Women's Basketball Loses Two

ALPENA – The Alpena Community College women's basketball team faced a difficult week of conference action, falling in road and home contests to remain winless in league play.

Kirtland Defeats Alpena on the Road

The Lumberjacks traveled to Grayling on January 14 and fell to Kirtland Community College 77-49. With the win, Kirtland improved to 6-9 overall and 2-1 in league play.

Saige Flaugher led Alpena with 17 points, connecting on 5-of-13 from the field including two three-pointers. Brooke Portice added 15 points on efficient 6-for-10 shooting, while Lillie Maser recorded a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

The Lady Lumberjacks struggled from beyond the arc, shooting just 23.1 percent on three-point attempts, though they were solid at the free-throw line with a 75 percent conversion rate. Alpena was outrebounded 40-32 and committed 21 turnovers.

Kirtland built its advantage with a dominant second quarter, outscoring Alpena 24-15 to take a 42-27 halftime lead. Kingsley Backstrom paced the Firebirds with 18 points, while Kayla McCoy added 15 points and seven assists.

Montcalm Rolls Past Lady Lumberjacks at Home

Three days later, Alpena returned to Park Arena but suffered a 115-46 setback to Montcalm Community College on January 17. The loss extended Alpena's record to 4-10 overall and 0-4 in conference play.

The Jacks faced a challenging afternoon against a hot-shooting Montcalm squad that connected on 58.8 percent of their three-point attempts and dominated from the opening tip. The Raiders jumped out to a 38-8 lead after the first quarter and never looked back.

Lillie Maser led Alpena with 14 points on 7-of-18 shooting, while Brooke Portice added 11 points and seven rebounds. Abby Platt contributed seven points off the bench, and Sarah Wyglendowski chipped in six points and three blocks.

Saige Flaugher had an uncharacteristic shooting performance, going 0-for-11 from the field, though she battled to the free-throw line and converted 6-of-8 attempts. She also dished out five assists and grabbed eight rebounds in 32 minutes of action.

Montcalm's balanced attack featured five players scoring in double figures, led by Kendall Stout's 20 points and Emily Putnam's 19 points and eight steals. Baylor Syrjala orchestrated the offense with 18 points and 12 assists, while Karlie Bacon added 19 points and nine rebounds. Emma Rehkopf provided a spark off the bench with 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting.

The Raiders dominated the boards 48-32 and forced 29 Alpena turnovers while committing just 11 of their own. Montcalm's defensive pressure resulted in 22 steals.

Looking Ahead

The Lady Lumberjacks will look to regroup and find their first conference victory as the season continues on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at Bay College. Despite the difficult week, the team showed resilience with solid performances from Maser and Portice, who combined for 25 points in both contests.