Soaring: Rochester Hills Christian’s fends off Lake Orion Baptist to maintain FBAC lead
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
ROCHESTER HILLS — As defending league champions, Rochester Hills Christian is still the surprise of the Fundamental Baptist Athletic Conference Red Division this winter.
The Eagles’ girls basketball program graduated eight players, including four starters, and has three freshmen and a sophomore in its regular playing rotation.
Nevertheless, Rochester Hills Christian stands alone in first place in the FBAC Red Division and maintained a one-game lead on the rest of the pack with a 52-46 victory Friday over visiting Lake Orion Baptist.
CLOSING IN: Rochester Hills Christian's Kindra Armitage (left) readies to block the shot of Lake Orion Baptist's Breanne Watterworth during Friday's FBAC Red Division showdown. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
Senior point guard Allise Dubay and freshman forward Jenna Porter led the way. The 5-foot-9 Porter scored a game-high 19 points to go along with nine rebounds and four steals, while Dubay, despite a cold shooting night, was the glue on both ends of the floor with 15 points, eight assists and six steals.
Sophomore forward Kinda Armitage added 10 points and 6-foot-2 senior center Kaylee Gajowiak cleared 12 rebounds for the Eagles.
“Dubay is what makes the difference for us,” admitted fourth-year head coach Paula Bronsing, who has turned a dormant program into a highly competitive team in her tenure. “She averages around 11 or 12 points a game and is not normally our leading scorer. But she’s such a god passer and usually has more assists. She still scores more than last year, but we had much more of (a team) post game last season and a lot of seniors. She’s good at breaking down zone defenses and creating shots and layups. She makes the girls around her better.”
ON THE MOVE: Rochester Hills Christian senior guard Allise Dubay brings the ball upcourt past Lake Orion Baptist junior guard Kara Sanders. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
Defensively, Rochester Hills Christian forced 34 turnovers in the contest and picked off 17 of those passes. The Eagles, who scored 18 points off turnovers, used a 13-6 run to close the third quarter to grab a 38-34 advantage.
Lake Orion Baptist senior forward Kaleigh Cameron’s layup with 2:11 to go in the fourth brought the Lions to within 48-46. They would not score again.
Dubay, a two-time first-team all-league pick, swished 3-of-4 free throws down the stretch to seal the win for Rochester Hills.
“I think we’ve surprised everyone else in our league, but we worked really hard this summer,” said Bronsing, whose team set a school record last season with a 22-2 record. “We’ve got a very good summer program so I knew we were going to surprise everyone. I knew the talent we had coming up.”
Lake Orion Baptist held a 52-33 edge on the boards, blocked nine shots and swiped 15 passes. The Lions cut the deficit down to two points on two occasions in the fourth quarter but could not regain the lead.
Lake Orion Baptist led briefly early in the third and fourth quarters and outscored the Eagles 14-12 in the fourth stanza.
Without a true point guard, Lake Orion Baptist is playing point guard by committee.
CATCH AND SHOOT: Rochester Hills Christian freshman Jenna Porter readies herself for the shot during the Eagles' 52-46 victory over Lake Orion Baptist. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
“Our turnovers are down,” said Lake Orion Baptist coach Janet Noruk, who said that turnovers have been the Achilles’ heel this season after graduating four-year starting point guard Julina Moreno. “I think the biggest thing from this game, the biggest improvement, is that we learned to work together as a team. We didn’t have to have Breanne Watterworth score most of our points. She still did a great job in the post for us, but we had other girls step up.”
Watterworth, a 6-foot-3 sophomore center and younger sister of current Oakland University standout Bethany Watterworth, kept the Lions close throughout with her stellar interior play. Watterworth finished the night with 18 points, 21 rebounds and eight blocked shots.
Senior forward Jill Streetman added six points, 10 rebounds and four assists, while Cameron chipped in with nine points, 10 rebounds and four steals for the Lions.
“We’ve come a long ways since the beginning of the season,” offered Noruk. “We’ve had to learn how to play together as a team. I think the second half of the season we’re going to be very competitive. If we keep cutting down the turnovers, we’ll be all right.”
Rochester Hills led 10-7 after the first quarter, but Lake Orion Baptist stayed toe-to-toe in the second quarter and used a 5-2 run at the end of the frame to tie the game at 18-18 at the half.
TEAM CAPSULES:http://northoaklandsports.com/2011/12/14/girls-basketball-team-capsules-2011-12/
SLICING THROUGH TRAFFIC: Lake Orion Baptist sophomore Breanne Watterworth tires to maneuver past Rochester Hills Christian freshman Jenna Porter during Friday's FBAC-Red contest. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
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