Tigers Advance To District Finals

Defense steps up to hold back Panthers

Photos by Alexis Mercer
Stroy by Ken De Laat

Grant 48 Comstock Park 27
This one was a game for about 12 minutes . A plucky Park squad came out and played the Tigers tough early on, but the Grant defense rose up to keep the Panthers in check long enough to allow the Tiger shooters to heat up. Bella Welch opened the Tiger scoring with a bucket and Reese Gragg converted from the line but the Panthers answered with shots from Megan Pelfley and Sierra Fonseca. Jocee Pleune hit off a rebound for Grant and Lilly Wollen sank a pair from the line for Park. As the quarter wound down Julie Ashbaugh got on the board and Fonseca countered with a triple to bring  a slow, turnover-ridden 1st quarter to an end with CP up 9-8.

Gragg and Ashbaugh both hit to begin the second but Fonseca scored and the Panthers split in a couple trips to the line and CP was up 13-12.Nineteen  Tiger points later it was deep into the third quarter and the Tigers had taken total command of the game. 
Liliana Krepps hit a bomb, Welch shoveled a steal to Emma Thompson for 2, Alexa Obenauf canned one from distance and Thompson found the hoop again and the teams hit halftime with Park down 22-13 and hoping the break might cool off the Tiger run.
It didn’t.

Another triple by Krepps and baskets by Ashbaugh, Welch and Gragg kicked off the second half before Fonseca hit one of her 2 free throws to finally end the 19-0 run. It was 38-15 entering the 4th and the Tigers kept the Panthers at bay the final 8 minutes to secure the win and move on to Friday’s finals where a rematch with Fremont awaits.

​Coach Delamater: “It was a good start to district play for us. We struggled to make baskets early and I equate that to nerves. We got our groove in the second and took the game over from there. I thought we played extremely well defensively, including making some key adjustments that kept CP from getting to the basket. At the midway point of the fourth CP still only had 15 points. Friday is a rematch of our January game with Fremont. We lost by 6 after being off for over a month without playing. Both teams have been battle tested since then and Pete will have them playing intense and well prepared for us.”

Ashbaugh led a well balanced Grant scoring attack with 12 points. Gragg and Krepps counted 7 each while Welch and Obenauf hit for a half dozen.
Grant will play Fremont this Friday, March 8th at 7pm at the Newaygo High School gym.