Story and photos by Mike Gesler
Sparta 46 Grant 32 The Grant Lady Tigers came into tonight looking to put another game into their win column. To do so, they would have to shut down a threatening duo of Kensey Armock and Mia Vandenberg of Sparta. From the opening tipoff, the Spartans showed that if Grant was going to win, they would definitely need to be firing on all cylinders. The first quarter started out a little rough for the Tigers. Sparta jumped out to a six point lead before Grant could get on the board. By the time the quarter ended, the Spartans had extended that lead to nine. However, the Lady Tigers were not about to let this one slip through their fingers. Grant went on a nine point run in the second which culminated with a three point net from Kirstyn Throop to take the lead from Sparta. “I thought Sparta came out and gave a great effort. They certainly came out and hit us right away, but I thought we absolutely answered the call. We had a great run in the second quarter. Did what we needed to do,” Grant’s coach Paige Paulsen stated. However, the Spartans were not about to lie down for the Tigers, and by the time the half buzzer sounded, Sparta went into the locker room with a three point advantage. The second half was all Sparta. The Tigers managed to keep the game close through the third quarter with a much more aggressive play, but were unable to keep Armock and Vandenberg from dropping timely threes when needed. Couple that with a fourth quarter that only saw two points on the board for Grant, and the Spartans sailed home with a win over the Tigers. “They kept at us,” said Paulsen. “We struggled a little bit tonight to get a little energy going, and we have to be better than that. I think we got beat on the boards tonight. Missed some open shots late to maybe keep us into it, but I thought we certainly could have made a little better effort.” Leading the Tiger’s effort for tonight was Kirstyn Throop with thirteen points. Kassidy Doornbos put five on the board followed by Savannah Passage with four, Jaycee Rider and Ashley Longcore each with three, and Samantha Wolff and Trinity Swanson each with two. The Lady Tigers will be home again on Friday in a conference match-up against Reed City. Tip-off time is 6:00 pm.
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Story and photos by Alexis Mercer
Newaygo 37 White Cloud 26 It appeared White Cloud had a game plan coming in to the Lions gymnasium on Tuesday, knowing the Long sisters are a force to be reckoned with: double, even triple team either Jaxi or Jaylee immediately after crossing the half court line. It also appeared the Lions knew that game plan was going to happen and had a counter attack ready: quickly provide White Cloud with too many offensive options to guard with the Longs double and triple teamed. Though the Indians' plan was effective in shutting down the Longs, not allowing either sister to be in the top scoring stats for the Lions, Newaygo's overall team play and offense dominated. Emmerson Goodin came out quickly in the first quarter, hitting the boards and causing problems underneath for White Cloud. But the Indians were strong offensively under the basket as well, resulting in a tough battle in the paint on both sides. At the end of the first quarter, the score was Lions 10, Indians 6. White Cloud's Carsyn Scarlavai was lightning on her feet, darting both defensively and offensively through the smallest of openings to keep her team in the game. Despite being a sophomore and one of the shortest girls on the floor, Scarlavai moved with such intensity and purpose that those factors didn't put her at a disadvantage. Nearing the end of the first half, the Indians were within a few points and on a roll, but Anna Brummel quickly put them back down, grabbing a key rebound and then draining two consecutive shots to put the Lions up 22-15 to go into the locker room. It was the third quarter that proved the game changer. The Lions outscored the Indians 10-0, creating a lead that White Cloud couldn't come back from despite persistence and never-ending hustle. Sophia Frisbie led the Lions with 9 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. Lily Ruehmeier and Emmerson Goodin had 8 points a piece. Goodin also had 8 rebounds. Coach Thomasma stated "Good win tonight. White Cloud ran a Triangle and 2 and we had players step up. We also played some good defense." Newaygo improves to 3-1 (1-0). White Cloud falls to 2-3 (0-1). Boys Fremont 73 Ludington 63 The Orioles jumped out to a 10 point lead in the first 4 minutes of the game before the Packers offense got on track