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Hurons handed first loss by Inland Lakes

News Photo by James Andersen Rogers City’s Taylor Fleming, center, drives to the net while being defended by Inland Lakes’ Katie Byrne, front, and Lexi Passino during a girls basketball game at Rogers City High School on Monday.

ROGERS CITY–The Rogers City girls basketball team has done all the right things through the first eight games of the season.

But on Monday, very little seemed to go right for the Hurons as a result. Rogers City struggled to get in sync all game and was defeated 36-27 by Indian River Inland Lakes for its first loss of the season.

The Hurons (8-1) have had their way with opponents this season, but Monday Rogers City’s role was reversed and the Hurons paid for it. Offensively, there were too many scoring lapses, too many missed shots and too many turnovers that the Bulldogs converted into points.

“We couldn’t hit lay-ups, we couldn’t hit three-pointers, we didn’t make free throws. I was proud of the kids’ effort. They never gave up, we got a lot of good shots (and) sometimes things don’t go your way,” Rogers City coach Duane Pitts said. “I give them (Inland Lakes) a lot of credit, they came in and played really hard.”

The Hurons were held scoreless in the third quarter and endured stretch of more than 12 minutes without a point. Still, the Hurons managed to make things interesting in the final minutes. Rogers City cut the lead to ten, 32-22, with 4:17 left to play and a pair of free throws from Taylor Fleming with 56 seconds left pulled the Hurons to within seven.

But the Hurons couldn’t pull any closer and ultimately was left to lament its missed opportunities. Rogers went 5-of-17 from the free throw line for the game and had trouble dealing with Inland Lakes’ size the entire night.

“They played a nice game. We knew what they were going to do and we practiced for it and they turned the intensity up,” Pitts said of the Bulldogs.

Lexi Brendly led Inland Lakes with 10 points and Mara Clancy added eight.

Both teams matched each other in scrappiness during the first quarter and seemed determined to match one another shot for shot. The largest lead for either side in the first eight minutes was two and a basket from Fleming gave the Hurons a 13-12 lead at the end of the quarter.

Rogers City held the lead until midway through the second quarter as Brendly and Hailey Shank scored two buckets each to pull Inland Lakes to a 20-16 lead at halftime. A basket from Fleming with 3:15 left in the half was Rogers City’s last points until Jayna Hance sank a pair of free throws with 6:51 left in the game.

Fleming led Rogers City with 12 points and played through a slight injury in the second half that sent her to the bench for a three minute stretch in the third quarter. Hannah Fleming and Sydney Purgiel added five points apiece.

Inland Lakes pushed its lead to 29-16 after three quarters, taking advantage of turnovers and Rogers City’s scoring drought to widen its lead. Hance’s free throws in the fourth quarter sparked a 6-1 run by the Hurons over three minutes which pulled them back into contention. But the Hurons continued to struggle at the free throw line and went 4-for-10 in the fourth quarter.

“We tried to make a game of it in the second half, so I’m proud of the kids for doing that,” Pitts said. “We could’ve mailed it in because things weren’t going well, but we never quit.”

The Hurons play at Whittemore-Prescott on Wednesday and at Hillman on Friday.

Rogers City’s JV team defeated Inland Lakes 44-13. Catheryn Hart led the Hurons with 12 points and Kyrsten Altman added 10.

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INLAND LAKES (36): K. Byrne 3 1-2 7; M. Clancy 3 2-2 8; L. Brendly 5 0-0 10; V. Wandrie 1 1-2 3; H. Shank 2 0-0 4; P. Delos Santos 2 0-0 4; L. Passino 0 0-1 0.

ROGERS CITY (27): K. Rabeau 1 0-1 2; H. Fleming 2 0-4 5; S. Purgiel 2 0-1 5; T. Fleming 5 2-4 12; B. Daniels 0 1-2 1; C. Bullock 0 0-1 0; J. Hance 0 2-4 2.

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