Lansing Christian at Bath – – CMAC Girls Basketball Game of the Week – – The Bleacher Denizen – – December 18, 2023 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight your Bleacher Denizen’s basketball journey takes him to Bath High School, where the Bees will host the Pilgrims from Lansing Christian. (Some day, I hope to earn the credentials and gravitas necessary to refer to my trips as an odyssey!! That would be SO cool!)

Both teams are off to a fine start this season. The Bees bring a 3-0 record into the game while Lansing Christian is at 3-1.

While we wait for this game to start, I hope you will enjoy this rendition of “Snoopy’s Christmas” (1967 by the Royal Guardsmen) from my You Tube Channel!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1pZCnDBHL0

Well, your Bleacher Denizen showed his age last night as he forgot to bring the roster that contained a lot of his notes home. However, I did manage to bring my play by play notebook home. When Erik Harrelson, the Bath AD, heard what happened. He sent rosters that I was able to print. So while these articles are usually typed the night of the game, this is being typed the next morning. Thus, there won’t be any information about the JV game, which was won by Bath, because those notes are on the paper that was lost.

Thus, while both Christian Coach Jason Salsbury and Bath Coach Gabe Sowa provided background information about their players, I do not have those notes. Here is what I can remember from them.

Bath has a lot of experience returning with Kassi Buck, a four year varsity player as well as sisters Anna and Aubrey Schaibly. All three of these players play on the perimeter. Abby Smith plays in the post where she rebounds well.

I covered Lansing Christian in their district last year. Ava Mustapha, Sophie Hazleton and Lydia Brogan, who are juniors now, were all pretty good in that game. Ava Mustapha and Lydia Brogan scored multiple times on aggressive drives to the basket. Alyssa Shank is a sophomore who runs the point.

It is now time to review the events of this game through the occasionally observant visage of an Aging Bleacher Denizen who never was able to escape church league in the ancient times when he was considered to be “young” and attempted to play basketball. Many people criticized your Bleacher’s speed and quickness, but I’ll defend myself by pointing out that very few people moved terribly quickly in the togas and Roman sandals we had to wear as uniforms back in the day.

(I actually typed the paragraph above before I knew I would lose my notes. I’m leaving it in, I guess.)

Bath wins the opening tap. The Bees miss a threeball from the wing. Abby Smith grabs the offensive rebound for the Bees. Christian misses a fifteen footer from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Pilgrims get another opportunity. Aubri Torok knocks a Christian pass out of bounds; the Pilgrims retain possession. Christian misfires on a threeball from the side. Bath reciprocates and misfires on a threeball from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and Christian takes possession. Ava Mustapha scores a layup after a short drive. She is fouled on the play and makes her free throw to give Christian a 3-0 lead with 6:37 to play in the first quarter.

Maddie Crawford steals a Bee pass into the lane. Aubri Torok and Abby Smith team up to steal the ball for the Bees. Aubri Torok hits a layup for Bath. Christian turns the ball over. Bath misses a three point shot from the wing. Christian throws a pass out of bounds. Kassi Buck passes to Aubri Torok, who sinks a threeball from the top of the key to give Bath the lead. Sophie Hazelton hits a three point shot from the wing to give Christian a 6-5 lead.

Bath msises a threeball from the corner. Kassi Buck gets the offensive rebound for the Bees. Bath is fouled on an eight foot shot in the lane, but misses its free throws. Aubrie Schaibly Bath misses a fifteen foot shot from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and Christian gets the ball. Kassi Buck knocks the ball away from the Pilgrims and Aubri Torok picks it up for the Bees. Lydia Brogan nearly steals the ball for Christian, but the ball goes out of bounds and Bath keeps the ball. Kassi Buck passes to Aubri Torok, who hits a layup to give Bath a 7-6 lead.

Christian misfires on a triple try from the side. Bath reciprocates and misfires on a triple try from the side. Christian misses a layup. Ava Mustapha is fouled on a putback and hits two free throws to give Christian an 8-7 lead with 2:35 remaining in the quarter.

Aubrie Schaibly knocks a Christian pass out of bounds; the Pilgrims retain possession. Christian misses a sixteen foot shot from the wing. Kassi Buck is fouled on a driving six foot hook shot and hits one of her two free throws to tie the game at 8-8 with 1:35 to play in the quarter.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Aubrie Schaibly hustles to get the rebound for her bees. Anna Poppema is fouled on a fifteen foot shot from the side and hits two free throws for Bath. Abby Smith steals the ball for the Bees. Bath misses a layup. Anna Schaibly plays tough defense and forces Christian to turn the ball over on a fast break. Aubri Torok is fouled and hits two free throws for Bath. With 5.8 seconds left in the quarter, Bath has a 12-8 lead.

Christian misses a sixteen foot shot from the wing at the buzzer.

After one quarter, Bath holds a 12-8 lead.

Bath inbounds the ball to start the second quarter. Aubrie Schaibly drives from the side and hits a layup for Bath. Christian misses a driving layup. Bath misses a three pointer from the wing and fouls on the rebound. Kassi Buck steals the ball for the Bees. Bath is fouled on a fast break layup, but misses two free throws. With 6:55 remaining in the half, the Bees hold a 14-8 lead.

Aubri Torok knocks a Christian pass out of bounds; the Pilgrims retain possession. Anna Schaibly steals the ball for the Bees. Bath misses a three pointer from the side. Christian misses a fast break layup; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Pilgrims get another opportunity. Alyssa Shank passes to Lydia Brogam, who hits a three point shot from the wing for Christian. Bath throws a pass out of bounds. Lydia Brogan passes to Ava Waldron, who hits a three point shot from the side for Christian to tie the game at 14-14.