and fought their way back to a 2 point deficit after one. “Ludington brought in a very deep, physical and talented team and took it to us early,” said Coach Zerfas. “It was the first time we had trailed all season.” By intermission Fremont held a 42-35 lead and held off a relentless Ludington squad for the win. Braiden McDonald celebrated his birthday by dropping in a game high 29 points including 21 in the first half and Chris Kennedy was on his heels offensively hitting for 27. Tristan Campbell had 6 points and 8 rebounds, Carter Moon played a great all-around game with 7 points, 5 assists and 6 rebounds and Joshua Zerfas finished with 4 points, 4 steals and 6 assists. The Pack won their third straight to open the season and do battle again Tuesday when they travel to Montague for a 7pm game. Mason County Central 58 White Cloud 27 The Spartans flexed some muscle in the non conference win over the Cloud. Steven Holt paced the WC offense with 11 points and Sam Venema added 7. White Cloud is now 1-2 with a Friday trip to Hesperia next on the schedule. Girls Fruitport Calvary 67 Hesperia 46 The Panthers hosted a strong Eagle team that dominated first half play building a 43-16 led by intermission. Coach Grodus: “We continued to grow as a team playing against a talented, experienced Fruitport CC squad.” Emmi Tinkham led the hosts on the glass once again pulling own 8 boards while Emily Bayle paced the Panther scoring as she hit for 22 points to go with her 4 steals. Allison Homfield fired in a dozen points and Becci Castillo also reached double figures as she finished with 10. By Ken DeLaat N3 Sports Photos by Sue Harrison Boys Newaygo 77 Chippewa Hills 42 The Lions roared to a road win in the Gold opener for both schools scoring 55 second half points including 33 in the third. Coach Barrette: "We had an excellent 3rd quarter where we used defense to lead to easy points and allowed us to pull away." Ashton Stephens led the offense with 16 points but it was Wyatt Mortensen who sparked the post intermission barrage as he scored all of his 14 points in the 3rd. Francisco Rios grabbed a half dozen steals and handed out 6 assists while adding 8 points to the Lion total. Newaygo (1-1, 1-0) goes on the road again Tuesday when they travel to Holton to face the Red Devils. Kent City 60 White Cloud 39 The Eagles flew past the Cloud in their Silver opener dropping the hosts to 1-1 on the season and 0-1 in conference play. Sam Venema led WC with 14 points while Steven Holt hit for 11 and Alex Elder added 8. White Cloud will welcome in the Spartans of Mason County Central on Monday. Fremont 83 Reed City 44 The Packers lost just one game during the regular season last year when they stumbled on the road in Reed City. Not this year. Not by a long shot. The visitors simply took charge early and never allowed the Coyotes into the game building a 42-6 lead at one point in the 2nd quarter and finishing the game with a running clock in the 4th. Coach Zerfas: “ For the second straight game our starters did not play in the fourth quarter.” Braiden McDonald and Chris Kennedy both finished with 18 points while Tristan Campbell had 15 points and 12 rebounds. Carter Moon grabbed a game high 13 boards and added 5 points and Joshua Zerfas dished out 8 assists. Martin Curiel had 10 points all in the 4th quarter. The Pack are now 2-0 and 1-0 in the Gold and will host the Orioles of Ludington Monday before returning to the road with a trip to Montague on Tuesday. Holton 64 Hesperia 25 The Devils took control early building a 20 point lead after one and doubling the advantage by halftime. Coach Houseman: “It was a good team win and everyone got to play a lot of minutes.” Holton will face Newaygo at home on Tuesday while Hesperia takes on the Pirates of Hart. Central Montcalm 60 Grant 58 Girls
Newaygo 60 at Chippewa Hills 37 The Lions came out of the break on a mission and used a 20-6 3rd quarter run to pull away from the Warriors. Coach Thomasma: "I thought after a slow start, we played a good second half tonight. The team hung in and were able to extend. the lead in the 3rd quarter." Jaylee Long led the Lions with 18 points and 5 assists while Emmerson Goodin hit for 16 points to go with her 8 rebounds. Lily Ruehmeier had 8 points and 8 rebounds. Newaygo improves to 2-1 on the season with a 1-0 conference mark. They play their home opener Tuesday when White Cloud comes to town. Fremont 55 Reed City 40 Paige Vandenberg had a monster night canning 19 points snaring 8 boards and rejecting a quartet of Hornet shots as the Packers began their conference competition with a road win over