketball team defeated Iron Mountain 53-52.

Whenever a team makes that magical journey deep into the state tournament, I am always amazed at the amount of support the communities provide their student-athletes.

Brandywine and Cassopolis residents go above and beyond when it comes to supporting their sports teams.

I was truly amazed by the community of Cassopolis when it came to supporting the Rangers at the Division 3 quarterfinal in Richland.

All of Cassopolis must have been in attendance that night at Gull Lake High School.

Ranger fans nearly filled one side of the gym with still more people sitting on the other side near the Pewamo-Westphalia faithful.

Brandywine also turned out in large numbers for its quarterfinal game in Middleville.

Hundreds of Bobcat fans made the more than hour and 40-minute trip to Thornapple-Kellogg High School.

Both fans returned home disappointed, but not before letting their teams know just how much they appreciated them.

Brandywine and Cassopolis are no strangers to success, especially in girls and boys basketball respectively.

I do not expect that to change any time soon as both rosters are filled with underclassmen.

That means I expect another long tournament run next season. I also expect to see the same fan support as I did this year.

Scott Novak is sports editor for Leader Publications. He can be reached at scott.novak@leaderpub.com