Girls: Spartans End Cloud Streak, Devils Take Trophy
Boys: Tigers Roar Past RD’s GIRLS Mason County Central 57 White Cloud 18 Oof! A battle of unbeatens from the WMC and the CSAA turned out to be a decidedly one sided affair as the visiting Spartans dismantled their hosts, dominating play from the tipoff to the final buzzer. The loss at home ends the Cloud’s season opening winning streak at 4. Coach Wilk: “Tonight we played a very well balanced team, but this game was not a great representation of White Cloud Basketball. Offensively, MCC made a lot of shots, and they played really tight defense. To beat a team like that our team needed to be fundamentally sound and play with heart. I know we were lacking in both categories tonight. “Luckily it is still early in the season, and we have a lot of time to improve. We might not have given MCC the fight that we could have, but we will find it. MCC jumped out to a 14 to 5 lead at the end of the first quarter, and they never took their foot off the gas pedal. Gaby Reeve paced the scoring for the hosts finishing with 9 points and Jaden Gomez managed to hit for 7. White Cloud (1-0, 4-1) will return to conference play Friday when they host Central Montcalm (2-0, 3-2) Holton 57 Hesperia 12 The two neighbors and longtime competitors in Girls basketball began a new era in their rivalry with the introduction of The Battle of M-120 with the winning team holding possession of the newly created traveling trophy. The Red Devils set first claim to the bragging rights as they took control early with an 18-2 first quarter run and never let the Panthers back into the game. Coach Jordan: “It was nice to start this tradition off with a win, and we needed one. Coming off 3 straight losses it’s always good to get back in the win column. I challenged my team defensively at the beginning of the game, and I’m happy with the result. We have to be a defensive team first and foremost if we want to have a good season… we are not built to have shootouts. .. so we need to keep that mindset for the rest of the year. “We are hoping to get another victory on Thursday at Muskegon Catholic Central but it will be our defensive effort that will determine that. Every game is gonna be a fight for us this year and that has been the point of emphasis. We have to earn every win.” Ryann Robins had a big night for the Devs knocking down 20 points, grabbing a dozen off the glass and tossing in 3 steals for good measure. Abbie Fowler fired in 11 points, dished out 5 dimes and pilfered the Panthers for 8 steals and Layla Cannady dropped a dozen on the hosts. Grace Weberg and Samy Logana paced the Panther scoring finishing with 4 points apiece while Alana Nadjovic took down a team high 6 boards. Logana added a pair of assists to the scorebook as well. Holton (1-2, 2-3) heads to Muskegon Catholic on Thursday while Hesperia (0-2, 1-5) continues conference play Friday when they travel to Shelby (2-1, 3-2) BOYS Grant 59 Holton 20 The Tigers took an early lead then really opened it up in the second quarter outscoring the Red Devils 25-9 and hit intermission with a 39-14 edge.Grant’s balanced offensive attack and defensive pressure delivered their 3rd straight win of the season. Coach Swanson: “Grant put it on us good tonight. I'm looking forward to seeing more resilience from our team for the rest of the season.” Ten Tigers got into the scorebook led by Oakley Obenauf who popped in 13 points and Austin Whitney who tallied 10. Lucas Swanson hit for 9 point and Zaiden Phillips finished with a half dozen. The Red Devils got 9 points and 7 boards from Brodrick Fialek and Chase Albright also collected 7 rebounds. Grant (1-0, 3-1) will travel to Reed City for a Friday game while Holton (0-0, 0-3) plays their first conference game as a member of the WMC when the face Rivers Division rival Mason County Central at home Thursday.
