2008-12-17 Wed.pdf

SLOW STARTERS
Gaylord icers
fall behind, can't
quite catch up
Story p. B4
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Photo Courtesy o* SarB^ Freeman
GAYLORD SENIOR JOE ARNOLD scored a team-high 16
points tor the Blue Devils in their 56-47 victory against
Cadillac Friday.
GHSgrapplerswin
atlri-County
FYI
RESULT
Ciaylord wins
ci^t-teamTri-
OmrUy Invitational
Saturday
with dominating
KEY STAT
Blue Devils had
eight wrestlers
go undefeated on
the day, including
|u.stin Gehringer.
Jake Armstrong.
Drew Pichan,
Danny Sharrard,
Jesse Armstrong,
Doi^Tyran.Mike
Taut^tr.and Brian
Bli.ss.
HOWARD CITY — It was a great
day for the Gaylord wrestling team
Saturday, as the Blue Devils breezed
to the championship of the Hov\rard
CityTri-County Invitational.
The Blue Devils had eight
wrestlers go undefeated, as they
improved to 7-0 in dual matches
this year.
"I thought we wrestled really
well," said GHS coach Jerry I^Joie.
"The kids really had a good time
and had a lot of fun. We're not giving
up a lot of big points.
The Blue Devils opened with a
perfect 81-0 defeat of Grand Rapids
Christian. Lajoie credited Drew
Pichan (125) with an excellent job
in a 10-3 decision against a solid
grappler.
It was much of the same in Gaylord's61-13
win against Forest HiDs
Eastern, as Dillon Hunt {152) stuck
a Hawkswresder after taking a 12-1
advantage.
The Blue Devils then downed
host Th County 63-10, with Mike
See Qaylord p. B4
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HeraldTimes.com
Sports Editor: Jeremy Speer
jerem^gaylordheraldtimes.com LJ ^
Defense does it
in huge GHS win
By Jeremy Speer
Sports Editor
GAYLORD — It had been a long
time since the Gaylord boys basketball
team has won a key game
on sheer defensive effort. It had
been even longer since the Blue
Devils knocked olf nemesis Cadillac.
On Friday, Gaylord accomplished
both feats, defeating the
Vikings for the first time in five
years in a crucial 56-47 victory
that gives the Blue Devils an early
upper hand in the Big North Conference.
"That's the best defense that's
been played in this gym in a long
time," said GHS coach Pat Enders.
"I couldn't be more proud of our
defensive effort."
Senior Ben Simons, committed
to Division 1 Drake University,
led Cadillac with 25 points. The
next highest Viking netted just six
points, a testament to the Blue
Devils' defensive intensity.
Despite holding Cadillac to just
eight points in the third quarter
and taking a 39-31 lead behind
a pair huge three-pointers off
the bench by junior Dustin Mastej,
Gaylord surrendered the lead in
the fourth quarter, resulting in a
43-43 tie.
From that point, the Blue Devils
(2-0) absolutely dominated, as
senior Lucas Wickert drilled a big
three-pointer and a subsequent
inside bucket, senior loe Arnold
hit back-to-back lay-ups and senior
Nick Freeman and junior Kurt
Dutcher made key scoring plays.
During that span, the Gaylord
defensive effort was never stronger
as senior Quinn Woodhouse, who
slowed Simons all day, forced the
6-foot-7 guard to miss a number
of shots.
"This is huge; it is awesome,"
Wickert said. "We all worked hard
in the offseason for this."
A trxie encouraging sign was the
varied production from the deep
Gaylord team. On a day where
Woodhouse and Freeman, two of
the BNC's top scorers, were held to
just 12 points combined, a number
of players stepped up.
Arnold led the way with a clutch
16 points, while Wickert tossed in
13. Woodhouse added nine points
in the victory, while Dutcher, playing
a near-perfect point guard
through the first two games, added
seven.
"It was one of those games
where we didn't play our best offensively,"
Enders said. "But our
defense kept us in the game. Our
seniors played like seniors and finished
the game."
Gaylord swarmed the Vikings
in the first quarter, battling to a
12-4 lead. As Simons heated up in
the second, so did Cadillac (0-1),
as Connor Parcell's layup off an
inbounds play gave the Vikings a
23-21 halftime lead.
