Portland St. Patrick at Pewamo-Westphalia – – CMAC Girls Game of the Week – – The Bleacher Denizen – – February 2, 2023 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, your Bleacher Denizen is off to Pewamo-Westphalia High School where the Pirates will host the Shamrocks from Portland St. Patrick. It’s not truly a Pewamo-Westphalia visit unless Grange Road is icy or wet and tonight did not disappoint. However, your Bleacher Denizen made it to the game without sliding into the cemetery on the side of the road, so there is something to be said for that.

Also, I was delighted that I got to Westphalia in time to stop at Ox’s market for some smoked chicken and some jerky!! (I love that store!)

Each of these teams has a record that puts them in the top half of the rugged CMAC Conference. Portland St. Patrick is 5-3 in the CMAC and 8-6 overall. Pewamo-Westphalia is 5-5 in the CMAC and 9-5 overall.

As I’ve covered each of these teams before, I’ve learned about some of the top players on each team. Natalee Teachworth is a great athlete who jumps really quickly and really well. She is strong and well-coordinated. This serves her well when she scores in the lane, defends and rebounds. Laynie Meredith runs the point and she has a never-ending supply of energy as well as the quickness needed to be a real defensive problem for Shamrock opponents. She is a fine ball handler on offense and can score on drives to the basket or on three point shots.

Addy Scheurer is a quick player who is really tough on the defensive end. She is a good ball handler on offense and has an excellent three point shot. Tori Sandborn is a good shooter with a fine basketball IQ. Sophia Schrauben jumps well and is an athletic player who is an asset to the Shamrock defense.

Gracelyn Rockey is an eighth grader, but she is not intimidated at all by the older players she faces. She is an energetic defender who can score on drives and putbacks. Isabella Russman and Mattie Honsowitz give the Shamrocks depth and solid defense in the post.

Pewamo-Westphalia also has some fine players. Sierra Schneider is 6’1″ and uses her height well as she intimidates opposing players when the try to shoot in the lane and rebounds well. She is also able to frequently convert passes and offensive rebounds into layups. Elly Bengel gives the Pirates a big threat from the three point line. Mackenna Weber is a great perimeter defender.

Brynn Bauer runs the point and keeps the ball moving. She attacks the basket well and can score on slashes. She is also a tremendous and aggressive perimeter defender. Logan Drake defends really well in the post and is a fine shot blocker.

Brooke Spitzley is an energetic perimeter defender. Kierstyn Griesmer and Alonna Thelen are good outside shooters.

I got to the game in time to see the final two quarters of the JV game. P-W had a 16-13 lead at halftime. Gracelyn Rockey, an eighth grader who plays four quarters a game for the varsity, used a fifth quarter to lead St. Patrick to a 13-4 advantage during the third quarter as she scored nine points. St. Patrick had a 26-20 lead after three quarters. The Shamrocks shut out the Pirate JVs in the fourth quarter and went on to a 34-20 win.

Emerie Smith had 8 points to lead the Pirate JVs. Sophie Hengesbach scored 5 points. Leah Miller, Taylor Nurenberg and Ally Nurenberg each put in 2 points. Maddy Weber tallied 1 point.

Mattie Honsowitz had 12 points to lead the Shamrock JVs. Gracelyn Rockey had 9 points, all in the third quarter. Lily Sandborn scored 6 points. Naomi Hass added 3 points. Macie Smith and Megan Myers each added 2 points.

The Pewamo-Westphalia Pep Band played a bunch of fine music before the game. Two of my favorites were “Great Balls of Fire” and Zoot Suit Riot. As many readers were not there to groove to the music, maybe we can enjoy some Good Vibrations from my You Tube Channel!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3482fQh0Rdo

It is now time to review the events of this game through the bat eyes (the “eagle eye” days are well in the past now) of an aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league when he attempted to play basketball in the days of yore. His coach decided that it was no longer economically feasible to keep replacing the peach baskets we shot at back in the day when the Bleacher Denizen’s bricks destroyed them.

St. Patrick wins the opening tap. Logan Drake blocks a Shamrock layup; the loose ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets another opportunity. Natalee Teachworth hits a twelve foot shot from the baseline to give St. Patrick the first two points of the game. P-W misses a ten foot shot in the lane. Brynn Bauer ties up the ball; the Possession Arrow decides to allocate the ball to P-W as it admires her defensive aggression. The Pirates miss a layup. The Shamrocks miss a fast break layup. Brynn Bauer passes to Mackenna Weber, who hits a threeball from the corner to give P-W a 3-2 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point attempt from the side. (Technically, this was one of the Shamrock players, not the saint, himself.) Sierra Schneider hits a five foot hook shot for P-W. Gracelyn Rockey pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the side. P-W misses aa six foot banked shot. Sierra Schneider blocks a Shamrock layup; the loose ball goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks get it back. Sierra Schneider blocks another shot; this time, Gracelyn Rockey grabs the loose ball and hits a layup to trim the P-W lead to 5-4.