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Cloud Moves To 3-0, Tiger Fight Goes To Grant, Cards Cage Lions
Photos by Bobbie Cruzan White Cloud 67 Hesperia 23 The Cloud remained perfect on the young season as they raced to a non conference win over the host Panthers. All ten players made it into the scorebook led by Noah Robinson and Jason Reuther who each knocked down a dozen. Coach Jones: “We shot the ball really well, and played pretty good defense. Definitely room for improvement but pretty happy with the way this team shares the ball and works together on defense.” KJ Strait and Jared Watson hit for 9n points apiece while Landyn McGowen and Mason Reuther each tallied 7. Zane Keith scored his first Varsity bucket in the win. White Cloud (1-0, 3-0) will look to keep the streak alive Friday when they host Central Montcalm (0-1, 0-3). Orchard View 62 Newaygo 55 The Cardinals got off to a good start, raining down a series of 3 pointers to carry them to the win over visiting Newaygo. The Lions were paced by Bryce Decker with 17 points and 10 rebounds followed by Josiah Long with 14 points and Dyllan Bazzett with 11 points. Newaygo (1-0, 1-3) returns to conference play Friday when they host Kent City. Grant 48 Shelby 44 The visiting Tigers from Grant battled the host Tigers of Shelby throughout the game to earn the victory. Eight Grant players made it into the scorebook led by Austin Whitney who hit for an even dozen. Mason Woodard added 9 while Oakley Obenauf and Gage Cronk chipped in 6 each. Grant (1-0, 2-1) travels to Holton Tuesday to take on the Red Devils. GIRLS Tigers Romp, Packers Edged, Lions Stung, Devils Downed Ottawa Hills 36 Fremont 33 The Packers traveled to Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills Friday night and returned home with a disappointing loss. The Packers led for most of the game but were not able to close out the win in the end. Fremont led 7-6 after one quarter, 17-10 at halftime, and 26-22 at the end of the third. Their largest lead came at 24-12 in the third quarter, however turnovers and back to back made three pointers by the Bengals changed the momentum. Ottawa Hills took their first lead of the game midway through the fourth quarter and held on down the stretch for the win. Coach Zerlaut: “It was a very disappointing loss. We struggled to convert around the basket for much of the night and only made 8 of 23 free throw attempts. It was an extremely physical game, and we did not handle it as well as I hoped that we would. As much as we struggled in the physical aspects of the game, it was our mental miscues that proved to be the biggest difference between pulling out a win tonight and suffering a tough loss.” The Packers were led offensively by Lily VandenBerg with 11 points, Khaila Noordyk with 9, and Mia Clemence with 8. Fremont (0-1, 1-3) continues their lengthy road run with a Tuesday matchup with Oakridge. Central Montcalm 38 Newaygo 21 The Lions were up by 1 after the 1st but got outscored by 11 in the 2nd quarter and the Hornets kept that double digit lead pretty much until the final few minutes of the game. Coach Thomasma: “"Name of the game is to put the ball in the hoop and right now we are having too many empty possessions to beat a good basketball team like Central Montcalm. It's not from a lack of effort but we need to get better on the offensive side of the ball. The girls are working hard and gaining experience and we will just keep putting the time in." Barbara Toth had 10 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals to lead the Lions. Grace Painter finished with 5 points and 6 rebounds. Newaygo (1-1, 1-2) returns to action Monday when they host Big Rapids Crossroads Grant 73 Central Montcalm 40 The Tigers simply ran away from the Hornets building a 39-19 lead by intermission and continuing to build the lead in the second half. Coach Delamater: “You wouldn't guess it by the score, but we didn't play a great game. We had too many turnovers, we didn't box out particularly well, and our defensive rotation was terrible.” Julie Ashbaugh continues to be a dominant force on the court in this young season as she dropped 30 on the Hornets while peeling 9 boards off the glass. Jocee Pleuneaslo reached double figures knocking down an even dozen Thursday Mason County Central 47 Holton 29 The Red Devils dropped their 3rd in a row falling to undefeated MCC in a conference matchup. Coach Jordan: “MCC is a solid team with great size and length and they can shoot, they shot the ball at a very efficient rate tonight, hitting 7 3's on the night. We had a hard time keeping up with them, but unlike on Tuesday when I felt my girls packed it in half way thru the 4th.. we battled all game and am very happy from an effort standpoint.. we were just out matched tonight. But the message to the team was effort effort