PRESS CONTACT:
Irene Borak
Director of Public Relations
10775 N. St. Helen Road
Roscommon, MI 48653
(989) 275-5000 ext. 242
ROSCOMMON – Onica Jones, the Lady Firebirds’ 5’10” forward from Rochester, N.Y., scored 14 of her team-high 17 points during the second half of Kirtland’s Wednesday, Jan. 11 basketball game against Mott Community College, but it wasn’t enough to pull the Firebirds into contention. Mott won the contest, 73-59, boosting their overall record to 11-4. The Lady Firebirds are now 9-9.
Down 36-29 at the half, the Firebirds accomplished several small rallies against the Bears, driven by the defensive agility of Emily Henion, the Firebirds’ 5’6” freshman from Frederic. But it wasn’t enough to keep the gap closed.
Lizz Stempki, a 5’10” freshman from St. Ignace, scored 14 for the Firebirds, which included making 4-for-4 free throws. Stempki also had a good night under the boards which became even more important after Chelsey William, the Firebirds 6’1” center from Houghton Lake, sustained a repeat ankle injury near the half-way mark.
Rounding out the scoring for the Firebirds were Nadia Blake (freshman, Toronto) with 8 points, Henion with 6, Rena Barnett (freshman, LeRoy) with 5, Williams with 5, Emilee Bruner (freshman, Mio) with 2 and Shekira Knowles (freshman, Bahamas) with 2.
Michaella Weekes, a freshman from Flint, scored 24 points for the Mott Lady Bears.
Catch the Lady Firebirds in action Saturday, Jan. 14, when they host St. Clair County CC at the CRAF Center in Roscommon. Game time is 1 p.m. The Firebirds travel to Delta College on Wednesday, Jan. 18, then play host to Schoolcraft College on Saturday, Jan. 21. Log onto the Web at firebirds.kirtland.edu for more information about Firebirds basketball.