Onaway basketball team drops close one to Joburg, routed by Rudyard

Traveling across the bridge to play a basketball game often proves difficult for squads from the Lower Peninsula. Whether it is the long drive or the physical play, the game is often a struggle for the visitors.

Such was the case for the OHS varsity hoops team when it traveled to Rudyard Tuesday to take on the Bulldogs. Onaway scored just 13 points in the first half in route to an 83-48 loss. “I thought we’d play better,” said coach Jason Larson of his team’s effort. “We were coming off probably the best game we’d played all year, we had a great practice the day before, and we finally had all our key guys in uniform.” Senior Alex Forth played in his second straight game after missing most of the early season due to injury, and junior Paul Splan returned from a shoulder injury suffered the week before. It didn’t matter, though.

“We just couldn’t score,” Larson said. “Add to that a bunch of easy lay-ups that we gave up on defense and you’re in for a long night. We just didn’t come to play in this one. “It was a physical game, and it was a pretty quick game because the refs really let the kids play. But the bottom line was that we couldn’t get anything going on the offensive end.” Onaway, which dropped to 2-6 with the loss, was led in the scoring column by senior Carl Bednark, who finished with 12 points. No other Cards scored in double figures. Earlier in the evening, the JV Cards dug themselves a hole they couldn’t dig out of, falling behind 36-16 at the half, cutting the deficit to single digits in the fourth period, then running out of gas in a 52-33 loss.

Depth has been a problem for the talented JV bunch all season and this game was no different, as only six Cards suited up. Coach Marty Mix hopes to have most of his 4-4 team playing within the next few weeks. Robbie McLennan led the team in scoring with 12 points, while Ben Rieger contributed eight. Mix credited Derick Peterman and Devin Schaedig with strong defensive play and Peterman for his hard work on the boards. “We just came out flat,” the coach said, repeating the sentiments of his varsity counterpart. “We fought back, but without any depth, we just didn’t have anything left at the end.”

Last Friday, in the game Larson referred to as his team’s finest of the season, the varsity Red Birds lost 53-51 at Johannesburg-Lewiston. As one might guess by looking at the score, the contest came right down to the wire. Onaway missed a shot inside with about 14 seconds left, and Joburg nailed a jumper on the other end about 10 seconds later. The Cards couldn’t get a

shot off as time expired. “The kids played their butts off all night long,” Larson said. “They played as hard as they could. I think if we have Paul in the line-up, we win the game. He certainly makes more than a two-point difference for us.” Bednark again led the Red Birds in scoring, finishing with 21 points. Corbin Splan finished with 10 points for Onaway, as did Forth, in his return to the OHS line-up. Earlier in the evening, the JV Cards fell to Joburg 61-41, after trailing 12-9 after one period, 33-22 at the half, and 43-30 after three frames. The JV again fielded a roster of just six.

Johnny Palmer led the Cardinals with 13 points, while Justin Stiles pitched in with 12. Derick Peterman continued his strong play on the boards with a double-digit rebound night. The basketball squads will host Forest Area tonight (Friday) before traveling to Alanson Tuesday. The Cardinals return to their home floor next Friday to take on Inland Lakes.