effort.. we just couldn’t hit many shots. If we can duplicate the effort for the rest of the year I think we will end up just fine.. now we just have to be consistent. We also took way better care of the ball tonight which was another point of emphasis. I wouldn't be happy with many double digit loses but this one I can live with, Layla Cannady was the leading scorer for the Devs scoring an even dozen while Ryann Robins added 5. Holton (0-2, 1-3) will visit an old rival in a new conference as they head up Maple Island Rd to take on Hesperia on Tuesday. BOYS Lions, Tigers Win Big, Devs and Pack Fall Short Newaygo 56 Central Montcalm 33 The Lions got out to a 20 to 8 lead at the end of the first quarter and carried it to their first victory with good defense and timely scoring. Newaygo was led by Bryce Decker with 26 points and 14 rebounds followed by Josiah Long putting in 16 points and grabbing 6 rebounds. Caris Nelson dished out 9 assists in the Lion win. Newaygo (1-0, 1-2) travels to Orchard View Monday. Grant 84 Lakeview 35 The Tigers opened conference play with a convincing win over the Wildcats. Lucas Swanson had a hot hand on the night dropping 34 on the ‘Cats. 11 players got into the scorebook for the hosts including Zak Barnhart who knocked down 9 and Gage Cronk and Chase Geerswho each hit forn 8. Coach Schuitema: "The players worked hard and took care of the details. Obviously, Lucas got hot and the players got the ball to him and that helped with the final score." Grant (1-0, 1-1) will travel to Holton Tuesday to face the Red Devils. Fruitport Calvary 67 Holton 40 The Red Devils hung close for the first half but could not gain ground on the Eagles who ran away in the final frame to secure the win. Coach Swanson: “Calvary played a good game tonight. We were in touch late in the third quarter when Brodrick Fialek fouled out. From there it was a really tough task. Brant and Fialek played strong for us in the loss and we got good minutes from Gavin Wheeler and a host of others. Bradley Richards and Quinn Swanson played well for the Eagles. Carter Brant led the Devs in scoring, knocking down 19 points while Brodrick Fialek reached double figures with 11 and Gavin Wheeler hit for 8. Richards finished with a game high 28 points and Swanson added 16. Holton (0-0, 0-2) continues their pre conference play Tuesday when they host Grant. Ludington 70 Fremont Jordon McDonald hit for 27 but the Orioles opened up a close game in the second half and took the conference win. Fremont (0-1, 1-1) will host Big Rapids Tuesday. Futsal Fever Story by Tara Hefferan Photos by Alexis Mercer As World Cup fever swept the globe, Futsal Lion Cup fever overtook Newaygo. More than 250 players across 36 teams participated in the 2nd annual Futsal Lion Cup held at Newaygo Public Schools this past weekend. Teams traveled from across Michigan to Newaygo to play three futsal matches on Saturday. Futsal resembles soccer but is played indoors with just five players per side. The small field—the size of the gym’s basketball court—and its hard surface make futsal a fast game that requires precision passing, receiving, and shooting. Games are brief and intense. All matches were played in the schools’ gyms, with more than 500 spectators rooting for their favorite players and teams. The atmosphere was electric, with cheering, chanting, and singing marking each goal, steal, and good play. The top finishers in each age bracket were called back for semi-finals and finals matches on Sunday. In the end, medals and trophies were awarded to the top three teams in each age bracket. Nearly double in size from last year, the Futsal Lion Cup was organized by Coach Jesus De Leon and the Newaygo Boys Soccer Team as both a fundraiser and a community affair. By all measures, the tournament was a great success. An army of volunteers served as referees, organizers, door agents, and registration officers. Several local businesses sponsored the tournament, including GM Wood Products, Leprino Foods, Newaygo Brewing Company, Tote-Ally Unique, and Riverwalk Nutrition. Moreover, Coach De Leon wanted to give back to the community, partnering with Newaygo County Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect “to collect donations and funds for the families and children in need in our community.” In reflecting on what he would remember from the tournament, Coach De Leon said, “I will never forget all the volunteers, for all their time and effort. I could not have done it without them. All screams when a ball hit the back of the net, a thunderous roar full of excitement and cheer. All the criticism and complaints, because you learn to cope with it, and it allows us to be better next time. All the parents, players and coaches that approached me to say how great the tournament was. Everything. I will remember everything.”
