CHEBOYGAN – The Cheboygan girls basketball team simply refused to go away against the high-powered Harbor Springs Rams.
At one point, the Chiefs only trailed by six with 1:30 left to play against the Rams, who came into the contest as the No. 8-ranked team in Division 3 in the most recent Michigan Sports Writers poll.
However, the Chiefs saw their bid for an upset fall short in a 42-33 home loss on Thursday, Feb. 5.
“We played very hard tonight, and I was impressed with our effort,” Cheboygan coach Walter Hanson said. “We executed our game plan the way we needed to. (Lillian McShannock) was unreal tonight for Harbor Springs. We had someone covering her everywhere she went from tip-off until the end of the game, and she made some unbelievable (3-pointers) with defense all over her.”
Hanson was indeed right about McShannock, a sophomore sharpshooter who connected on five 3s and finished with a game-high 17 points to fuel the Rams (16-1, 11-0 Northern Shores Conference), who remained unbeaten in conference play with the win.
The Chiefs (6-7, 3-5) received an excellent performance from senior Jaelyn Wheelock, who netted a team-high 10 points and played a role in Cheboygan’s defense holding its own against the Rams.
“Jae (Wheelock) started hitting some key shots for us tonight and did a great job shooting for us,” Hanson said. “Cloee (Rupp) caught fire and helped us make a run at the end with some great buckets. I was really happy with our energy and defense. Our bench came in and played some very tough defense as well. We adjusted well and left it all out on the court. That is all you can ask of your team as a coach.”
Rupp finished with nine points for Cheboygan, which received seven points from Estella Redding, four from Diem Schley, two from Addison Ptasnik, and one from Olivia Patrick.
Stefanija scored eight points to help the Rams earn their 16th consecutive victory.
Cheboygan hosts Rudyard on Tuesday, Feb. 10.
Bulldogs coast past Pellston at home
INDIAN RIVER – The Inland Lakes girls basketball team won its third straight game by capturing a 56-13 victory over Pellston at home on Thursday, Feb. 5.
Molly Monthei and Ava Belford netted nine points apiece for the Bulldogs (12-2, 9-1 Ski Valley), who received eight points from Chloe Robinson and seven from Addison Byrne.
“I was very pleased with our ball movement,” Inland Lakes coach Daryl Vizina said. “We have a tendency to stand and watch or dribble the air out of the ball. We’ve really been stressing that we want player movement, ball movement, and spacing. We did that really well tonight, As a result, we got a lot of good shots and a lot of people in the scoring column.”
Kalli Williamson and Faith Lehre chipped in with five points each apiece for the Bulldogs.
“A lot of credit to Pellston’s players and coaches,” Vizina said. “I know it has been a rough season, but those kids have not quit playing and the coaches have not quit coaching. They played us significantly better than our earlier meeting.”
Lanie Irwin’s six points paced the Hornets. Emily Mallory netted three.
Inland Lakes travels to Blanchard-Montabella on Friday, Feb. 6, while Pellston hosts Bellaire on Wednesday, Feb. 11.
Comets start fast, cruise past Alanson
MACKINAW CITY – A lightning-fast start lifted the Mackinaw City girls basketball team to a 58-19 victory over Alanson at home on Thursday, Feb. 5.
Kenzlie Currie tallied 16 points, four assists, four steals and two rebounds for the Comets (8-7, 6-3 Northern Lakes Conference), who outscored the Vikings 23-2 in the first quarter.
“After a slow start on Tuesday, it was great to see us come out and get after it from the tip tonight,” Mackinaw City coach Jake Huffman said. “We did a really nice job of bringing defensive intensity and were able to set the tone of the game.”
The Comets were also spearheaded by productive performances from Ella Kruczynski (11 points, five rebounds, two steals), Emily Kruczynski (eight points, three rebounds), Kerry-Ann Ming (six points, 12 rebounds, four assists, three blocks, two steals), and Poppy Wallace (six points, 11 rebounds, two steals).
“I felt our ball movement was great, and we did a nice job of finding open shots,” Huffman said. “We are working hard towards reaching some goals and building consistency in our play is a top goal of ours.”
Mackinaw City was rounded out by Rian Esper (six points, three rebounds, two assists), Alaia Mendez (five points, two rebounds), Ava Thompson (three rebounds) and Cheyenne Morgan (two rebounds).
Mackinaw City hosts Engadine on Monday, Feb. 9.
Valot, Mack City boys knock off St. Michael
MACKINAW CITY – The Mackinaw City boys basketball team saw four players reach double figures in a 61-31 victory over Petoskey St. Michael on Thursday, Feb. 5.
Kyle Valot finished with 15 points and eight rebounds for the Comets, while Ben Strittmatter had 13 points and four rebounds, Knox Wilson recorded 10 points, seven assists and four rebounds, and Blake Jenkot had 10 points and seven rebounds.
