by Ben Murphy
Sports Writer
The Farwell girls basketball team was able to get off to a fast start at rival Clare on Thursday, Jan. 27. The Lady Eagles never let up either, as they were able to claim an impressive Jack Pine Conference win, 46-30.
“Overall, a great night execution wise on both offense and defense,” Farwell head coach Mike Groulx said. “We started the game on an 8-0 run and never looked back.”
The Eagles finished the first quarter with a 13-6 lead and led 20-11 at the half.
“Every time we thought we had something going they came up with an answer,” Clare head coach Dave Maxwell said.
Farwell had Remi Sponseller lead all scorers with 20 points and she also had four steals and four assists. Madison Travis chipped in with 16 points and 10 rebounds and Raini Sponseller added 10 points.
“The second half was pretty similar to the way the first half played out, we were able to get good looks and knock down some shots while our offense kept Clare out of rhythm all night,” Groulx said. “Remi played a great game offensively and defensively holding Clare’s leading scorer to nine points. Remi is one of this kids that constantly impacts the game in all areas. Rachel Odykirk did not score but I thought she played great defensively and did a great job offensively moving the ball and getting it to places on the floor that allowed us to be successful.”
The Pioneers had Sofiah Coker score nine points, Megan Gross put in seven, Ava Crowder had five and Izzy Jones netted four.
Farwell also won a home JPC game over Pinconning on Tuesday, 60-30.
“We opened the game up on a 17-4 run and never looked back, a really good night of offensive execution and shot the ball well from the perimeter,” Groulx said. “We were able to get everyone into the game and some significant minutes.”
Travis had a big game with 26 points and 15 rebounds, Raini Sponseller had 15 points and seven rebounds, Remi Sponseller added 12 points, five steals and four blocks, Alana Gaskill had four points and Haiden Cassidy netted three points.
Farwell (11-3 overall, 7-3 JPC) hosted Beaverton on Thursday and heads to Roscommon on Monday.
Clare nearly bounced back with a win in Gladwin on Tuesday, but dropped the JPC contest 51-49.
“We had a really tough night shooting the ball, we were good at attacking the rim, but didn’t take full advantage and lost a tight game, we will use this experience to get better,” Maxwell said.
Gross and Coker scored 15 points apiece in the setback.
Clare (6-7, 5-5) hosted Shepherd on Thursday, heads to Ogemaw Heights on Tuesday and plays at Harrison on Thursday.
