LBI: Inside The Game Summary

“The Heritage Hawks defeat the Flushing Raiders in Season Opener”

Friday, December 4, 2015

Saginaw Heritage

With both the Flushing Raiders and Heritage Hawks returning the bulk of their dynamic teams from last season, everyone was anticipating another nail biting thriller. When the two teams met last year, the games were neck and neck up until the last minutes. Fans were on the edge of their seats from start to finish. Although the score really doesn’t reflect the true battle that these teams fought in this season opener, it wasn’t the explosive hoops that everyone thought they would get to see.

Both teams struggled to score, missing open layups and turning the ball over time and time again. At the end of the first quarter, the score was a mere 5-3. Despite the low score, the Hawks had the lead and would hold onto it until the final buzzer. Going into halftime, the score was still on the low side of the number scale (16 – 4), but both teams were finally picking up the tempo and shaking the first game jitters. In the end, both teams had one player to foul out, neither team had a player in double figures, and both teams played strong defense…but only the Heritage Hawks walked away with a victory.

Leading all scorers was Heritage’s Jenna Falkenberg, with 8 points and 8 rebounds, followed by Jessica Bicknell with 7 points. Jaela Richardson contributed 6 points and 12 rebounds and Courtney McInery added 2 points and 10 rebounds. Freshmen guard Moriah Joiner ended with 5 points, 6 steals and 5 rebounds. Flushing was led by Laura Newman with 7 points, Clare Glowniak, Reilly Laduke and Breanna Perry all finished with 5 points. Perry also had 12 rebounds.

Game Highlights

Flushing:

• Breanna Perry is coming out of her shell and was the most active and aggressive player for the Raiders. As the season progresses, look for her to be a key contributor for her team.
• Flushing’s guard play was not what we are used to seeing. In order for them to come close to the success of last season. Chappell, Newman and Barber are going to have to score consistently.
• Flushing looked really good defensively. Once they match that same intensity on the offensive end, they will be the team everyone hates to see coming.

Saginaw Heritage:

• The Hawks struggled to put the ball in the basket and took a minute to warm up. This can’t happen if they plan to win the Saginaw Valley – North conference.
• The frontline for Heritage was a key part of their victory. The guards did a dynamic job of being sure to allow the post to at least touch the ball each trip down the court and maximize each possession.
• Once the season takes off, look for the Hawks to use their bench even more to ensure that when its clutch time, everyone is ready.

**Follow R. Simone on Twitter @LBI_RSimone**