THIS STORY WILL APPEAR IN WEDNESDAY'S PAPER (THUS THE REFERENCES TO TODAY)Ubly beats Lakers in OT, faces USA today
BY CHRIS OGRYSKI
BY CHRIS OGRYSKI
EDITOR
Coming off a disappointing 47-40 loss to Deckerville that cost them a share of the Greater Thumb East championship, Ubly wanted to put that loss behind them and focus on the playoffs.
The first obstacle on the road to a second straight district title was going to be a tough one. The Bearcats faced Elkton Pigeon Bay Port, a team that beat them 55-46 earlier in the season and had knocked them off two of the last three times they met in the playoffs.
The Bearcats proved they were up to the challenge, knocking off their rivals 76-71 in overtime.
Defensively, the Lakers got off to a great start, holding the area’s top scorer, Alicia Leipprandt, to a single basket in the first and only six points at the half.
But their pressure on Leipprandt opened things up for Nicole Franzel, who began to heat up in the second quarter. Franzel, who had 21 points on the night, scored 12 of her 15 first half points in the second quarter, with all of her points coming off of threes.
With her team trailing by seven (16-9) about a minute and a half into the second frame, Franzel hit her first of three straight threes and began a personal 9-0 run, which spurred an 11-0 run for the Bearcats.
“The last couple of games we played, teams have been obviously focusing on Alicia, but Lyndsay (White), too,” Ubly coach Brent Wehner explained. “I told them that today may be Nicole’s day and then she made those first couple of threes and never stopped.”
Franzel had five threes in the first half and two more in the second half for a total of seven, which broke the school record for most threes in a game, which was six.
It was Franzel’s offensive explosion in the second that allowed the Bearcats to turn a seven point first quarter deficit to an eight point Ubly advantage at the half (30-22).
But the Lakers adjusted defensively in the second half to account for Franzel, which opened up things for White, who scored nine of her 16 points in the second half.
“From the second quarter on they played triangle-and-two on Alicia and Nicole,” Wehner said.
He added, “So I told Lyndsay, just stay on the wing and you’re going to get your shot.”
“In the third and fourth quarter we started running that little screen and roll to the left and as soon as that wing came over to started doubling on Alicia, she (Alicia) just kicked it to her (Lyndsay).”
On the day, Leipprandt finished with five assists to go along with her game high 30 points and 12 rebounds. Leipprandt scored 24 of those 30 points in the second half and overtime. “Our goal heading into the game was to stop her and she had 30,” Laker coach Todd Comment said. “She’s just that good.”
While Leipprandt, Franzel and White all played key roles in their team’s victory, had it not been for Kayla Gentner’s put backer with 10 seconds left in the game, which knotted things up at 63 apiece, there would have been no overtime. “No doubt about it, the biggest basket she has made in her entire life,” Wehner said. “She was in perfect position, the ball came right to her and she put it in.”
“That is a shot she has improved on so much (since last year),” he added.
Gentner’s bucket erased what had been a five point lead for the Lakers (60-55) with 1:45 to go. When his team was unable to get a basket in the final 10 seconds of regulation, Comment felt his team could be in some trouble. “I figured we had to get this in regulation. When you have a player like Leipprandt, tied with four minutes to go, your chances aren’t good,” Comment admitted.
Comment’s worst fears were realized in overtime as Leipprandt scored eight in the extra session, matching the Laker’s total team output in the fifth quarter.
With the win, Ubly advances to the district semifinal today at 6 p.m., where they face a 16-4 USA team that finished as co-champs (along with Reese) in the Greater Thumb West.
Wehner knows his team will have their work cut out for them against the Pats. “I think since we beat USA (55-42), the third or fourth game of the year, they’ve only lost one or two. They are the hottest, best team around (right now),” he said.
“I know the girls will be ready to play, I know that USA has a lot of depth, is very physical and can beat you in several areas. We have to be very focused (to have a chance to win); it will be a very tough game,” Wehner added.
As for EPBP, who finished in a third place tie with Vassar in the GTW this season, the team loses six members of this year’s squad to graduation, including Claire Comment, Chelsea Dubey, Megan Sweeney, Shelby Pietruck, Stephanie Maxwell and Jamie Kohr. “All six of them were great to coach,” Comment said.
