CHEBOYGAN – With the experience they have on the court, the Cheboygan Chiefs are confident they’re going to have a strong girls basketball season.
On opening night, the experience of the Chiefs was on full display in a 65-33 victory over the Onaway Cardinals in Onaway on Monday, Dec. 8.
The Chiefs (1-0) were led by junior star Cloee Rupp, who netted a game-high 23 points, including 13 in the first half. Sophomore Diem Schley, who logged several varsity minutes a season ago, hit double figures with 10 points and blocked multiple shots defensively.
Defense was the theme of the night for the Chiefs, who forced the Cardinals (0-1) into several turnovers, which allowed them to build an 18-5 lead after one quarter and a 32-13 advantage at the break.
“We executed our defense relatively well for it being our first game,” Cheboygan coach Walter Hanson said. “Onaway is a tough team. Every time you come and play them, they’re going to be scrapping, playing their hardest and giving it their all, so it was a good challenge for us.”
Addison Ptasnik and Olivia Patrick, two senior Cheboygan starters, were also productive with seven and six points respectively, while fellow senior Caleigh Easter chipped in with six. Elise Markham and Ella LaRocque tallied four apiece. Estella Redding had three. Jaelyn Wheelock added two.
“We preach ball movement a lot in practice and try to get that extra pass and pass up that good shot for a perfect shot,” Hanson said. “It’s not just Cloee (Rupp), the entire team is a special group of ladies, and they all work hard and play well together.”
Meanwhile, the Cardinals had trouble finding a rhythm against Cheboygan’s pressure defense. However, senior Andrea Ruppert started the campaign strong by netting a team-high 10 points, while Aleigha Garms and Marley Szymoniak helped out with six each.
“This is going to be a work in progress, and we know that,” Onaway coach John George said. “We’ve got to learn how to play with one another again. The last group that we had here was pretty cohesive, so there’s just a lot of kids learning the ropes, and it showed tonight. We’re going to be a different team halfway through (the season), I honestly believe that.”
Onaway also received four points from Jerzie Garms, three from Natalee Hyde, and two apiece from Brooklyn Hedlund and Gianna Marzolo.
Monday also marked the return of Wheelock, who didn’t play any games for Cheboygan last season because of a knee injury. In her return, Wheelock was a presence on both ends of the floor.
“It’s absolutely amazing having Jaelyn back,” Hanson said. “We all went into the locker room and gave her a huge hug after the game, especially coming off a double knee surgery and all the mental toughness it took to come back from that, and to come back arguably better than her sophomore season.”
In the junior varsity game, Sophie Ecker scored 13 points and Adele Schulz netted 10 to lead Cheboygan to a 47-24 victory. Audrey Redding, Estella Redding and Sophia Tamlyn tallied six points each. Makayla Abernathy had four, and Mallory Ekdahl recorded two.
For Onaway, Maya Shimel scored seven and Demi Decker added six.
Cheboygan plays at Sault Ste. Marie on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
Onaway heads to Pellston for a Ski Valley matchup on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
Burt Lake NMCA girls win at Mackinaw City
MACKINAW CITY – Paced by 28 points, eight steals and three assists from Lauren Ferraiuolo, the Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian Academy girls basketball team opened its season with a 55-25 victory at Mackinaw City on Monday, Dec. 8.
The Eagles (1-0, 1-0 Northern Lakes Conference) received a double-double from Ariel Tucker, who finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds and three steals, while Shanna Ferraiuolo recorded six points, seven rebounds, five steals and three assists, and Otillia Styburki chipped in with six points and three rebounds.
“Probably like most teams in their first game, we started slow,” NMCA coach Josh Ferraiuolo said. “I’ll give Mack City a ton of credit; they played extremely hard and made it difficult for us to start the game. I knew we were going to have to focus on our defense to jumpstart our offense, and we were able to wake up in the second quarter and get some separation. Good win to start the year, happy with our effort.”
Kenzie Currie registered a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Comets (0-1, 0-1), who received four points, nine rebounds and three blocks from Kerry-Ann Ming, and four points, four rebounds and two assists from Emily Kruczynski.
“NMCA has a very tough, well-coached squad that put a lot of pressure on us and wore us down into making a bunch of turnovers as the game went along,” Mackinaw City coach Jake Huffman said. “I was very proud of how we competed tonight defensively, and our ability to keep the game close for the first 10 minutes of the ballgame.”
The Comets were rounded out by Poppy Wallace (two points, eight rebounds, two assists), Rian Esper (two points, five rebounds), Ella Kruczynski (two points, two rebounds, two steals), and Elizabeth Kruczynski (two rebounds).
“I saw some real growth in areas of our game, and we did some things really well,” Huffman said. “If we can focus on the areas we need to clean up, I feel like we can have a really nice season. The potential is there. As for NMCA, Coach Ferraiuolo has a really nice squad that should have a very successful season and is definitely a favorite within our conference.”
In the junior varsity game, Mackinaw City beat NMCA 26-8. Mackinaw City point scorers included Ella Kruczynski (six), Alaia Mendez (six), Emily Kruczynski (four), Reegan Thompson (four), Ava Thompson (four), and Cheyenne Morgan (two).
Mackinaw City hosts Alba on Tuesday, Dec. 9.
NMCA takes on Rudyard at home on Tuesday, Dec. 9.
Irwin pours in 33 points, Hornets open with win
WOLVERINE – Senior Lanie Irwin scored a game-high 33 points to lead the Pellston girls basketball team to a 67-9 victory at Wolverine on Monday, Dec. 8.
In addition to her big scoring night, Irwin added 10 rebounds and seven steals, while senior teammate Breanna Willis had 13 points, 12 rebounds and six steals.
“It was a great team effort,” Pellston coach Clayton Irwin said.
In the junior varsity game, Pellston beat Wolverine 50-18. Adalynn Hendershot had a triple-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 11 steals. Emily Mallory helped with 14 points, six steals and five rebounds.
Pellston hosts Onaway on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
Cheboygan freshman girls top Petoskey
PETOSKEY – The Cheboygan freshman girls basketball team earned a 24-21 victory at Petoskey on Monday, Dec. 8.
Lucy Coleman scored eight points and Emma Murdick tallied seven for the Chiefs. Kacy Rupp netted four, Sophia Bruce and Tayla Brandt each had two, and Ava Brown chipped in with one.
Cheboygan 8th grade boys defeat Charlevoix
CHEBOYGAN – Cooper Vieau scored 16 points and Ethan Berden netted 14 to help lift the Cheboygan Intermediate/Middle School 8th grade boys basketball team to a 54-38 victory over Charlevoix on Monday, Dec. 8.
Braden Runstrom finished with eight points, Reid Schryer had seven, Logan Mlynarchek scored five, and Parker Dillon tallied two to round out the Chiefs.
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: Rupp nets 23 points, Cheboygan girls beat Onaway in season opener
Reporting by Jared Greenleaf, Cheboygan Daily Tribune / Cheboygan Daily Tribune
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