Gaylord opened the third quarter
on a blistering 14-4 run, before a
pair of Buckets by Simons and Psircell
cut the Blue Devil lead to eight
See Defense p. B4
SCORE
Gaylord 56,
Cadillac 47
FYI
KEY STAT
Blue Devils beat
Vikings for the
first time in 5
years.
QUOTE
"That's the best
defense I've seen
in this gym for
a long time.!
couldn't be more
proud of our
defensive effort."
— Gaylord coach
Pat Enders
LEADERS
Joe Arnold -16
Lucas Wickert -13
Quinn
I Woodhouse-9
1 Kurt Dutcher - 7
1 UPNEXT
I Gaylord hosts
j Traverse City
Central Thursday
St Mary's
Jessi Oehlers
(24) and
Grace
Westerman
play defense
against
Onaway Friday.
Clutch comeback for SMH
FYI
SCORE
SL Mary 50,
Onaway 43 (OT)
KEY STAT
Snowbirds blew
11-point lead in
4th quarter, but
came back to outscore
Onaway 8-1
in overtime.
GAYLORD — The mark of a
good team is the ability to battle
through adversity.
The St. Mary girls basketball
team had its fair share of it Friday,
blowing an 11-point lead inthe
final four minutes, but recovering
to a take a key 50-43
overtime win against Ski Valley
Conference rival Onaway.
Up 11 points with four minutes
remaining, the Cardinals
went off, taking a two-point lead
with 15 seconds back.
The unshaken Snowbirds set
up their offense and junior Liz
Foster was fouled cutting to the
basket.
With 0.6 seconds left, Foster
driUed a pair of clutch free
throws to send the game into an
extra frame, where the Snowbirds
outscored Onaway 8-1.
"We let one get away from
us, but when we had a second
chance, we took care of business,"
said St. Mary coach Dale
Jacob. "Liz hitting those free
throws was a big weight off our
See Clutch p. B4
More Inside Sports
STANDOUTS
St Mary junior
wnsurahakable
Friday,
knocking down
apak'offoul
shots at the
endof regulatkmlnSMH's
overtime win
vs.Onaway.
GHS skiing
Vindailiilt
senior vraaa
rock during
anothsnwiw
rough night vs.
Alt» Friday, as
she netted 21
points, whUe
grabbing 12
rstxxinds.
Team pic of GHS
boys and giris
ski team
B5
Sports Edge
Weber nets
first career
college goal
^ A slapshot from 8w blue line
*ls how Gaylord native WW
Weber netted his first career
collegiate college hockey goal,
when he scored Miami's first
tally in a 7-1 victory against RPI
Sunday.
Weber Is a freshman defensemen
for the RedHawks, who
are currently ranked No. 3 In the
NCAA with a 12-3-3 overall record
and a 10-2-2 mark in the
Central Collegiate Hockey Association.
Weber is fourth on the team
with a plus-six rating and is No.
3 on the team with 36 penalty
minutes.
Weber will be back in tm
Wolverine state In early January,
when the RedHawks travel
to Michigan.
^The magical playoff run of
• the Wheaton Coll^ football
team and Gaylord's Den Dlpz-
Intkl has come to an end in the
national semifinals.
Wheaton, which slipped Into
the playoffs and won three consecutive
playoff games, fell to No.
1-ranked Mount Union, 45-24
in the Division 3 semifinal Saturday.
Dipzlnski, a junior, again
started at guanl for the Ttujnder,
who finished the season with a
10-3 record.
^Gaylord's Matt Cerr got
®some run during Lake
Superior State's recent victory
against Bnlandla.
In that game, the GHS graduate
was 3-of-5 shooting for seven
points.
The Lakers have a 5-4 record
this season, including a 2-2 mark-
In the 6UAC.
ONUNEPOU
TMe week's quectton
What Is the biggest local sports
sloryof2008?
• 6HS foottxH coach WUUam
Cleaver etepi dewn, Mark
MendoHe IMS Ne rele
• acytord gMe croee cewrtry
fhilsliee fourth bi the stats
'• Johaeeeeberg-Lewlstee
Btrle bMiwthBll aiakee H to
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