the Coyotes. Coach Zerlaut: “It was a hard played game by both teams. We struggled early to make shots, but pulled away with a 22 point second quarter.” Haley Zerlaut tallied 10 points, with Calla Miller chipping in 9 and Natalie Jamieson 8. Miller also had 6 steals and 5 assists. Reed City was led by Taylor Harrison's 14 points. The win brings the Packers' overall record to 2-2 and 1-0 in conference play. Fremont next plays at Ludington on Tuesday. Kent City 43 White Cloud 26 Make no mistake, this is a good White Cloud team. It’s likely they will win a good share of their games this season and the team has already shown they are a force to be reckoned with on the court. But then there is the juggernaut known as the Eagles of Kent City. Give the Cloud credit. They held the visitors in check the first quarter and kept the lead for most of the first half before a couple of late triples gave KC a slight edge at intermission. Then, like they did at Grant earlier in the week, the Eagles came out of the locker room after the break, settled into their game and went on a 16-2 run to take control. The KC defense was all press all the time and while WC was able to handle the pressure fairly well they went cold from the field and got few second chances on the offensive end. Carsyn Scarlavaipaced the offense with 9 points Alexis Strait dropped in a half dozen and Olivia Bowman finished with 5. Hesperia 39 Holton 28 Rachel Romero fired in 15 points also nabbing 5 steals and Becci Castillo canned 13 points while Emmi Tinkham grabbed 14 rebounds as the Panthers defeated Holton in a Silver matchup. Coach Grodus: “We finished the last half of the 3rd quarter and all of the 4th quarter with 4 players. Romero and Castillo combined for 16 frees throws and 28 points. This was a really great team win.” Hesperia hosts Fruitport Calvary Christian Monday. Grant 39 Central Montcalm 37 The Hornets were at home and had built a 12-4 first quarter lead but the Kassidy Doornbos dropped in a clutch 5 points in the second to send the Tigers to the break with a 19-18 lead. The second half saw the lead seesaw but Grant put on a defensive stand late in the game to secure the win over the defending Gold champs. Coach Paulsen: “The girls played a great game. We were under control and gave a solid defensive effort. Our two sophomores handled the pressure really well. and everyone played with poise and confidence. I am really proud of what I thought was a team win. “We have talked about getting better each game and getting comfortable with each other. I wanted us to be better with out losing our defensive edge and we started to figure that out last night.” Jaycee Rider finished with 10 points to lead the Tigers. Grant hosts Sparta on Tuesday. Girls BBall: Eagles Show Tigers Their Talons; Pirates Pull Past Panthers; Red Hawks Rally Past Lions12/11/2019 Grant story and photos by Mike Gesler Kent City 66 Grant 27 The Grant Lady Tigers took the lessons learned from their past two games, and applied it to a very good Kent City team. And if high school basketball was only played in two quarters, the Tigers showed they are a quick study. “Kent City is a really, really, really good basketball team,” stated Grant’s coach, Paige Paulson. “All the attention that they get is well worth it.” In the first half, Grant was able to put up twenty points while holding the Eagles to thirty-four. “We tried to make them play one-on-one, and they did. They executed. I thought the first half we did a great job of playing with some confidence. You shoot a little better percentage and maybe it turns out a lit bit different.” Paulson shared. Unfortunately, high school basketball is not played in two quarters, and during the second half, the Lady Eagles put on a display of what kind of team they really are capable of being. Kent City kept the Tigers from getting the looks they needed to find the net while they themselves continued to bombard the boards with 3-point shots at will. The combination of Kent City’s Jenna Harrison and Kenzie Bower, who combined shot forty of the Eagles sixty-six points, was just too much for the Tigers. “I thought our girls kept level heads, and did a good job. There’s not a lot of teams that will be able to compete with that fire power [Kent City] has when they’re clicking,” stated Paulson. Kirstyn Throop led the Tigers tonight with eight points, followed by Trinity Swanson with five and Kassidy Doornbos with four. Also scoring were Samantha Wolff and Ashley Longcore each with three, and Savannah Passage and Jaycee Rider each with two. The Lady Tigers play at home again on Friday at 6:00 pm against Central Montcalm. Hart 40 Hesperia 32