P-W misses a three pointer from the top of the key. Sierra Schneider pulls down the offensive rebound for the Pirates. P-W misses a layup; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Pirates get the ball back. Sierra Schneider hits a layup for P-W. St. Patrick misfires on a triple try from the top of the key. Rylee Scheurer ties up the rebound. The Possession Arrow is impressed with her hustle and awards the ball to St. Patrick. Laynie Meredith drives and dishes the ball to Gracelyn Rockey, who hits a layup to cut the P-W lead to 7-6.

P-W throws a pass too high and out of bounds. Tori Sandborn tosses the ball to Natalee Teachworth, who spins and hits an eight foot shot in the lane to give her Shamrocks a one point lead. P-W loses the ball out of bounds. St. Patrick misses a three point attempt from the side. P-W throws a pass out of bounds. Alonna Thelen steals the ball for the Pirates. Natalee Teachworth steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Alonna Thelen steals the ball for the Pirates. Your Bleacher Denizen makes sure his wallet is still in his pocket after all this on-court theft.

P-W misses a three point shot from the side. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. Sophia Schrauben gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks and passes to Natalee Teachworth, who hits an eight foot shot from the side of the lane as the first quarter buzzer announces its present.

After one quarter, St. Patrick holds a 10-7 lead.

P-W has the ball to open the second quarter. Alonna Thelen passes to Sierra Schneider, who hits a layup for P-W. Elly Bengel knocks the ball away from the Shamrocks and causes a held ball. The Possession Arrow was watching a video as this happened and missed the play. The ball is awarded to St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a layup. P-W misses a driving layup; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Pirates get another opportunity. Mackenna Weber passes to Elly Bengel, who throws in a threeball from the wing to give the Pirates a 12-10 lead.

Sierra Schneider blocks a St. Patrick layup. The loose ball goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks get it back. Laynie Meredith passes to Mattie Honsowitz, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws to trim the P-W lead to 12-11 with 6:45 remaining in the half.

Sophia Schrauben steals a Pirate pass. St. Patrick passes the ball out of bounds. Brynn Bauer is fouled on a driving layup and hits two free throws for P-W. Mackenna Weber’s aggressive defense causes a Shamrock traveling violation. Laynie Meredith knocks the ball away from P-W and Rylee Scheurer picks it up for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a fast break layup.

Gracelyn Rockey knocks a Pirate pass out of bounds; P-W retains possession. The Pirates miss a layup. Gracelyn Rockey is fouled on a driving eight foot shot from the side. She hits one of her two free throws to shave the P-W lead to 14-12 with 3:36 remaining in the first half.

P-W misses an eight foot shot off the dribble from the baseline. Sierra Schneider knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Mackenna Webber picks it up for P-W. Brynn Bauer drives and scoops in a layup for the Pirates. St. Patrick misses a ten foot shot from the baseline. Tori Sandborn gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Sierra Schneider knocks a Shamrock pass out of bounds; St. Patrick gets the ball back. Laynie Meredith inbounds the ball to Natalee Teachworth, who hits an eight foot shot in the lane to cut the P-W lead to 16-14.

Laynie Meredith knocks the ball away from P-W and Addy Scheurer picks it up for St. Patrick. Lydia Meredith drives and scoops in a layup for the Shamrocks. She is fouled on the play and makes her free throw to give St. Patrick a 17-16 lead with 1:15 to go in the half.

P-W misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball. Brynn Bauer knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Elly Bengel picks it up for P-W. The Pirates miss a layup and the Shamrocks foul on the rebound. Laynie Meredith knocks the ball away from P-W, but the Pirates recover. Gracelyn Rockey knocks the ball away from the Pirates and no one is able to pick the ball up before the halftime buzzer blares.

St. Patrick has a 17-16 lead at halftime.

Sierra Schneider leads the Pewamo-Westphalia scoring at halftime with 6 points.

Natalee Teachworth has 8 points and Gracelyn Rockey has 5 points for St. Patrick.

At halftime, the P-W Pep Band entertains some more. My favorite was “Paint it Black” by the Rolling Stones. For those of you who were not here to listen to this fine music, here is the classic religious tune. “Little Brown Church” (Church in the Wildwood) from my You Tube Channel that I hope you’ll enjoy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOnetrJFi6o

P-W inbounds the ball to begin the third quarter. Addy Scheurer steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick is fouled on a fast break layup, but misses two free throws. Mackenna Weber passes to Logan Drake, who hits a fourteen foot shot from the baseline to give P-W a one point lead. Gracelyn Rockey is fouled on an eight foot hook shot from the side and hits one of her two free throws to tie the game at 18-18 with 6:12 to play in the third quarter.

