By Mark Blentlinger
At the beginning of season play, the girls’ basketball team has 3-3 overall wins and are 2-1 in the conference. They had a tough schedule to start out the 2024-25 season and suffered losses to undefeated Vicksburg 16-54, Lawton 30-46, and Bronson 23-54. All three were on the road. They picked up a solid win on the road when they defeated Hackett 32-29, and won their first home game against Parchment, 39-31.
Coach Max Kulczyk says they are a young team with only two players with varsity experience: Sydney Drenth and Addison Blodgett. Captains Addison Sziede, Addison Blodgett and Drenth are reminding the team to trust in the process throughout the year. They demonstrated trust when they had to face off with Hackett, a team that had much taller players: four of their players are 5’10” or taller. The Eagles kept up a strong defensive attack and took the win. Sydney Drenth had 5 rebounds and 3 steals against Hackett had 11 points and 5 rebounds against Michigan Lutheran, a game they won 50-12. Val DeVries is averaging 11 points and 8 rebounds per game as a freshman. She had 14 points and 11 rebounds in the Lawton game and 23 points and 9 rebounds against Michigan Lutheran.
The boys started out the season 4-0, handing losses to Watervliet 77-35, Lawton 51-38, Brandywine 60-21 and Hackett 57-49 before dropping their first game to the visiting Panthers of Parchment, 51-73. The team made a strong comeback and added another in to the record when they beat Forest Hills Northern 51-48 at Cornerstone University on Dec 21, 51-48. They now hold a 5-1 overall win record and are 2-1 in the conference.