Coach De Leon said that our area has many talented soccer players, and the tournament allows them the chance to play top competition in a challenging environment. He hopes to be able to organize the tournament again. But, for now, Coach De Leon wants everyone to know just how grateful he is to all the people who made this year’s tournament possible and in the process gifted our community with the “beautiful game.” Reeve, Strait pace scoring as teams remain undefeated Photos by Bobbie Cruzan Basketball is off to a running start in White Cloud as both teams added to the win column Friday night. White Cloud 36 Tri County 32 The evening began with the Girls team notching their 4th straight win of the young season as they roared out to an early lead then held off a determined Viking squad to extend the streak and begin conference play with a W. The WC defense held TC scoreless in the first frame while putting 8 on the board then followed up with a strong second quarter as they hit intermission holding a 22-6 advantage. But the visiting Vikings weren’t going to go down easy. They clawed their way back and forged a 4th quarter tie at 27 all. It came down to the charity stripe and as time wound down the WC players came through in the clutch and drained 9 from the line to finish on top. Coach Wilk: “Tonight our girls came out firing on all cylinders. Even though this game was closer than we wanted, we are glad with how our girls responded in the 4th quarter. We were able to successfully stall in the final minutes, and that is a great learning experience for our players. We also learned tonight that in varsity basketball you can never count out the other team until the 4th quarter is finished.” Gaby Reeve led the Cloud in scoring with 19 pts and for good measure she added a team high 13 boards. Kiara Edwards grabbed 7 steals to go with her 8 points and Jaden Gomez hit for a half dozen points and added 5 steals. “Annie Feldpausch and Brooke Ringler showed a lot of heart in the 2nd half contributing in any way they could to help us get a win. We look forward to playing undefeated Mason County Central on Tuesday. They have some very skilled players, and we will have to play better than tonight to beat them. I told the girls that it has been awhile since a White Cloud Girls Basketball Team has started the season 4-0, and that in itself is a huge accomplishment for our young team.” White Cloud 55 Tri County 42
Then, after watching their colleagues celebrate the win, the Boys team took the floor. They were also beginning conference play and coming off a convincing win over MCE on Tuesday. And they didn’t disappoint the home crowd who seem to be sensing a possible basketball revival in White Cloud. Paced by the game high 19 points KJ Strait knocked down, the Cloud kept the Vikings from making a run and secured their second win and first in-conference W. Coach Jones: “This was an intense and hard fought game. Unlike the past we were able to finish down the stretch. Very proud of the way we played tonight and of the way we held our composure by knocking down clutch shots and making our free throws. Noah Robinson and Jared Watson also reached double figures notching 13 points apiece while Christian Ringler hit for 8. Mason ReutherJason Ruether, Landyn McGowen, Dominick Burkhart and Mason Cruzan all contributed to the win. White Cloud Boys will travel to Hesperia (0-3) on Monday while the Girls team will host the Spartans of Mason County Central (3-0) on Tuesday. Photos and Story by Mike Gesler Ludington 87 Grant 74 I was very curious to see how the Tigers of Grant would perform this year. For the first time in six years, Grant has a team without a leading shooter. The talents of Carter Chase and Seth Schuitema are now only echoes on the court of Tiger legends. Would one of the returning six in Whitney, Barnhart, Cronk, Geers, Swanson, or Woodard have a breakout season, or would one of the new members of the Tiger squad find a vacant role to fill? Or maybe, just maybe, the team will let legends die for now, and play a different brand of basketball. Any questions I may have had were certainly going to be answered and put to the test as the Tigers opened their 2022-2023 season against a strong non-conference opponent in the Orioles of Ludington. Ludington comes into this season with the expectation that they will be the West Michigan Conference champions. At first glance though, Ludington is not an impressive team. Like the Tigers, the Orioles lack any real height advantage. But what they lack in height, they make up for in speed; consistent, all out, four quarters of speed. And that speed leads to points; lots of points. It is amazing just how fast Ludington moves the ball down court and