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Bay College Ladies Go Cold Late; Fall To Milwaukee
 This story was written by Bay College SID Mike Pankow, with RRN content added. Click the thumbnails to see photos and videos, and to hear interviews with studnet manager Victoria Paquin and Coach Todd Cichetto. ESCANABA---he Bay College Norse Women's Basketball Team (4-5) went cold at the wrong time, as the Milwaukee Area Technical College Stormers (6-3) took advantage and pulled away late. The Norse lost a back-and-forth battle by a final score of 73-67. "We were bad the whole game," Bay College Coach Todd Ciochetto said, bluntly. "We couldn't guard anybody. We pout when they score on us, when it's our mistake. No, we weren't good. That should have been a 30-point game, like I said beforehand. It wasn't because we didn't do things right."  The Norse were led in the first half by Kennedy Sproule (FR, Winnipeg, MB) who hit three three-pointers in the first half and had 15 points at the break. Jada Freudinger (FR, Norway, MI) also provided an early spark, pouring in 12 points before halftime. Freudinger finished with 19 points and five rebounds, and was vital on the defensive end for Bay. "She (played well) defensively," Ciochetto said. "I don't know what she scored offensively, but she should've had double that. The lay-ups that are wide open cannot be missed. We worked on that every single day. But defensively, and playing all 40 minutes, she was awesome. We just need to finish." Bay held a lead of five points multiple times throughout the second quarter but couldn't stretch it any further. The Stormers had repeated answers, often times with very good looks off of quick transition. Attempting to trade baskets proved to be an inefficient way to hold a lead, as MATC finally took a lead late in the second period. The Stormers would lead 42-41 at intermission.  The fourth quarter spelled disaster for Bay. There seemed to be a lid on the basket as they went ice cold from the field. The Stormers took advantage and built a 13-point lead with just over three minutes to play. Bay finally hit on a basket in the closing seconds of the game, which ended up being the last points of the contest. The low production ended up being the difference in what was an exciting, back-and-forth affair otherwise. The Norse fell on their home floor by six points. Sproule ended up with six three's in the game and 24 points. She also grabbed seven rebounds. Ciochetto said that the team needs to get betteron defense after those made triples. "It's not OK if we're making threes, but giving it up on the other end," he said. "That's what they've got to understand. They can't be OK with that if they want to be a championship team. I'm telling you, this team can be a championship team. But we just did not do things right."  Valero led the Stormers with 18 points, five rebounds, three steals, and two assists off the bench. Adrianna Sapp (SO, Roseburg, OR) tallied a double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Brooklyn Davis (SO, Kansas City, MO) picked up 12 points and eight rebounds, while Sania Thomas (SO, Houston, TX) ended with 11 points and nine rebounds. The Norse will travel to Illinois next weekend. They will play Morton College on Friday, a game that is scheduled for a 6 pm tip off. They then go to Oakton Community College for a 2 pm contest on Saturday. "Morton's one of the best teams in the country, so if we don't do things right, they're going to score every time," Ciochetto said. "We're going to find out who we are, and who wants to play, and who wants to be tough. If you're not tough, you're going to get beat up down there."  |