Coming off a disappointing 47-40 loss to Deckerville that cost them a share of the Greater Thumb East championship, Ubly wanted to put that loss behind them and focus on the playoffs.
The first obstacle on the road to a second straight district title was going to be a tough one. The Bearcats faced Elkton Pigeon Bay Port, a team that beat them 55-46 earlier in the season and had knocked them off two of the last three times they met in the playoffs.
The Bearcats proved they were up to the challenge, knocking off their rivals 76-71 in overtime.
Defensively, the Lakers got off to a great start, holding the area’s top scorer, Alicia Leipprandt, to a single basket in the first and only six points at the half.
But their pressure on Leipprandt opened things up for Nicole Franzel, who began to heat up in the second quarter. Franzel, who had 21 points on the night, scored 12 of her 15 first half points in the second quarter, with all of her points coming off of threes.
With her team trailing by seven (16-9) about a minute and a half into the second frame, Franzel hit her first of three straight threes and began a personal 9-0 run, which spurred an 11-0 run for the Bearcats.
“The last couple of games we played, teams have been obviously focusing on Alicia, but Lyndsay (White), too,” Ubly coach Brent Wehner explained. “I told them that today may be Nicole’s day and then she made those first couple of threes and never stopped.”
Franzel had five threes in the first half and two more in the second half for a total of seven, which broke the school record for most threes in a game, which was six.
It was Franzel’s offensive explosion in the second that allowed the Bearcats to turn a seven point first quarter deficit to an eight point Ubly advantage at the half (30-22).
But the Lakers adjusted defensively in the second half to account for Franzel, which opened up things for White, who scored nine of her 16 points in the second half.
“From the second quarter on they played triangle-and-two on Alicia and Nicole,” Wehner said.
He added, “So I told Lyndsay, just stay on the wing and you’re going to get your shot.”
“In the third and fourth quarter we started running that little screen and roll to the left and as soon as that wing came over to started doubling on Alicia, she (Alicia) just kicked it to her (Lyndsay).”
On the day, Leipprandt finished with five assists to go along with her game high 30 points and 12 rebounds. Leipprandt scored 24 of those 30 points in the second half and overtime. “Our goal heading into the game was to stop her and she had 30,” Laker coach Todd Comment said. “She’s just that good.”
While Leipprandt, Franzel and White all played key roles in their team’s victory, had it not been for Kayla Gentner’s put backer with 10 seconds left in the game, which knotted things up at 63 apiece, there would have been no overtime. “No doubt about it, the biggest basket she has made in her entire life,” Wehner said. “She was in perfect position, the ball came right to her and she put it in.”
“That is a shot she has improved on so much (since last year),” he added.
Gentner’s bucket erased what had been a five point lead for the Lakers (60-55) with 1:45 to go. When his team was unable to get a basket in the final 10 seconds of regulation, Comment felt his team could be in some trouble. “I figured we had to get this in regulation. When you have a player like Leipprandt, tied with four minutes to go, your chances aren’t good,” Comment admitted.
Comment’s worst fears were realized in overtime as Leipprandt scored eight in the extra session, matching the Laker’s total team output in the fifth quarter.
With the win, Ubly advances to the district semifinal today at 6 p.m., where they face a 16-4 USA team that finished as co-champs (along with Reese) in the Greater Thumb West.
Wehner knows his team will have their work cut out for them against the Pats. “I think since we beat USA (55-42), the third or fourth game of the year, they’ve only lost one or two. They are the hottest, best team around (right now),” he said.
“I know the girls will be ready to play, I know that USA has a lot of depth, is very physical and can beat you in several areas. We have to be very focused (to have a chance to win); it will be a very tough game,” Wehner added.
As for EPBP, who finished in a third place tie with Vassar in the GTW this season, the team loses six members of this year’s squad to graduation, including Claire Comment, Chelsea Dubey, Megan Sweeney, Shelby Pietruck, Stephanie Maxwell and Jamie Kohr. “All six of them were great to coach,” Comment said.
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