PRESS CONTACT:
Irene Borak
Director of Public Relations
10775 N. St. Helen Road
Roscommon, MI 48653
(989) 275-5000 ext. 242
ROSCOMMON – Freshman point guard Rena Barnett put out nearly 40 minutes of nonstop basketball for the Kirtland Lady Firebirds and dropped in a team-high 18 points to lead her team to victory with a score of 75-65 over the Lake Michigan College Indians on Saturday, Dec. 10. This was the Firebirds’ fourth straight win of the season, played before a home crowd at the CRAF Center.
Barnett was by no means a one-woman show, however.
“This was another team victory,” said Firebirds head coach Teresa Stuck who is in her second season with the Firebirds and is happy with the improvements her team is making in pre-conference play this year. They now have a 6-4 record, despite being short-handed for one reason or another most of the season.
“Due to only having six and one-half players this game, we really had to adjust not only our game plan tonight, but our style of play,” Stuck said after Saturday’s game. “The team responded tremendously well, however. We successfully played two defenses we had never practiced and the girls made it work. This preseason has really helped the depth of our team.”
It’s also helped their conditioning as none of them get much bench time.
Barnett, who is from LeRoy, and Emily Henion, of Frederic, the other freshman point guard playing her heart out for the Firebirds, both played well against the Indians.
“They not only took care of the ball and led us in scoring and assists, but chased around LMC’s deadly shooters all night,” Stuck noted. “They played nearly 40 minutes at both ends and never showed it.”
Barnett also contributed 5 rebounds and 5 assists, while Henion scored 13 points while dishing out 8 assists, grabbbing 8 rebounds and snatching 4 steals.
Natalie Foster, a freshman from Houghton Lake, hit three big 3-point shots in a row for the Firebirds to finish with 12 points. Freshman Onica Jones (Rochester, N.Y.) added 11 points and 3 boards, while Meghan Bastian (sophomore, Hale), Emily Bruner (sophomore, Mio) and Chelsey Williams (freshman, Houghton Lake) rounded out the scoring with 9, 8 and 3 points, respectively.
“Our team is really growing up fast,” Stuck added. “When they cut the lead to 6 points after being up by 20, they remained calm like a veteran team and pulled back away.
“We have also improved remarkably in taking care of the ball. We had a season low of 15 turnovers tonight - less than half the number than when we started the season.”
Don’t miss seeing the Firebirds in action as they host their own Great North Tournament at the CRAF Center on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 16-17. The schedule is as follows:
Friday – 2 p.m., women, KCC vs. Sinclair Community College (Ohio)
Friday – 4 p.m., men, Lewis College of Business vs. Kellogg Community College
Friday – 6 p.m., women, Genesee Community College (N.Y.) vs. Lakeland Community College (Ohio)
Friday – 8 p.m., men, KCC vs. Lakeland CC
Saturday – noon, women’s consolation game
Saturday – 2 p.m., men’s consolation game
Saturday – 4 p.m., women’s championship game
Saturday – 6 p.m., men’s championship game
***
Thursday, Dec. 8
KCC 62, Albion College 49
Coach Stuck actually left the court with a smile after the Lady Firebirds’ 62-49 win over Albion College on Thursday, Dec. 8, which saw one of her few sophomores, Meghan Bastian, drop in a team-high 25 points.
“Meghan Bastian sparked us offensively,” said coach Stuck. “She had 14 points in the first five minutes of the game, and added 5 rebounds by the end of the night.”
But offense doesn’t win a game and Stuck has been working hard on the Firebirds’ defensive tactics.
“Our half-court defense was amazing tonight,” Stuck was proud to note, highlighted by the fact the Firebirds held Albion to just 4 points during the first 10 minutes of the second half, all the while increasing their lead.
Rena Barnett scored 11 points and contributed 7 boards and 5 assists for the Firebirds. “She really looked for her shot tonight, something we will continue to need her to do,” Stuck said.
Onica Jones also stepped up after her best week of practice so far this year, contributing 10 points and 7 boards. Emily Henion once again contributed in many ways without scoring - she tallied 9 assists, 6 rebounds and 3 steals.
The Firebirds out-rebounded a bigger team by 17 boards and had their second consecutive game with a positive team assist/turnover ratio.
“Our team is really starting to come together and gel,” Stuck said. “It has been fun to watch a new person blossom each game. We are going to be a hard team to prepare to play because we have so many different weapons. Our tournament next weekend will be a good test of just how far we have come during this non-conference schedule.