“I was really happy with our energy, we finally started a game with some intensity, and that kind of effort is infectious,” Mackinaw City coach Elijah May said. “St. Michael was improved from what I saw earlier this year and made us earn everything offensively. This was a great team win!”
The Comets also received contributions from Braylon Currie (seven rebounds, seven assists, four steals), Tyler Hingston (six points, three rebounds), Connor Birchfield (four points), Mikey Sullivan (three points, two rebounds), and Blake Hingston (two rebounds).
Mackinaw City (11-5, 3-2 Northern Lakes Conference East) hosts Alanson on Friday, Feb. 6.
Hyde scores 15, but Cardinals fall to JoBurg
JOHANNESBURG – The Onaway girls basketball team received a stellar game from Natalee Hyde, but it wasn’t enough as the Cardinals suffered a 57-43 loss at Johannesburg-Lewiston on Thursday, Feb. 5.
Hyde led the Cardinals (5-10, 3-8 Ski Valley Conference) with 15 points. Marley Szymoniak scored 11.
“Natalee Hyde played with great energy the whole game on both sides of the ball, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to get the win,” Onaway coach John George said. “We dealt with some foul trouble the whole game, which didn’t help.”
Andrea Ruppert and Aleigha Garms added six and five points respectively for Onaway.
“We had multiple open looks that we didn’t capitalize on,” George said. “Putting the ball in the hoop was a task tonight. It just wasn’t our night from the 3-point line, unfortunately. I thought we had the shots to win the game.”
In a 59-29 loss at Central Lake on Tuesday, Feb. 3, Hyde paced Onaway with 14 points. Ruppert scored six, while Garms and Szymoniak chipped in with four apiece.
Onaway hosts Gaylord St. Mary on Wednesday, Feb. 11.
Cheboygan hockey shut out by Big Rapids
CHEBOYGAN – The Cheboygan hockey team struggled to keep up with Big Rapids, which rolled to an 8-0 victory over the Chiefs at Ralph G. Cantile Arena on Thursday, Feb. 5.
Brady Ososki and Jonathan Losinski both netted hat tricks for the Cardinals (10-12-1), who received a goal apiece from Jake Strohkirch and Murphy Kwant.
Senior goaltender Jackson Bancroft made 44 saves for the Chiefs. Bancroft, along with fellow seniors Hunter Belmas, Braxton Esper, Carter Kovacs and Alex Hudson, were honored during a senior night ceremony following the contest.
Cheboygan (5-16-1) hosts Manistique in a 2 p.m. matchup on Saturday, Feb. 7.
Onaway boys struggle to keep up with St. Mary
ONAWAY – The shorthanded Onaway Cardinals did their best to keep up with the Gaylord St. Mary Snowbirds, but it just wasn’t enough.
Despite improved play in the second half, the Cardinals fell well short in a 63-30 loss to the Snowbirds in a Ski Valley Conference boys basketball clash on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
Cooper VanHuysen scored 10 points for the Cardinals, who fell behind 33-13 at halftime. Deacon Szymoniak netted all nine of his points on 3-pointers, while Casey Kindt scored four. Drew Harman-Blanchard added three and Matthew Russ recorded two.
“I think we lost our legs from playing on Tuesday night (against Central Lake),” Onaway coach Eddy Szymoniak said. “Defensively, we were better in the second half, and we made adjustments. We’ve got some injuries right now with no Trenton Soik, Brody George, and Keagan Beyer. We did get everybody playing time, and we just want to take some small victories. We’ve got to keep working hard.”
Onaway (4-11, 4-9 Ski Valley) welcomes rival Inland Lakes (10-5, 9-3) on Friday, Feb. 6.
Hornets go down against Bellaire in close battle
PELLSTON – Close until the end, but not enough.
The Pellston basketball couldn’t close out Bellaire in a 53-50 home loss on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
The Hornets were fueled by Josh Grondin’s 25 points, while Cayden Stewart scored 11 and Connor Keller added 10. Donovan O’Rourke and Lucas Livermore tallied six and four points respectively.
“We held the lead for most of the game, but we couldn’t hang on,” Pellston coach Jared Anderson said. “I thought both teams played well all night. We gave up two big layups down the stretch, which cost us. I thought Josh (Grondin) and Connor (Keller) both played well despite the attention they received. (Bellaire) just made one more shot than we did.”
Pellston (7-10, 7-7 Ski Valley Conference) hosts Mancelona on Friday, Feb. 6.
Contact sports editor Jared Greenleaf at jgreenleaf@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @sportsCDT
This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Cheboygan girls basketball puts up fight against No. 8 Harbor Springs
Reporting by Jared Greenleaf, Cheboygan Daily Tribune / Cheboygan Daily Tribune
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