Aubrie Schaibly drives and hits a layup for Bath to retake the lead. Aubri Torok steals the ball for Bath. Lydia Brogan steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Aubri Torok steals the ball and is fouled on a fast break layup. She hits two free throws to boost the Bath lead to 18-14 with 4:18 remaining in the half.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Lydia Brogan knocks the ball away from a Bee dribbler and out of bounds; Bath retains possession. Sophia Carillo hustles and nearly steals the ball for the Pilgrims, but Bath is able to recover. The Bees miss a jumper from the side. Abby Smith blocks a Christian layup. Sophie Hazelton knocks the ball away from the Bees and Bath fouls as it tries to recover the ball.

Christian misses a three pointer from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and Bath takes possession. The Bees miss a three pointer from the side. Anna Poppema gets the offensive rebound for Bath. Anna Poppema passes to Aubrie Schaibly, who hits a layup for Bath. Christian misses a jump shot. Aubri Torok passes to Anna Schaibly, who hits a three point shot from the side to give Bath a 23-14 lead.

Anna Schaibly steals the ball for the Bees. Bath turns the ball over. Ava Waldron passes to Lydia Brogan, who hits a three point shot for the Pilgrims. Aubrie Schaibly hits a three point shot from the side to give Bath a 26-17 lead.

Christian travels with the ball. Ava Waldron steals the ball for the Pilgrims. The Schaibly connection comes through as Anna knocks the ball away from Christian and Aubrie picks it up for Bath. Bath commits a traveling violation. Christian throws a pass out of bounds. Bath misses a threeball from the wing at the buzzer.

Bath has a 26-17 lead at halftime.

Lydia Brogan has 6 points and Ava Mustapha 5 points for Christian.

Aubri Torok and Aubrie Schaibly each have 9 points for Bath.

As there is no halftime entertainment today, I hope you will enjoy these two Christmas tunes from my You Tube Channel.

The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gwCTPg861g

Holly Jolly Christmas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msk3US5xeZc

As I glance at the scoreboard at the beginning of the third quarter, I note that Bath still has the 26-17 lead it had at the end of the first half. I probably need to explore the mathematics that make this possible. (The mind boggles!)

Christian has the ball to open the third quarter. Abby Smith knocks the ball away from the Pilgrims and Kassi Buck picks it up for the Bees. Abby Smith passes to Aubri Torok, who hits a fast break layup for Bath. Christian throws a pass out of bounds. Bath misses a three point shot from the wing. Christian misses a layup. The Schaibly Connection comes through again as Anna passes to Aubrie Schaibly, who hits a layup to give Bath a 30-17 lead.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Lydia Brogan snags the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Christian misses a threeball from the side. Bath turns the ball over. The Pilgrims miss a three point shot from the wing. Ava Mustapha forces a tieup on the rebound. The Possession Arrow is busy nibbling crumpets with its tea, misses the play and awards the ball to Bath.

The Bees misfire on a threeball from the side. Aubri Torok forces a Pilgrim traveling violation. Bath misses a three pointer from the corner. The rebound goes out of bounds and Bath retains possession. Aubri Torok passes to Aubrie Schaibly, who its a layup for the Bees. Lydia Brogan is fouled on a driving twelve footer from the side. She sinks one of her two free throws to trim the Bath lead to 32-18 with 4:27 remaining in quarter number three.

Lydia Brogan gets the offensive rebound from her missed free throw and passes to a teammate who is fouled on a layup, but misses both her free throws. Anna Poppema takes the ball coast to coast for a Bath layup. Aubri Torok steals the ball for the Bees. Maddie Crawford taps the ball away from Bath and Sophia Carillo picks it up for the Pilgrims. Kaitlyn Dickey steals the ball for the Bees. Aubri Torok is fouled and loses one of her shoes in the process. Bath misses a threeball from the wing. Aubri Torok knocks the offensive rebound to Abby Smith, who secures it for the Bees. Anna Poppema passes to Abby Smith, who hits a layup to boost Bath to a 36-18 lead.

Christian misses an eight foot shot in the lane. Abby Smith hits a fast break layup for Bath; she is fouled and hits her free throw. With 2:15 to play in the quarter, Bath has a 39-18 lead.

Christian fumbles a pass out of bounds. Kaitlyn Dickey passes to Abby Smith, who hits a short hook shot for Bath. Christian misses a three point attempt from the wing. Lydia Brogan is fouled and hits one of her two free throws for Christian. With 1:32 remaining in the third quarter, the Bath lead is at 41-19.

Sophie Hazelton knocks the ball away from Bath and Alyssa Shank picks it up for Christian. Bath fouls trying to recover and Alyssa Shank hits one of her two free throws for the Pilgrims. Kassi Buck drives and hits a six foot hook shot for the Bees. She is fouled on the shot, but misses her free throw. With 45.5 seconds to play in the third quarter, Bath has a 43-20 lead.

Christian misses a three pointer from the side. Bath misses a six footer from the side. Aubrie Schaibly draws a charging foul from the Pilgrims. Abbi Pelle’s stern defense causes a Bath traveling violation. Christian misses a jump shot from the free throw line as the third quarter buzzer makes its presence known.

After three quarters, Bath has a 43-20 lead.

Christian inbounds the ball to get the final quarter underway. The Pilgrims miss a three point shot from the side. Maddie Crawford gets the offensive rebound for Christian. Christian misses a jump shot. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Pilgrims get another possession. Abby Waldron passes to Esther Lee, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of her two free throws for the Pilgrims. With 7:43 left in the game, