FOWLERVILLE — For the Fowlerville girls basketball team, Friday’s win over Williamston was a milestone and perhaps a positive omen.
For the boys, a lopsided loss to the Hornets showed how far they need to go.
Click here for the boys archived broadcast!
The girls, who beat a injury-depleted Hornets team 48-33, picked up a rare win over Williamston.
Click here for the girls archived broadcast!
“It was big for our girls, especially on Senior Night,” coach Billy Selvia said. “It was just a fun game.”
It didn’t start out that way.
The Gladiators had all sorts of trouble shooting in the first half, going into halftime tied 12-12 with the Hornets, who are ranked No. 4 in Class B but dressed only seven players due to injury.
But the halftime talk was short; the Gladiators were back on the floor with six minutes remaining on the clock.
“We missed a lot of bunnies,” junior Jackie Jarvis said of the numerous layups and other easy shots that didn’t fall, “but we had a lot of open shots. We just had to keep taking them and they were going to fall.”
Which they did. The Gladiators (14-4 overall, 7-2 CAAC White) hit six 3-pointers in the third period as they pulled away.
“We had a lot of really good looks in the first half, and nothing was falling,” Selvia said. “We were doing everything we needed to on offense and defense. We just needed to get a few more shots down and shoot out of it.”
The Gladiators still have a shot at the White Division title. Wllliamston (15-3 overall) is 7-1 in the division and can clinch it with a pair of wins this week. But if the Hornets, who were down three starters on Friday, lose one or both and Fowlerville wins, the Gladiators will earn at least a tie for the division crown.
Elie Smith led the Gladiators with 15 points, while Jarvis and Grace Wallace had 12 apiece.
Fowlerville’s boys, who are in the midst of a logjam for second in the White, fell out of contention early when the Hornets hit 4 3s in the first quarter en route to a 19-4 lead and never looked back in a 76-38 triumph.
The win clinched the division title for the Hornets, who were led by Cole Kleiver’s 32 points.
But first-year coach Jim Jonas’ naturally sunny disposition was not altered by the result.
“We said during the week this game was not going to define our seasonm, win or lose,” he said. “Obviously, if we’d won, we would be ecstatic, but it wouldn’t change what we have to do next week.”
The Gladiators take on Ionia and Lansing Catholic next week, and a pair of wins would lift them into at least a tie for second.
“That was our goal going in: Second place,” Jonas said. “Our goal is to get better and be better come March. (Williamston) is the best team we’ve played all year, and I’d like to say it’s the last time we play them, but if we meet one of our goals, we’ll meet them in the district (semifinals). So we have to get better quickly.”
Caden Collins led the Glads with 11 points.