finds the hoop. Plus, their full court pressure on defense creates numerous turn-over opportunities which again leads to points. Grant definitely had their hands full, and I would not have faulted them if Ludington simply tamed the Tigers and went home stuffed on Tiger meat. However, don’t let the score fool you. This game was closer than the score. The Orioles drew first blood before Lucas Swanson found the net and got the Tigers on the board. That would be the first few minutes of the game as both teams worked at settling in and knocking off those first game jitters. Then, as I joked with Coach Schuitema after the game, a hockey game broke out. Rather than sub one or two players, both sides subbed entire lines. Schuitema told me he feels his bench is deep enough that it allows for the entire starting five to rest while fresh legs continue. I would have disagreed at first as Ludington proceeded to go on a seven-point run. But coaches do strange things at strange times for strange reasons that somehow work out. With a couple minutes left in the quarter, again we had a line change and the Tiger’s starting five took over with a seven-point run of their own. And from that point on, we had a ball game. The Tigers matched the speed of the Orioles. They matched the defensive pressure of the Orioles. They kept the Orioles from completely running away with this game. And they did it with an all-out team effort. The only question was would they be able to sustain this high intensity play for four quarters. Unfortunately, the answer was no, and I am not going to fault them for that. Up until the final couple minutes of play, the Tigers were only down by six points. But you could see Grant was running out of gas. And when you start to run out of gas but are trying your best to give it everything you have got, play can get a little sloppy. Three Tigers fouled out and Ludington is too good of a team not to take advantage of free points. That was the difference in this game; about the last two minutes. A little more conditioned, a couple sharper passes, a few more baskets going Grant’s way, and this could have been an upset. Let’s be honest. If you put up 74 points against the vast majority of teams that Grant plays, you will come out on the winning side. Buckle up because this could be an exciting season for the Tigers and their faithful.
“I’m really proud of our guys for competing against one of the best schools and teams in the area in Ludington,” stated Coach Schuitema. “They’re traditionally strong. Their coach coaches a really good brand of basketball. They know how to play that fast-paced pass-pass-shoot kind of basketball. Our thought our guys played really well against them and really competed. I’m excited about it, and I think our guys are excited about it although we still measure our successes by the final score. So at the end of the day we say, ‘Hey, we didn’t play well enough to win,’ and that disappoints us, but our effort and energy was really good.” Leading in this truly Tiger team effort was Austin Whitney with 16 points followed by Oakley Obenauf with 12 points. Mason Woodard and Blake Rider put up 9 apiece. Chase Geers and Zak Barnhart each had 8. Lucas Swanson added 6 while Zaiden Phillips and Gage Cronk furthered with 4 and 2 respectively. The Tigers will next face their first conference opponent at home Friday evening against the Wildcats of Lakeview. Pack wins 2, Devs drop 2, Cloud Boys win, Panther Girls fall
BOYS Fremont 53 Shelby 33 Jordon McDonald picked up where he left off last year firing in 25 points snaring a dozen rebounds, rejecting a quintet of Tiger shots and adding 3 steals as the Packers opened the season with a convincing win over the Tigers. Coach Bowen: “We played with good effort but the game was a little sloppy, especially in the first half. I thought we found a little rhythm in the second half, especially Jordon, and we were able to pull away. “We have a lot to work on and clean up, but that's normal for early in the season. We have a lot of positives to take away as well.” Gavin Richards took down a team high 13 boards and added 4 points. Fremont will travel north to Ludington Friday to open conference play against the Orioles. White Cloud 61 Mason County Eastern 45 With all ten players seeing valuable playing time the Cloud gave their fans plenty to cheer about as they opened the season with a win over the Cardinals. Noah Robinson dropped 20 on the visitors with KJ Strait knocking down 15 and Jared Watson scoring an even dozen. Coach Jones: “ Pretty proud of the effort tonight. We still have a lot to clean up before we host Tri County on Friday Night Friday’s matchup with the Vikings will kick off the conference season for both