HILLSDALE COUNTY — The 2025-26 Hillsdale County (ISD) boys basketball season kicked off with an impressive start for a couple teams who managed to win all of their opening games.
For Jonesville and Will Carleton Academy, Week 1 solidified the two teams as early season contenders heading into the Pat Patterson tournament.
Jonesville plays strong against Arbor Prep and Homer
The lineup for coach Jeff Turner’s Jonesville Comets looks to be one of the top in the area after two opening season victories.
Jonesville opened its season on the road at Ypsi Arbor Prep, earning a 64-39 victory that featured four different double digit scorers.
Junior guard Caleb Blonde led proceedings with 13 points, seven assists and five steals. Cameron Moore (12), Reese Rundquist (11), Kaleb Males (10) and Ian Doyle (10) all contributed to the scoring effort.
The high-scoring Comet offense continued to be efficient against the Homer Trojans in their home opener. The Comets nearly had a perfect first-half double-digit lead, but Homer sank a couple of 3s before the halftime buzzer to make things a competitive game in the final two quarters.
Jonesville held on for a 73-69 win largely thanks to Blonde’s 26 points and eight assists. Reese Rundquist added 16 points, while Males was just one rebound shy of a double-double night at 10 points, nine boards.
Brock Butler contributed 20 points for the Trojans in an impressive effort, but the Comets played reliable defense when it counted.
Week 2 looks to test their abilities in road environments, with games scheduled with Manchester (Dec. 10) and Vandercook Lake (Dec. 12).
Will Carleton Academy defensive effort lifts Cougars to 2-0
The Will Carleton Academy Cougars started their follow-up tour to their CAC league title with two non-conference wins.
Both came at home, a 48-44 final over Jackson Chrisitan and a 64-33 takedown of Tekonsha.
Junior guard David Mayer sank a couple late 3s against the Royals to earn 20 points. Harrison Sands added 16, most coming in the point, against Jackson Christian.
Maier continued his dominant week with 24 against Tekonsha, with four more 3s. Sands added 13 more points. Freshman Max Maier contributed 11, including three baskets from 3-point range.
The Cougars will stay home for two more games in Week 2, including a matchup with Litchfield (Dec. 12).
Week 1 Big Board Report
Camden-Frontier
After falling to Burr Oak (52-22) and Reading (67-48) in back-to-back games to open the season, the Camden-Frontier RedHawks had another game two days later and won.
They beat Jackson Christian 43-32. The 1-2 RedHawks face Hillsdale Academy on Dec. 11 for their biggest test of the season.
Hillsdale
The Hillsdale basketball team opened with two road games against non-league opponents. The Hornets fell to Columbia Central 55-48 and to Coldwater 51-36.
Riley Slabaugh scored 16 to lead the Hornets against the Golden Eagles, scoring four 3s. Thayden Welch and Brookes Beckman each had 10 points. Beckman contributed a double-double with 13 total rebounds.
Against Coldwater, it was Beckman leading the way with 17 points, putting in nine rebounds. Welch added 11 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Slabaugh had eight points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
The Hornets look to shake off the early losses at 0-2 with two league games against Ida (home on Dec. 9) and Hudson (away on Dec. 12).
Hillsdale Academy
Hillsdale Academy opened the season with a district title game rematch from last year with Concord. Concord repeated as the winner, upsetting the Colts’ home opener with a 65-42 final. The team was led by Jack Huffman with 16 points.
The Colts would then go on the road to dominate a league opener against North Adams-Jerome with a 70-47 victory.
Dawson Scharer had 18 points to lead the Colts. Meanwhile Huffman added 15 and senior Connor Hill dropped in 13.
The Colts continue a stretch of away games this week, starting with Lenawee Christian on Dec. 9 and ending with Camden-Frontier on Dec. 11.
Litchfield
The Litchfield Terriers opened the season with a commanding 54-43 win on the road at Battle Creek Calhoun Chrisitan.
Freshman Caleb Bills led the team with 19 total points and three steals. Sophomore Gavin Gutting debuted with 17 points, 14 rebounds and four steals. Conner Kerr cashed in three 3-pointers, a total of 16 points and three rebounds.
Litchfield travels to a favorable matchup with Pansophia Academy before playing back-to-back games against Jackson Christian at home on Dec. 11 and at Will Carleton Academy on Dec. 12.
North Adams-Jerome
North Adams-Jerome fell twice in their opening season games to start the season at 0-2. They lost to Athens (48-30) and to Hillsdale Academy (70-47).
Conner Arsenault led the Rams’ attack against the Colts with 20 points. Gage Cain had 17 points in his Rams debut. Nathan Todd contributed eight points.
The Rams’ schedule doesn’t get easier with a road game against WCA on Dec. 9 and a home game against Pittsford on Dec. 11.
Pittsford and Waldron
The Pittsford Wildcats made their home debut for the 2025-26 season against the Waldron Spartans. The Spartans pulled away to win their matchup 50-43.
Pittsford plays Athens at home Dec. 9 and North Adams-Jerome on the road Dec. 11.
Waldron’s win over Pittsford pushed the team out to 1-1 to start the season. They lost to Morenci by one score in a 40-38 final to open the season.
They will be back home against Burr Oak on Dec. 9 and play Tekonsha on the road Dec. 12.
Reading
Reading wasn’t able to pull past Sand Creek in the 56-53 home opener final, but the Rangers bounced back to beat Camden-Frontier 67-48 on the road.
Brayden Wright had 18 points in both games. He had a triple-double against Camden-Frontier with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 steals. He also added six assists.
Keven Denison contributed 11 points against Sand Creek and 13 against Camden-Frontier. Will Elder had 10 points and five assists against Camden. Peyton Fowler scored 11 points against Sand Creek. Landon Rose had eight points and nine rebounds in a near-double-double night.
Coach Bret Kerspilo’s squad plays Bronson (Dec. 9) and Quincy (Dec. 12) at home in Week 2 to start Big 8 play.
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Jonesville, WCA lead early boys basketball results with 2-0 record
Reporting by Joseph Flaherty, Hillsdale Daily News / Hillsdale Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
