Whitehall guard Leah Deuling (right) heads to the basket while Jozilyn Kinstner defends for Shelby during Friday night’s girls’ basketball game. The Vikes fell to 0-7 with a 62-22 loss.
WHITEHALL — Heading into a battle with unbeaten Shelby, the winless Whitehall Vikings knew it would take a great game to win. As if that pressure wasn’t enough, the full-court pressure defense played by the Tigers made things that much more difficult.
Whitehall turned the ball over against the Tigers’ press 20 times in the first half, staking Shelby to a big lead Whitehall couldn’t match in a 62-22 loss Friday night.
The Vikings fell to 0-7 with the loss, 0-4 in WMC play.
“We’re a different team in practice than what we’ve shown on the court the last four games,” Whitehall coach Rachel Kent said. “I think all of it is mental with us. We just need to take care of the ball better.”
Whitehall faced an uphill climb from the start, as Shelby ripped off the first four points in the blink of an eye, ultimately jumping ahead 14-2 in a run fueled by its pressure defense.
The Vikings’ backcourt faced the disadvantage of going against Shelby’s experienced senior guards, Abby Rodriguez and Corina Collier, which added pressure to the already-stiff defensive test Whitehall was facing.
Also plaguing Whitehall Friday night was a definite size disadvantage. Emily MacArthur and Brandi Balzer faced the challenge of Shelby stars Sydney Czurak and Tristen Moore. The two Tigers scored 13 and 10 points, respectively, and Shelby owned the paint.
“We didn’t box out tonight,” Kent said. “We let them down into the paint. It wasn’t until (Whitney) James started scoring outside points that they scored from out there.”
Kent said she knows her team has the talent to play better than they’ve shown and thinks the negative early returns are wearing on her Vikings.
“We should be getting the job done,” Kent said. “We need to slow down, relax and play with some confidence. My girls are a great group. They need to start believing in themselves.”
MacArthur was Whitehall’s top offensive force, scoring 10 points and even knocking down a three-pointer in the later stages of the game. She scrapped against the bigger Tigers’ frontcourt and at times held her own.
Kent also credited Christy Pladies with playing “tougher” than she has played to this point. The junior only had two points but played good defense and gave a solid effort.
The Vikings get a couple of weeks off to regroup before their next game, a Jan. 7 road trip to Fremont. In fact, the next five games Whitehall plays will be on the road. Kent said she’s consulted Muskegon Community College softball coach Matt Houseman for some tips on how to get her team’s confidence up over the break and will have her squad enact some of Houseman’s suggestions during that time.
“We’ll be doing some drills to get that competitive edge,” Kent said.
SHELBY (62) Collier 1 0-0 2, Sillman 1 0-0 2, Felt 1 0-0 3, Roberts 1 0-0 2, Kinstner 2 0-0 4, Inglis 1 0-0 2, Fox 2 0-0 4, Rodriguez 4 1-2 9, Brown 2 0-1 4, Czurak 5 3-5 13, Moore 5 0-0 10, James 3 0-0 7. Totals 28 4-8 62.
WHITEHALL (22) Chamberlain 1 0-0 2, Uganski 0 1-1 1, Pladies 1 0-0 2, Balzer 1 0-0 2, Seeger 0 1-2 1, MacArthur 3 3-5 10, Pesch 1 2-2 4. Totals 7 7-10 22.
Shelby.....20 14 16 12 — 62
Whitehall.. 5 4 3 10 — 22
Three-point goals — Felt 1, James 1, MacArthur 1. Total fouls — Shelby 10, Whitehall 11. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — none. JV score — Whitehall 25, Shelby 20.
Whitehall drops
to 0-6
WHITEHALL — The Whitehall Vikings’ rough start to this season continued Tuesday night as the team fell to 0-6 following a 60-38 home loss to Mason County Central in West Michigan Conference play.