teams. Oakridge 65 Holton 28 The Red Devils had it going early as they jumped out to an early lead on the road. The visitors were up 14-9 after one but then the Eagles regrouped big time and held the Devs to just 14 more points over the next 3 quarters while pouring in 56 to cruise to the conference crossover win. Coach Swanson: “Tonight we were able to find some success early on. Credit to Oakridge for buckling down and creating a lot of turnovers and offensive rebounds which really did us in.” Carter Brant paced the RD scoring hitting for 15 points while Brodrick Fialek worked the glass for 15 boards. Holton will hit the road again Friday when they take on another Eagle team, Fruitport Calvary. GIRLS Fremont 58 Shelby 30 Fremont traveled to Shelby for a WMC crossover game and came home with their first win of the young season over the Tigers. The Packers led 14-6 after the first quarter and then exploded for 21 points in the second quarter to take a 35-13 lead into halftime. They extended that lead with a 16-10 advantage in the third quarter before both teams scored 7 points in the last period to set the final score. Jessica Bennett led a balanced Packers scoring attack with 12 points. Mia Clemence had 9, Khaila Noordyk 8, and Lily VandenBerg 7. Thirteen different Packers players scored on the night. The win improves the Packers to 1-2, 0-1 in the WMC Lakes division. The Tigers fell to 1-2 overall and 0-1 in the WMC Rivers division. Coach Zerlaut -- "We got really good effort again tonight. The difference was that the ball went in the basket more consistently tonight. We got some good results from our pressure defense in the second quarter to open up the score a bit and the girls got into the flow of the game. We got great contributions from a lot of different sources. It was truly a team effort tonight." Oakridge 48 Holton 28 For the second straight game the Red Devils fell victim to the turnover plague late in the game and watched the Eagles run away with the win. Coach Jordan: “When you have more turnovers than shot attempts you will lose every game, we were very careless with the ball, and it turned a close game thru 3 quarters into a blowout. This is the second game where we have not finished the game in the 4th as you would like to. We have to clean this up immediately or it will hurt us all year.” Ryann Robins pulled down a team high 8 boards to go with her 7 points and Abby Fowler led the team in scoring with 8 points while using her defensive skills to pilfer 6 steals. Holton (0-1, 1-2) returns to conference play Thursday as the Spartans of Mason County Central come to town. Lakeview 58 Hesperia 30 The former conference foes squared off in Wildcat country and the hosts held home court nearly doubling the score of the Panthers. It was the third loss in a row for Hespeira after opening the season with a win. Samy Logana reached double figures tallying 11 points while teammate Sky Milner scored 8. Hesperia (0-0, 1-3) will begin play in the WMC Rivers Division Thursday when they host the Norse of North Muskegon. Lions Fall In Close Home Opener
Photos and story by Alexis Mercer Newaygo 54 Montague 62 In an appropriate start to the Boys Varsity Basketball season for Newaygo, Bryce Decker scored the first points of the season with a layup against Montague on Monday, December 5. It was a fast and furious back and forth the remainder of the game with no one team securing a solid lead right until the last minute. Turnovers caused both teams trouble throughout the game, but Newaygo started with their run of four turnovers in the first quarter. Bryce Grugett hit a jump shot at the end of the first quarter, however, to tie it at 11. In the second it was Bryce Decker whose three point shooting got the Lions back in the game after Montague had a small run of their own. It was tied at 20 with 2:09 left in the half. Already both teams were in foul trouble, so both spent significant time at the line. It was Caris Nelson who hit the final shot for Newaygo before the half to make it 25-29 in Montague’s favor heading into the locker room. Conversations in the locker room must have been intense, because both teams came out with even more fire than the first half. This also resulted in a plethora of fouls for both sides. But Montague was hanging on to its small lead in the 3rd. Remington Wells gave the Lions their first lead of the second half with a 3, making it 39 to 38. And the crowd roared in appreciation. Newaygo kept its lead til the end of this quarter, ending at 43-40. Montague wasn’t having it, however, and right away stole the lead back, making a 6 point turnaround quickly. Back came Newaygo with Bryce Decker hitting yet another 3. But it would be short lived. Newaygo went up by just a couple halfway through the quarter, and then Isaiah Atchison made an emphatic statement with a steal and a dunk to give Montague the lead that would carry them through to the final buzzer. Tigers' Ashbaugh rips nets for 31; Edwards, Reeve hit double figures for Cloud