The Panthers kept it close against the Pirates trailing by a single point after one and just 5 at the half but could not get over the hump and fell short in the non conference tilt. Coach Grodus: “We showed a good amount of improvement in this game against a district champion Hart team who returned all of their starters.” Emmi Tinkham took charge on the boards for Hesperia finishing with 9 while scoring 8 and Emily Bayle paced the scoring attack with 13 points. Bayle also nabbed a half dozen steals on the defensive end. The Panthers go south to take on Holton Friday night. Wednesday Cedar Springs 49 Newaygo 39 The Red Hawks ran their record to 4-0 with a home win over the Lions. The, butGame was tied going into the 4th quarter. Cedar Springs made some free throws in the 4th quarter to pull away at the end. Coach Thomasma: "It was a good game that could have gone either way. Give credit to Cedar Springs, they made some big shots in the 4th and made free throws at the end of the game to pull away. The girls competed well, it just wasn't our night. We'll come back tomorrow ready to practice." Emmerson Goodin led the Lions with 11 points and 9 rebounds. Jaylee Long had 11 points and 6 assists. Newaygo stays on the road to start league play as they face the Warriors of Chippewa Hills. Grant story and photos by Mike Gesler Kent City 65 Grant 53 The Grant Tigers opened up their 2019-2020 season against the Eagles of Kent City and while this was a non-conference matchup, the home fans were hoping to get a glimpse of what on paper appears to be a very competitive team. However, the Eagles wanted to show that they were every bit as competitive, and if the Tigers wanted a win they would have to earn it. After a few moments of the opening tip-off, the first game jitters wore off and both teams settled into battle mode. Through the first quarter, Grant managed to stay slightly ahead of Kent City, but by the time the half buzzer sounded, Kent City went into the locker room with an eight point lead. “I felt like we battled pretty well to start the game, and tried to establish that we were going to try to score inside. I thought we got some really good looks, but we didn’t convert. We got into a little bit of early foul trouble with Brett [Long], who is our best defender, and we asked guys to play a little bit differently in who they were defending. Kent City is solid. They pass the ball well, they shoot the ball well, they’re competitive, and they’re smart so they just kept giving themselves good looks. Even though our guys were hustling and moving around, [Kent City] still got some open looks and they knocked them down,” stated Grant’s coach, Joel Schuitema. Grant came out of the locker room with a determination to turn things around. They kept the Eagles to only six points in the third quarter, and within two minutes of the fourth quarter brought the game within two points. “I thought we were going to do something special there,” shared Schuitema. However, Kent City did what good teams do. Their lead player, Eli Carlson, drew a foul while putting one in the net. That was enough to swing the momentum back to Kent City as they proceeded to go on a ten point run. And while the Tigers continued to battle hard for an opening night win, in the end, Kent City would take this one from the home team. “I’m happy for our guys to keep battling. Disappointed that we didn’t shoot the ball very well,” Schuitema shared. “Over all I don’t think that we scored shots that we should have scored so then you have to battle even harder. But that’s our first game, and sometimes that’s how it goes.” Leading in the Tiger’s effort was Carter Chase with sixteen points followed by Orion Evans and Brett Long each with eleven points. Diesel Rose put up nine points, and Elliot Buchart and Cole Lesley each had four and two points respectively. The Tigers play at home again on Friday evening at 7:30 against Central Montcalm. Fremont 81 Shelby 45