Whitehall fell behind early on and the Spartans took a 35-13 lead into the halftime break. Whitehall played well in the second half, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
Emily MacArthur posted a double-double to lead the Vikings, notching 14 points and 11 rebounds. Jenna Pesch added 10 points for Whitehall, and Brandi Balzer scored six.
The Spartans got 22 points from Madison Geers to lead the way. Geers also had seven steals and five rebounds. Payton Bladzik had 14 points and nine steals.
MASON CO. CENTRAL (60) Jensen 0 4-6 4, Lavigne 0 1-2 1, Cox 2 2-2 6, Geers 7 6-9 22, Barnett 1 0-0 2, Allen 1 0-1 2, Bladzik 7 0-0 14, Olenchak 2 2-4 6, Mount 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 13-22 60.
WHITEHALL (38) Uganski 1 0-0 2, Pladies 0 2-4 2, Balzer 2 2-2 6, Seeger 2 0-0 4, MacArthur 7 0-3 14, Pesch 2 6-8 10. Totals 14 10-17 38.
Mason Co....12 23 14 10 — 60
Whitehall.........4 9 10 15 — 38
Three-point goals — Geers 2. Total fouls — MCC 16, Whitehall 20. Fouled out — MacArthur, Seeger. Technical fouls — none.
Montague picks up first win
RAVENNA — With some top-notch defense, the Montague Wildcats picked up their first win Friday night in a road game against Ravenna.
Morgan Shugars racked up eight steals and turned them into a game-high 16 points to help Montague blow past Ravenna, 54-42.
Elyse Taylor scored 14 points and grabbed 21 rebounds, and Nicole Rumsey added 10 points for the Wildcats (1-5, 1-2 West Michigan Conference).
Hailey Cockerill and Leanne Fesler each scored five points.
Lois Thornsburry scored 13 points for Ravenna.
R-P topples Cardinals
MUSKEGON — Reeths-Puffer pulled away in the fourth quarter to secure another victory Friday night, beating the Orchard View Cardinals 50-36.
The Rockets moved to 6-2 with the win, their third straight.
R-P outscored the Cards 21-10 in the final frame to lock up the victory, blowing up what had to that point been a very close contest throughout.
Kalisa Williams scored 15 points to lead the Rockets. Camaryia Williams had nine and Taylor Walker scored eight on a balanced scoring night for Reeths-Puffer.
Grace Swanson scored seven points and also grabbed a team-high 11 boards.
Diamond McGee had 11 points to lead Orchard View.
Reeths-Puffer beats
Creston 47-24
MUSKEGON — Reeths-Puffer overcame a slow second quarter to overpower Creston Monday night, 47-24.
The Rockets (5-2) played great defense all night, not surrendering a double-digit scoring quarter to the Polar Bears. Although R-P committed twice as many turnovers as its opponent, the Rockets’ ability to rebound and get on scoring runs proved pivotal to the win.
“Lockdown defense on the interior was led by Grace Swanson and Hannah Lemieux,” Rockets’ coach Brandon Barry said.
Kalisa Williams and Taylor Walker led the way in scoring for the Rockets, with Williams pouring in 19 points and Walker adding 10. Patriellia Whittington’s nine points led the Polar Bears.
Swanson’s 11 rebounders led all players.
CRESTON (24) Torres 0 1-2 1, Carter 1 0-0 2, Dunn 1 0-0 2, Vander 2 1-3 6, Jones 0 0-2 0, Whittington 2 3-3 8, Baraza 0 0-2 0, Williams 2 1-2 5. Totals 8 6-14 24.
REETHS-PUFFER (47) K. Williams 7 5-8 19, C. Williams 0 3-5 3, Seidell 0 2-2 2, Walker 5 0-0 10, Wilson 2 0-0 4, Swanson 0 3-5 3, Klemp 1 0-0 2, Lemieux 1 0-0 2, Acuna 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 13-20 47.
Creston........7 5 3 9 — 24
Reeths-Puffer..16 4 13 14 — 47
Three-point goals — Vander 1, Whittington 1. Total fouls — Creston 16, Reeths-Puffer 16. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — none.