Photos by April Ringler White Cloud 49 Mason County Eastern 20 After a bus trip to Custer it took a bit for White Cloud to get rolling in their matchup with the Cardinals. But once they caught fire there was no looking back. Leading 11-10 after one, the visitors slammed the door on defense in quarter 2 shutting out their hosts while building their lead to a 24-10 advantage at intermission. Coach Wilk: “We came out extremely flat in the first quarter. We had a quick chat with our team, and then the 2nd quarter was all White Cloud. Going into halftime I knew our team didn’t play very well in the 1st quarter, and we didn’t want to repeat that coming back out for the 3rd quarter. We urged our players to come out with more intensity, and they did a great job in the 2nd half.” The Cloud took control in the 3rd adding another dozen to their lead and coasting to the win. Kiara Edwards returned to the WC lineup and dropped 20 on the Cards. Gaby Reeve brought her lunch box to work and added another 15 points while Jaden Gomez, Kadence Nickoloff, Annie Feldpausch, and Tanayah Klammer totaled 14 points to round out the rest of the scoring. Coach Wilk: “It is hard to complain about a 29 point win, but our coaching staff has high expectations for these ladies. Pretty soon we will start conference play and the competition is going to get tough. We need to start putting together four good quarters in a row otherwise we might be on the wrong side of the win/loss column. We play Tri County on Friday, and we want to keep the winning streak alive.” Friday’s game against the Vikings is the conference opener for White Cloud. Grant 53 Whitehall 43 Down by 5 after the first quarter the Tigers roared back with a 21-9 second quarter run to take a 7 point lead at the half. After intermission they managed to keep the Vikings at bay and secured the non conference win. Coach Delamater: “Whitehall played an aggressive 2/3 zone and, being early in the season, it shocked the girls at the start. Coupled with all of the fouls it was hard for us to get into a rhythm offensively. It was another very physical game with a ton of fouls called. Both teams were in the bonus for the majority of both halves. “With four young girls getting significant time and having no varsity experience we are a month away from being comfortable with who we are as a team. I've seen lots of growth already and when we really start to mesh, we will be very competitive.” Julie Ashbaugh put together another huge night firing in a game high 31 points while pulling down 11 boards. Ashbaugh was red hot from the charity stripe draining 19 out of 20 attempts. Grant (0-1, 2-1) will return to conference play Friday when they host Lakeview (0-1, 1-2). Game time is 6pm. Big changes in the conferences this season. The Packers will be competing in the Lakes Division of the WMC while the Red Devils and Panthers shift to the WMC Rivers Division. And the CSAA? Well, the conference will forge the Silver and Gold into a single alloy creating an 11 team group. As a result there will be no home and home series between teams who will meet just once during the season. Newaygo starts with a 3 game week opening at home against Motague Monday before taking to the road for a Wednesday game against Northview and a Friday conference opener at Central Montcalm. Grant plays a pair at home welcoming in Ludington Tuesday and conference foe Lakeview Friday. Fremont will start with a crossover game at home with Shelby then head to Ludington for their Laked Division opener against the Orioles White Cloud’s season begins Tuesday when they host Mason County Eastern then on Friday Tri County arrives for a conference game. Hesperia hosts Baldwin Monday and Lakeview Tuesday t before Muskegon Catholic Thursday. Holton plays their first two on the road traveling to Oakridge Tuesday and Fruitport Calvary Friday. Fremont Packers Coach Adam Bowen The Packers lost a few starters from last year's conference runner-up team but return all conference honoree Jordon McDonald along with Chaz Miller and Gavin Richards. Among the players joining them are Kyler DeKuiper, Will DeBlake, Ben Mellema and Andrew Steger. From the Coach Team Strengths- Good size, improved shooting, good athletes, dept Biggest Challenge- Lack of varsity experience Probable Conference Frontrunners- This is a very deep conference but if I had to say it would be Ludington, Whitehall, Fremont and Montague “We are very excited about