They also provided inspiration for the next generation.

The Miners’ season came to a close Friday night after a 63-46 loss to Detroit Edison in the MHSAA Division 2 semifinal round at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.

Edison went on to the win the state championship the following evening with a 41-33 victory over Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard back at MSU.

It was the first trip to the semifinals for a Negaunee girls basketball team, which had lost in regional play the past two years before finally breaking through.

Negaunee's Aubrey Johnson, left, drives past Detroit Edison’s Kamaria Lowe during their MHSAA Division 2 state semifinal girls basketball game played at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center in East Lansing on Friday. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

The Miners finished with a 26-2 record and defeated Flint Powers Catholic 50-45 in the quarterfinals.

“I’m proud of my seniors for helping get us over the hurdle of regionals and getting us to this new height,” fifth-year Negaunee coach Mike O’Donnell said. “And I told them they set the bar a little bit higher now and they can always be proud of that.

“We had a lot of young girls playing and a lot of young girls in the stands, and for them to see that this is possible and that we can compete at this level is only going to better our program for the future and down the road.”

The Miners’ roster consisted of only three seniors — Ella Mason, the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference Player of the Year and school’s all-time scoring leader, Callie Rajala and Grace Nardi.

O’Donnell said he will fondly remember the moments that helped define the season and help get the Miners to a place they had never been before.

“Just how hard they worked and how dedicated they were to redeeming themselves from the past two seasons and falling short,” he said. “Sometimes you get caught looking ahead, and these girls did a great job of not letting that distraction eat them up.

“They let it drive them and we made some special memories along the way. To beat Ishpeming was a big highlight for us and it was a fun two games against them.

“And then to make that tournament run. This is fun stuff, it’s fun to get to this point and I think those will be the memories that stick for us.”

Ishpeming was the only regular-season loss for the Miners, and the Hematites wound up winning the Division 4 state championship Saturday with a 73-54 win over Kingston.

The two teams shared the West PAC Iron Division title with 11-1 records.

The Miners stayed close with Detroit Edison early in the semifinals, but eventually succumbed as the Pioneers opened the gap over the second and third quarters.

“We were going to have to battle and show some fight,” O’Donnell said after the game on Friday evening. “We knew they would try to impose their will early with their pressure and their size, and we said that you have to fight and I saw a lot of fight tonight. And I’m proud of my girls for that.”

The Negaunee community also showed up in throngs to support their girls.

“It felt great seeing all the support we had coming from a small town, and basically our whole town being here just shows how supportive they were,” Rajala said.

Added Mason: “And it wasn’t just the Negaunee community. Those were a lot of the people that were here today, but it was also the whole Upper Peninsula behind us.

“I thought that was really special to feel that, especially yesterday when we went through Munising and they were giving us a parade. It felt like everyone from the U.P. had our back and that was really special.”

Dean Holzwarth writes for MHSAA.com during the group’s tournament seasons.