The Packers got off to a good start in their opener by shellacking Shelby. Coach Zerfas: “We jumped out to a big lead early at Shelby 27-16 in the first quarter and led 51-26 at halftime. Chris Kennedy led the way with all 20 of his points in the first half. Braiden McDonald had 10 of his 20 in the first half and Tristan Campbell had 10 of his 12 points in the first half. Our top 6 players sat the 4th quarter and we ended up having every player score. For the game; Chris Kennedy 20 points and 7 steals, Braiden McDonald 20 points and 8 rebounds, Tristan Campbell 12 points and 10 rebounds, Carter Moon 10 points and 5 steals, Joshua Zerfas 11 assists, 7 steals, 5 rebounds, Jaxx Miller 5 steals.” The Packers will open conference play on the road Friday at Reed City. Orchard View 80 Newaygo 54 The Cardinals flew past the Lions in the season opener for both teams by jumping out to a ten point lead after one and not allowing the visitors back into the game. Coac Barrette: "We played hard, but not well. A good Orchard View team did an excellent job turning missed shots and mistakes into points" The Lions begin conference play Friday when they face Chippewa Hills in Remus. White Cloud 47 Mason County Eastern 45 The Cloud grabbed an early double digit lead but foul trouble and turnovers let MCE back into the game, only to see WC hold on for the win. Sam Venema led the way with 18 points, Steven Holt finished with 13 points including a pair of clutch triples down the stretch and Dexter Cox added a dozen. White Cloud welcomes in Kent City on Friday for a Silver matchup. Sparta 51 Holton 42 The Red Devils were up 14 to 5 after the first quarter but got into some foul trouble early and saw the edge shrink to a single point by intermission,22-21. The Spartans went ahead in the third and hung on to take the season opener for both teams. Drew Trygstad had 14 points, Nathan Slowik had 10, Lukas Ramaekers had 10, Aidan Poling had 7. Chip Wright and Kaleb Kitchka played solid minutes off the bench. The Devs open league play Friday when they host long time rival Hesperia. Strait Cans 24 in WC romp; Jamieson Rules Glass for Packers White Cloud 60 Mason County Eastern 18 The Lady Indians took care of business Monday night thrashing Mason County Eastern 60-18. Hot shooting and strong defense proved to be too much for MCE. White Cloud ended the night with 17 assists and 14 three point baskets. Alexis Strait led White Cloud with 24 points (8 threes), 4 rebounds, and 5 assists. Olivia Bowman stuffed the stat sheets with 12 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals. Emily Hodges added 7 points and led the Indians with 11 rebounds and 2 blocked shots. Kent City comes to town Friday as the teams open play in the Silver. Fremont 46 Shelby 35 The Packers were able to break into the win column with a 46-35 victory over the visiting Shelby Tigers. Leading scorers for Fremont were Calla Miller (13), Kaitlynn Bennett (9), and Chloe Shriver (8). Natalie Jamieson tallied 11 rebounds, while Shriver had 4 steals and 3 assists. Fremont led 16-9 after one quarter, 29-21 at the half, and by as many as 15 in the fourth quarter. The Packers begin league play on Friday when they travel to Reed City. The 2019-20 Boys Varsity Swim season started on Dec 7th with the Annual Ludington Relays. The Packers turned in a very strong performance after only having six days of practice under their belts.The Boys came away with several Lifetime best times in this meet and were led by the relay team of Jackson Fair, Braden DeWeerd, Owen Vandenberg and Luke Nawara who took three second place finishes in their events. The Pack came away with a third place finish and let the conference teams know that they would be very competitive this season. The Boys will next swim at on Thursday the 12th against Middleville and then travel to Grand Rapids for the Annual City Sprints at City High on the 14th. Story and photos by Mike Gesler
Cedar Springs 44 Grant 28 After a tough loss to White Cloud, the Grant Lady Tigers stepped onto their court hoping to give their fans something to cheer about in their home opener against the Lady Red Hawks of Cedar Springs. Facing an opponent out of the OK Conference would not be an easy task, and Cedar Springs would prove to be a force that Grant was not prepared for. “Cedar Springs was extremely aggressive and quick. The night before, we played a very physical White Cloud team so I think we were ready for that. But the speed, we haven’t been able to simulate that in practice so adjusting to it took a while,” stated Paige Paulsen, Grant’s coach. The game began with tough defenses on both sides, and neither team was willing to concede a bucket. It took approximately six minutes before Cedar Springs finally found their stride and began to leave Grant behind. The Lady Tigers wouldn’t put one through the net until four minutes were remaining in the first half when Trinity Swanson finally got Grant on the board with a well shot field goal. After that a pair of free throws from Kasidy Doornbos and Kirstyn Throop gave the Tigers a total of six at the half against the Red Hawks twenty-three. “We were kind of deer in headlights,” Coach Paulsen said. Grant would need to match