Rich McGowan, MLive Media Group

JONESVILLE, MI -- Manchester’s girls basketball team is living the dream.

After a sterling defensive effort in the second half of the Class C state quarterfinal, the Flying Dutch pulled away from Niles Brandywine, handing the previously undefeated Bobcats their first loss of the season, 67-43.

The Flying Dutch (25-1) advance to the Class C state semifinal where they will face Riverview Gabriel Richard (17-6) Thursday at 1 p.m. at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center. Gabriel Richard defeated Flint Hamady 47-44 on Tuesday.

“This is what I’ve been dreaming of since I was a freshman in high school,” said senior Taylor Manders. “This is my dream come true right now, just to make it there. Words can’t explain how happy I am right now.”

More coverage: Boxscore | Sophomore Maddie Collins provides spark for veteran Manchester squad in quarterfinal win

Manchester, playing in the program’s first state quarterfinal, punched its ticket to the final four after allowing just 14 second-half points after making critical defensive adjustments at halftime.

Niles Brandywine repeatedly burned Manchester by cutting through the back-door of Manchester’s half-court defense resulting in several easy baskets and several more missed opportunities.

“We knew it was coming and they overloaded and it was always on the right side,” said Manchester coach Cori Kastel. “The focus was on ‘Don’t let them shot the outside shot,’ so we played tight when they were on the perimeter but they guarded it too tight and we sucked right into exactly what they wanted to do.”

Using the back-door play, Niles Brandywine took a 19-13 lead after the first quarter.

Led by a tremendous performance by sophomore Maddie Collins, Manchester flew out of the gate in the second quarter, jumping on the Bobcats with a 15-1 run in the first four minutes of the period.

Collins scored 10 of her 18 points in the second quarter along with two assists during the run.

“We’ve been working so hard this season and in practice,” Collins said. “It was just great that it all came together tonight to get us to the final four. From the beginning of the season, it’s really what we’ve been striving for.”

Collins’ outburst helped Manchester take a 34-29 lead into halftime and the Dutch never looked back.

Manchester outscored Brandywine 7-2 in the first two minutes of the third quarter, a run capped off by a 3-pointer from Jesse Coltre to give Manchester its first 10-point lead of the night.

Niles Brandywine never came closer than six points the rest of the game.

“I can’t believe it. It’s amazing,” said freshman Sarah Thompson. “We’ve worked so hard for it. We deserve to go (to the final four). We really do.”

Along with Collins’ 18, McKenna Erkfritz also scored 18 points for Manchester, along with six rebounds and four blocks. Taylor and Jessie Manders each scored 11 with Taylor Manders grabbing 10 rebounds with four assists. Coltre had eight points and four assists.

“It’s feels awesome,” Erkfritz said of the victory. “We’ve been working at this for a long time this year. I was really nervous when we were down but as soon as we got the hot hand, I knew we weren’t going to stop.”

Brandywine (24-1) was led in scoring by Mackenzie Shelton’s 18 points while Brooke Smith added nine.

Follow Rich McGowan on Twitter @RMcGowan1.