this team. We have a lot of potential with good size, athleticism and depth. We are looking forward to the challenge in our new conference.” Grant Tigers Coach Joe Schuitema The Tigers may have lost a lot of points to graduation but they return a solid core of players from last year’s squad along with some talent from their JV team. Lucas Swanson, Chase Geers, Zak Barnhart, Austin Whitney and Mason Woodard return while Oakley Obenauf, Blake Rider, Drew Crater, Zaiden Phillips Cohen Garrod and Colby Curtiss give Coach Schuitema a lot of options From the Coach: Team Strengths - We have 6 returning players with a lot of on court experience. We have a balanced attack on both ends of the floor. Biggest Challenge - We lack size with our tallest players standing in the 6'3" range. Probable Conference Frontrunners - Big Rapids has the best resume to return as Conference Champions. They return the majority of their team back and their JV team was really good, too. ”The guys are working hard to be ready to compete for a Conference Championship. Our coaches really like the players we have and hope to see them reach their potential. White Cloud Indians Coach Bob Jones White Cloud brings back a lot of talent including all conference Honorable Mention Jared Watson, Mason Ruether, Kevin Straight, Christian Ringler, Jason Reuther and Vinny Ockert. Noah Robinson got some Varsity floor time during the tourney last season and he will join the team along with Mason Cruzan,, Landyn McGowen Dominick Burkhart and Zane Keith From the Coach: Team Strengths- Speed and the ability to shoot the ball will be some of our team strengths this year. Team Challenges- Once again we are not the tallest team so rebounding against taller teams will be a challenge again this year. A Defensive attitude first also and maybe the biggest key To success this season. Probable Conference Frontrunners- Big Rapids,Reed City and of course the team to the south with the Coach with the most colorful pants ( Kent City , Coach Ingles) are always ready to play. “I believe this is our most talented all around team we've had to date. Can we learn to be a team and give everything for each other, play tough defense first and finish games? I believe we can. This team could make some noise this year, looking to gain respect and getting back to playing White Cloud Basketball!!!. Could be a fun year!!! Newaygo Lions Coach Jason Long The Lions bring back All Conference first teamer Bryce Decker and AC Honorable Mention Josiah Long along with Remy Wells, Dyllan Bazzette and Grant Harkness from a team that finished middle of the Pack last year. Caris Nelson and Blake Kerr will be some key additions to Coach Long’s squad. From the Coach Team strengths- We have good size and depth Biggest challenge-Finding groups that play well together/rotations Probable Conference Frontrunners-Big Rapids, Reed City “The team has worked hard and we are excited to see what we can do this season.” Hesperia Panthers Coach Andrew Worcester The Panthers have 8 players returning from last year’s youthful team Seniors Maddox Mosley, Maverick McKinnon, Gabe Gould Armando Escobar and Zach Glenn and sophomores Jared Tanner, Ethan O’Neal and Ian Fox all saw significant playing time last year.Matteo Materdomini, Bryce Billings, Blake Hernandez, Jake McFalda and Luke Greiner now add to the mix providing the Panthers with a long bench. From The Coach Team Strengths-Speed and toughness Biggest Challenge- Strength and size Probable Conference Frontrunners-Ravenna or North Muskegon “We are going to be more competitive, more gritty and shock some teams this season. The move to the West Michigan Conference (WMC) this season allows our program an opportunity for a fresh start to prove our toughness and determination to be a contender in the Rivers division.” Holton Red Devils Coach Keith Swanson The Devs had a good year finishing second in the Silver and ended their season with a loss to North Muskegon in the District Final. Three starters return from that team including All Conference Honorable Mention Carter Brant along with Brodrick Fialek and Chase Albright. Help has arrived as Nate Paseka, Gavin Wheeler, Keon McMillan, Trent Kooman, Steven Kersting, and Jayce McMillan loin the RD Varsity From The Coach: Team Strengths: Guard play Team Challenges: Youth and inexperience Probable Conference Frontrunners: North Muskegon, Hart, Mason County Central “This year's team has a couple outstanding veteran leaders accompanied by an overall inexperienced group. Brant, Fialek and Albright will help us get our newcomers up to speed in the early parts of the season with the hopes of competing for the league down the stretch. |
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