Natalee Teachworth knocks the ball away from P-W and Gracelyn Rockey picks it up for St. Patrick. Brynn Bauer steals a Shamrock pass. P-W misses a layup. Kambrie Thelen hits a putback to restore the P-W lead. Natalee Teachworth hits a layup for St. Patrick to tie the game. Elly Bengel gets into the lane and hits a ten foot jump shot to give her Pirates a 22-20 lead.

St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Gracelyn Rockey pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick is fouled on an eight foot shot from the side of the lane, but misses two free throws. P-W misses a three point shot from the side. Elly Bengel snares the offensive rebound for the Pirates. Gracelyn Rockey blocks a Pirate shot; P-W is able to recover the loose ball. Brynn Bauer is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of her two free throws to give P-W a 23-20 lead with 2:10 remaining on the third quarter clock.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the corner. Sierra Schneider passes to Mackenna Weber, who hits a layup for P-W. Logan Drake knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Mackenna Weber grabs it for P-W. Sophia Schrauben steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Natalee Teachworth pulls down the offensive rebound for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a layup. P-W is assessed with an over and back violation. St. Patrick misses a twelve foot shot from the baseline. P-W has no time to shoot before the quarter ends.

With three quarters in the books, Pewamo-Westphalia has a 25-20 lead.

St. Patrick inbounds the ball and quarter number four is underway. The Shamrocks misfire on a triple try from the side. P-W commits a double dribble violation. Logan Drake steals the ball for the Pirates. P-W misses a layup; Sierra Schneider pulls down the offensive rebound for the Pirates. P-W misses a layup. Laynie Meredith passes to Rylee Scheurer, who throws in a three point shot from the win to cut the Pirate lead to 25-23.

Brynn Bauer responds by driving and scooping in a layup for the Pirates. Gracelyn Rockey is fouled on a ten foot shot from the side of the lane and hits one of her two free throws for the Shamrocks. Addy Scheurer knocks the ball away from the Pirates and Gracelyn Rockey picks it up for the Shamrocks. Gracelyn Rockey is fouled and hits one of two shots in a one and one free throw opportunity to trim the Pirate lead to 27-25 with 5:03 left on the clock.

Sophia Schrauben steals the ball and makes a fast break layup for St. Patrick to tie the game. Sophia Schrauben steals the Pirate inbound pass. St. Patrick is fouled, but misses the first shot of a one and one opportunity. Sierra Schneider passes to Elly Bengal, who launches and hits a three point shot from the corner to give P-W a 30-27 lead.

Sierra Schneider blocks a Shamrock layup. The ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets another opportunity. Sierra Schneider blocks another Shamrock layup. The loose ball is tied up and the Possession Arrow looks up from its card game. The ball is awarded to P-W after the dealer mentions that Sierra Schneider’s blocked shot led to all of this. P-W misses a five foot banked hook shot. Sierra Schneider pulls down the offensive rebound for the Pirates.

P-W misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball. Logan Drake draws a charging foul from the Shamrocks. Gracelyn Rockey knocks the Pirate inbound pass out of bounds; P-W gets the ball back. P-W misses a layup. Addy Scheurer passes to a teammate who is fouled on a layup, but misses both her free throws. With 2:06 left in the game, P-W has a 30-27 lead.

Mackenna Weber drives and dishes the ball to Sierra Schneider, who hits a layup for P-W. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks get another possession. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing. The Pirates are fouled, but miss the first shot of a one and one opportunity. With 56.7 seconds remaining, P-W is holding a 32-27 lead.

The rebound from the missed free throw goes out of bounds and P-W gets the ball back. St. Patrick’s tough defense forces P-W to call time out to avoid turning the ball over for failing to inbound the ball in five seconds. Elly Bengel is fouled and sinks both ends of a one and one free throw opportunity to give her Pirates a 34-27 lead with 53.8 seconds to go.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot near the top of the key. Gracelyn Rockey steals the ball and is fouled on a layup. She makes two free throws for St. Patrick. Gracelyn Rockey steals the Pirate inbound pass. Rylee Scheurer drives from the top of the key and hits a layup to cut the Pirate lead to 34-31.

P-W is fouled and misses the front end of a one and one opportunity with 20.8 seconds left. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. Brynn Bauer is fouled and makes two free throws with 6.1 seconds left to give P-W a 36-31 lead.

Gracelyn Rockey hits a twelve foot shot from the side for St. Patrick at the buzzer.

Pewamo-Westphalia wins this game by a 36-33 score.

Gracelyn Rockey led the St. Patrick scoring with 12 points. Natalee Teachworth joined her teammate in double figures with 10 points. Rylee Scheurer scored 5 points. Laynie Meredith added 3 points. Sophia Schrauben put in 2 points and Mattie Honsowitz tallied 1 point.

Elly Bengel led the Pewamo-Westphalia scoring with 10 points. Brynn Bauer supported her teammate with 9 points. Sierra Schneider chipped in with 8 points. Mackenna Weber added 5 points. Kambrie Thelen and Logan Drake each put in 2 points.