Comeback Not Enough as Women's Basketball Season Comes to an End

Flint, Mi- The Schoolcraft women's basketball season came to an end at the hands of the Lakeland Lakers (22-3). The Lakers were able to advance to the NJCAA Great Lakes District A final after knocking off the Ocelots 69-66. Schoolcraft finiahes the season with an impressive 20-4 record, the programs best record since 2015-16. 

The first quarter saw the Lakers jump out to an early lead, the Lakers were able to strike first 19 seconds into the game by way of a layup. Lakeland raced out to a 10-0 lead before #23 Samantha Smith was able to get Schoolcraft on the board with a layup. The first quarter was all Lakeland, they would shoot 9-18 (50%) from the floor, including 3-4 (75%) from 3. After the first quarter, Schoolcraft would trail 27-11. 

The second quarter saw Schoolcraft bite into the Laker lead. Schoolcraft would go on to outscore the Lakers 13-9 in the quarter. Defense was key in the second quarter, holding Lakeland to only 9 points, also holding them to only 9 field goal attempts. 8 Lakeland turnovers in the quarter allowed the Ocelots to crawl slightly back into the game. Going into the half, Schoolcraft trailed 36-24. 

The third quarter was huge for the Ocelots. Schoolcraft outscored Lakeland 24-11 in the third quarter and wound up leading the contest after 3 complete quarters. Schoolcraft was 8-18 (44.4%) from the field and 7-9 (77.8%) from the free throw line en route to their 24 point outburst in the quarter. The Ocelots controlled the glass in the quarter, out rebounding the Lakers 13-6. 6 of the 13 rebounds for Schoolcraft would come on the offensive glass, leading to 10 second chance points in the quarter. 

The fourth quarter was back and fourth action, seeing the Lakers outscore the Ocelots 22-18 in the quarter to pull away with the win. The Lakers would hit 2 big threes in the quarter to help their efforts. Schoolcraft battled in the quarter, going 7-17 (41.2%) from the field and 3-4 (75%) from the free throw line. #34 Sydney McCaig was big for the Ocelots in the fourth quarter posting, 5 points with 4 rebounds, 2 on the offensive end. 

For the game, Schoolcraft was led by #4 Eve Parrish, 13 points along with 7 rebounds. The 7 rebounds from Parrish tied #11 Hunter Conway and #23 Samantha Smith for the team lead. #34 Sydney McCaig provided big minutes for Schoolcraft as she had, 12 points and 6 rebounds, 4 offensive, for the game, coming off of the bench. #12 Ruby Garner and #24 Makaiya Thomas would both enter double figures as well going, 12 and 10 points respectively. 

Schoolcraft finishes the season with a 20-4 record, program best since 2015-16. The Ocelots would be ranked as high as #6 in the country, starting the season with a 14-0 record. To go along with the great start, they got to be the first matchup in conference history to be broadcasted on ESPN+ when they faced off against St. Clair County Community College. Great season Ocelots.