Lady Red Hawks Drop First Conference Game On The Road

The Lady Red Hawks led for much of the game against National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II #13 ranked Mid Michigan College on Saturday afternoon, but could not hold on and lost their first Michigan Community College Athletic Association (MCCAA) Western Conference game 67-56.  Lake Michigan College started off very well on the road by taking a 21-12 lead after the first quarter thanks to a stifling defense that keyed in on Mid-Michigan's shooters. Unfortunately, while still playing good defense, Lake Michigan struggled to score in the second quarter due to missing shots and opportunities.  The Lady Red Hawks maintained their lead and went in halftime with a 28-21 advantage in spite of being outscored 9-7 in the second quarter.

The start of the third quarter saw the Lady Lakers score very quickly and often as the Lady Red Hawks began turning over the basketball. Lake Michigan calmed down and began to execute better on offense and defense, but Mid Michigan capitalized on their quick start to the second half and narrowed Lake Michigan's lead to just one point (43-42) after outscoring the Lady Red Hawks 21-15 in the third quarter.  In the fourth quarter, Mid Michigan continued their offensive outburst and Lake Michigan could not find any answers on their offensive end. Turnovers and missed shots continued to plague the Lady Red Hawks for much of the quarter, but Lake Michigan did fight back and pulled within six points (60-54) with less than two minutes to go after forcing Mid Michigan into a few turnovers. That was the closest the Lady Red Hawks could get it as the Lady Lakers converted their free throws and pulled away for the final 67-56 win.

After the game, Head Coach, Patrick Daniel stated "Tough loss to a really good Mid Michigan team. We had our chances but we did not execute like we needed to in the second half especially in the fourth quarter. I need to better as the coach in getting my players to play a full 40-minute game."

For the game, Lake Michigan shot just 33% (22-65) while Mid Michigan shot 38% (24-63).  The Lady Red Hawks had 40 rebounds and Mid Michigan had 34 rebounds for the game. Lake Michigan also had 14 assists, 14 steals, and 11 blocks.

Jayla Bibbs led Lake Michigan with 20 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, seven steals, and five blocks.  Samantha Jenkins was the only other player in double figures for the Lady Red Hawks with 17 points. Lake Michigan is now 11-4 overall and 3-1 in the MCCAA Western Conference.

Lake Michigan returns to action on Wednesday, January 16, 2019 when they travel to play Jackson College. Jackson is currently tied for first place in the MCCAA Western Conference with a 4-0 record. Game time is 5:30 PM.