Packers Victorious Over Lions Photos and Story by Alexis Mercer Fremont 50 Newaygo 45 In a tie with Big Rapids for a share of the Conference Championship, each game at the end of the regular season is crucial for the Packers. And the Lions of late have struggled to put together four consecutive quarters, but these two teams seem to rise to the occasion when playing each other. Fremont’s student section more than tripled from the girls game to the boys, nearly matching the home team’s Snowcoming student section, creating an electric atmosphere in the gymnasium that hasn’t been seen in quite some time. Bryce Decker, the Lions’ center, started off the scoring for the night with a 3 point shot from deep. 2:15 into the first quarter, the Packers got on the board with Logan Nelson’s 2 point shot. Not much later, Jordon McDonald started his dominant play, heading into the paint and drawing a foul off the defense. But Decker was here to play, staying deep for yet another 3, putting the Lions up by 2 early. In the last 20 seconds of the first quarter, the Packers meant business, stealing the ball 3 times with a tough press and aggressive shooting, putting them up 15-8. The 2nd quarter started out with solid Fremont passing and teamwork, with McDonald reaping the benefits of added points to his stats. The largest lead so far of 8 was in the Packers’ favor. With Decker in foul trouble, Jaden Osawabine stepped on the court for the Lions, and made his presence known. He scored three times in a row and also got fouled to end up tying the game at 19. The shift in the momentum was temporary, however, with Fremont dropping 3 more before heading into the locker room with a lead of 22-19. Josiah Long came out for the Lions and dropped a 3 to tie the score back up, creating a huge rise in the crowd for both sides. The rivalry and intense game was exciting for everyone from the littlest attendees to the grandparents!
Both the Lions and Packers were hitting the inside hard, causing a lot of whistle blows and many players who were in trouble of fouling out without backing off a bit. Dyllan Bazzett came in key for the Lions, scoring 4 points in two possessions. But McDonald answered with his own jump shot. Grant Harkness, not ready to be done for the night, drained a 3 point shot. And Chaz Miller for Fremont answered with his own 3 as the buzzer sounded for the end of the 3rd quarter. Down by 1 point starting the 4th, the Lions were putting the pressure on the Packers. Senior Kody Bazzett, playing in his honorary Senior night game, got fouled and made all 3 of his free throws to go up 43-40 with 5:42 left on the clock. But it was the cool and collected Packers who would retain possession, control the clock and end up with 5 more points as the final buzzer sounded. A victory for the visiting team after a well-fought match. When asked about the game, head coach Adam Bowen said “I thought both teams played really hard. We knew that this game was going to be difficult. Fremont and Newaygo games always seem to be battles. We came into the game missing three players from our normal rotation due to sickness and injury but that is something everyone is dealing with this year. We executed well offensively but just could not make shots. Our shot selection and ball movement was good, they just weren't going in. You're going to have games like that throughout the season, so we had to rely on our defense to carry us and we were able to grind one out. I'm proud of our guys for hanging in there and battling hard all night. Jordon McDonald had another double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Joey DeLong had 10 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals and Gavin Richards added 8 points and 5 rebounds.” The Lions were led by Bryce Decker with 13 followed by Jaden Osawabine with 10 and Dyllan Bazzett with 8.
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