Clarkston rolls past Lake Orion on Senior Night
Win sets up potential district final rematch
CLARKSTON » The script was almost perfect for a Senior Night celebration.
There were balloons and gift bags, speeches and tears.
The four seniors all scored, pushing the home team out to a big lead that it never relinquished, leading to an easy win.
Oh, and nobody showed anyone a dang thing that might be useful down the road.
Led by Kaelyn Kaul’s 18 points, the senior-laden Clarkston Wolves rolled past rival Lake Orion on Monday, 56-32, sending their four seniors out in style with a relatively easy win, setting up a potential rematch in the district finals, should both teams get there.
“We know them, they know us. We know what’s going on. It makes for a nice build-up,” Clarkston coach John Weyer said.
The Wolves (12-3) are the No. 1 seed in the Division 1 district hosted by Romeo next week, while Lake Orion (9-7) is the No. 2 seed.
By the new system, they’re placed on opposite sides of the bracket, setting up a potential reunion in the district finals on March 26.
“If everything plays out the way it’s supposed to, we’ll see them in the championship, the district final. We showed them one offense all night long. I showed them one defense, except for a little manto-man. I wasn’t showing them anything other than that. I got seven sophomores in to play tonight. Our depth is in our youth. We’re not senior-heavy. I’ve got two starters that are out with ankle injuries, and we have a league championship game on Thursday, so I didn’t want to overburden my kids. The league championship means more than winning a non-league game,” said Lake Orion coach Bob Brydges, whose
team hosts Berkley Thursday in a winner-take-all game for the Oakland Activities Association’s Blue Division title.
“It’s Clarkston, love the match-up. It’s a great rivalry. Do I want to beat them? Of course. But, at the same time, I knew where I was at, and I have priorities, too.”
Clarkston’s priorities Monday were sending out in style a senior group — Kaul, Olivia Toderan, Morgan Hunter and Lena Eblenkamp — that has been together forever, it seems like.
“Since they were 10 years old. I mean, really, playing Wolfpack ball when they were 10 years old. They were Little Dribblers at five and six. They grew up together, and it’s just so nice to see them playing together. That was heartwarming for them,” Weyer said, noting it was Kaul’s turn to be the scoring leader.
“That’s any night with us. Kaelyn, yeah, she had a standout game, but with us, it seems to be someone
new steps up every night. Sometimes it’s Maddy (Skorupski), sometimes it’s O (Toderan), sometimes it’s Kaelyn. Sometimes Izzy (Hadley) has a great game. It’s just been a lot of fun to coach them. They’re a joy. Our practices are fun. The girls love each other, and that’s 90 percent of it.”
Kaul had 10 of her 18
points in the first quarter, as the Wolves jumped out to a 17-8 lead that ballooned to 28-18 at the half, and 44-30 entering the fourth quarter.
Skorupski finished with 11 points, while Hadley had seven, Toderan six, and Hunter and Eblenkamp both added five.
Junior Katie VanHeck had nine points to lead the
Dragons, while sophomore Maddie Ebbert had six.
Should the two teams renew acquaintances on March 26, there probably really won’t be any surprises, as Weyer and Brydges have both seen these kids come up through the system — but nobody was taking any chances.
And Monday’s game — while not as fierce as many in the rivalry can be — was still a useful measuring stick for the young Dragons.
“Our time’s coming, though. We’ve got some really nice pieces that are on their way, and it’s going to be important for us to continue to play games like this. They’re good for us. We played Marian this year, on the road. We played Clarkston on the road. We played Midland on the road. We’ve tried to go ahead and play everybody,” Brydges said. “We want to be ready. I told them tonight, ‘Guys, we didn’t show them anything. We played hard, and we went ahead and made some runs at them, too, so they know we can run at them.’ We’ll be OK. I’m looking forward to the match-up.”
For people wondering where is all the free-agent quarterback movement as the NFL’s “legal tampering” period enters its second day, well, calm down.
The biggest spenders at the position had been two teams keeping their supposed guy, Cam Newton in New England and Jameis Winston in New Orleans. Of course, trades that can be completed when the NFL’s business year begins Wednesday will see Carson Wentz with the Colts, Matthew Stafford heading to the Rams in exchange for Jared Goff, who goes to the Lions.
On Tuesday, Indianapolis’ Jacoby Brissett landed with the Dolphins, and Andy Dalton left Dallas for Chicago.
Washington made the early QB news Tuesday by agreeing to terms with the very well-traveled Ryan Fitzpatrick. The 38-yearold “FitzMagic” joins his ninth franchise (Rams, Bengals, Bills, Titans, Texans, Jets, Buccaneers and Dolphins. He started seven and played in nine games last season for Miami, throwing for 2,091 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Incredibly, Fitzpatrick never has been on a playoff team in his 16 pro seasons. He will be replaced as Tua Tagovailoa’s backup by Brissett, who will get a one-year, $5 million deal in Miami.
With 2020 NFL Comeback Player of the Year Alex Smith released by Washington — no, Smith has not landed anywhere yet, either — Fitzpatrick will compete with Taylor Heinicke and Kyle Allen for the starting spot on a team that won the weak NFC East at 7-9.
A guy who not only has been to the postseason but has a Super Bowl ring, Von Miller, is remaining with the Broncos. The Denver Broncos have exercised star linebacker Von Miller’s 2021 option, which engages the final season of the sixyear, $114.5 million contract and guarantees him $7 million of his $17.5 million base salary.
Miller has recovered from a freak ankle injury that sidelined him all of last season.
Dalton has a shot to start in quarterback-weak Chicago, where Trubisky was not kept and Nick Foles has to prove himself once again. The Bears are paying him about $10 million for one year, which is hefty for a backup.
Dalton, 33, was 4-5 as a starter for the Cowboys after Dak Prescott was injured. A longtime starter in Cincinnati, he threw for
2,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Cincinnati grabbed one of the top pass-rush threats available in free agency, Trey Hendrickson. The former Saints defensive end gets $60 million over four years, with $32 million paid in the first two seasons, according to a person with knowledge of the contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no terms have been made public.
How important is the Bengals’ new edge rusher? Hendrickson had 13 1-2 sacks in 2020; Cincinnati as a team had 17, fewest in the league.
The Bengals also reached agreement with Pittsburgh safety Mike Hilton on a four-year, $24 million contract, also according to a person with knowledge of the deal. Hilton, 31, figures to play mostly as a slot defender. They kept safety Brandon Wilson with a two-year contract extension. He is Cincinnati’s main kick returner.