Imlay City defeats Mustangs in regional final
On a night when winter weather returned, Lutheran North’s shooting touch went cold and Imlay City took advantage.
Ana Lengemann scored 12 points and Mary Lengemann 10 as Imlay City rallied for a 4235 victory over the Mustangs in a Division 2 regional championship basketball game on the Spartans’ floor Wednesday night.
Lutheran North led by eight points early in the second quarter, but the Spartans rallied for a 26-24 halftime lead as the Mustangs’ shooting touch went AWOL, and the Macomb Township team managed only 11 second-half points.
“Sometimes it doesn’t (go in the basket) and, unfortunately for us tonight, in that last quarter, there were some clutch points that we really needed that just didn’t fall,” Lutheran North coach Andrea Avery-Tiedt said.
Lutheran North missed nine consecutive free throws from the final minute of the first half until Rachel McClelland made one with 3:42 left in the fourth.
In the final 2:26 of the game, the Mustangs had two turnovers and missed four shots while the Lengemann sisters warmed up.
Ana hit a 3-pointer and made two free throws and Mary made two fouls shots as the Blue Water Area Conference champions built a 40-33 lead while snow fell on the eve of the opening of the Detroit Tigers’ baseball season.
Lutheran North led 32-31 when senior McClelland sank a 3-pointer from the right wing with 4:06 left in the game, but that proved to be the Mustangs’ final field goal of the night.
“We came back in the third quarter and readjusted to do what we needed to do, slowed them down again, but it wasn’t enough to pull it out at the end,” Avery-Tiedt said.
Assistant coach Bill Lengemann, the father of the Lengemann sisters, filled in for coach Heather Lauwers, who missed the game because of a job commitment.
“I’m just subbing,” coach Lengemann said after the Spartans improved to 15-3 with their eighth straight victory. “This is coach Lauwers’ team. She did all this. All I had to do was watch. It’s kind of a bummer that she’s not here.”
Lauwers congratulated her players via a tablet.
“It’s rough,” she said. “Watching it on TV is not the same as watching it live. I’ve lost my voice.”
Senior Ashley McClelland scored 10 points and senior Grace Schomaker eight to lead Lutheran North (8-9).
The Mustangs reached the final by defeating MAC Silver champion Clawson in a semifinal.
“I think they did phenomenal with quarantine issues, COVID issues,” Avery-Tiedt said. “This is a good group of girls and I know how bad they wanted it, I know how bad I wanted it.
“But at the end of the day they held their heads up high and that’s all I can expect. They competed every game and put their heart and soul out on that floor. As a coach, that’s all I can ask for.”
Imlay City plays Detroit Country Day — a regional final winner over Eastpointe — in a state quarterfinal game at Ortonville Brandon on Monday.
L’Anse Creuse North is the only Macomb County team headed to a quarterfinal.
The Crusaders play Detroit Renaissance at West Bloomfield on Monday.
L’Anse Creuse North advanced when Utica had to bow out of the Division 1 regional final at Chippewa Valley because of COVID-19 issues.
Baseball
FRASER 8, ROSEVILLE 7
Vincente Suauclo doubled home Jackson Fishburn in the bottom of the seventh inning to lift Fraser to the 8-7 MAC crossover victory over Roseville. The Ramblers scored seven runs in the bottom of the fifth, but Roseville rallied in the top of the sixth to tie the score 7-7. Roseville scored the first four runs of the game.
MOTT 13, STERLING HEIGHTS 0
Braden Abbott, Ryan Becroft, Sean Jacobi and Nick Stempnik did not allow a hit and combined for 11 strikeouts in the five-inning game. Robert Bogden had three hits and Abbott, Eric Mudd and Keegan Sherwood had two apiece. The Marauders play Detroit Western in a doubleheader at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Corner Ballpark for PAL, the site of Tiger Stadium. Admission is $3.
L’ANSE CREUSE NORTH DEF. NOTRE DAME PREP
Connor Stark had two hits and scored the goahead run in the seventh inning on Adam Kushel’s double. Jack Lyndrup hit a two-run home run in the first inning. Connor Zabrzenski had two hits and stole a base and Nate McDonald and Kushel had two hits apiece.
STEVENSON 10, UTICA 5
Dylan Kleinedler had two hits, drove in the winning run and was the winning pitcher with five innings of relief for Stevenson (1-1). Joe Schell had a three-run double.