Cedar Springs’ speed and grit at the boards if they were going to overcome a seventeen point deficit before the final buzzer. And while it took six minutes and twenty seconds into the third quarter, the Lady Tigers finally got things working. Samantha Wolff came off the bench, and started a nice six point run for Grant followed by buckets from Trinity Swanson and Ashley Longcore. But the Red Hawks were not about to make things easy for Grant. While Grant had their best quarter with thirteen points, Cedar Springs did as well with an equal thirteen points. By the time the final buzzer sounded, those seventeen points proved to be too much for Grant. The Red Hawks took one from the Tigers with a final of 28-44. Kirstyn Throop led the Tigers with nine points, followed by Trinity Swanson with six. Also scoring for the Tigers were Samantha Wolff (3), Sara Arends (3), Ashley Longcore (3), Mackenzie Rits (2), and Kasidy Doornbos (2). The Lady Tigers will next face Kent City in another home game on Tuesday, December 10 at 5:30. White Cloud 37 Grant 36 The Tigers started out on fire building an early lead and holding a 15-9 edge at the break, but the hosts fought their way back and the second half turned into a seesaw battle. With Grant holding a 3 point lead and 12 ticks on the clock Emily Hodges delivered the goods for the Cloud with a 3 pointer to tie. Carsyn Scarlavai then pulled off a steal and was fouled in the ensuing scramble,splitting a pair at the line to give White Cloud the win. Olivia Bowman led the hosts with 10 points and 5 rebounds and Emily Hodges came off the bench to pull down 6 boards and drop in 9 points.Scarlavai finished with 6 points and 3 steals. Tiger Kirstyn Throop led all scores with 16. Coach Brown: “I’m extremely happy with our never give up, grind it out, physical game,” Coach Paulson: "Great game to start the season off. I thought we played some excellent defense and gave great intensity. Turnovers and missed shots were too much to overcome and White Cloud capitalized on the opportunities. “Both teams were tough and physical, White Cloud made plays down the stretch." Grant will host Cedar Springs Friday while White Cloud visits Central Montcalm. Newaygo 51 Whitehall 35 The Lions hit halftime holding a 3 point lead but they came out of the locker room on fire defensively and pulled away from the Vikings by hitting some key free throws down the stretch. Jaxi Long led the Lions with 14 points and 4 rebounds while Emmerson Goodin, Lily Ruehmeier and Jaylee Long each canned 11. Goodin also pulled down a team high 9 boards. Newaygo shot 14-17 from the line which helped them ice the game in the 4th quarter. Coach Thomasma: "It was a physical basketball game tonight. I thought both teams fought through some opening night jitters and played a good game. Whitehall is a good basketball team and we are happy to get out of their with a win. Proud of the girl's effort and energy tonight." Newaygo hits the road again next week with a Wednesday game in Cedar Springs. Montague 48 Fremont 45 The Packers battled the Wildcats to a 15 all tie after one but hit intermission down 5 and trailed by as much as 11 in the fourth quarter. They were able to fight their way back into the game and were down just 3 in the closing seconds with possession but could not get off a good shot and fell short in the opener. Paige Vandenberg picked up where she left off last season pulling 10 off the glass, dropping in 15 and rejecting a quartet of Wildcat shots. Natalie Jamieson hit for 9 points and Haley Zerlaut fired in 8. While the Packers outshot the Cats from the field 16-12 Montague’s 7 three-pointers and advantage from the free throw line proved to be the difference. The Packers head for Spring Lake Thursday to face an old rival from their days together in the Lakes 8. Walkerville 59 Hesperia 51 The Panthers dug a 12-0 hole at the start before battling their way back behind a dynamic 28 point performance by Emily Bayle. The teams played even the final 3 stanzas but Hesperia could not overcome the early deficit and the Wildcats held home court with the win. Coach Grodus:“It was an uphill battle to overcome our slow start. With just one returning varsity player, gaining game experience at the varsity level is job one for us.” Emmi Tinkham took charge on the boards pulling down 13 and Becky Castillo hit for 10 points. Bayle also provided some wizardry on defense finishing with 7 steals. The Panthers open their home season next Tuesday when they welcome in the Pirates of Hart Holton 28 Wellspring Prep 27 (OT) |
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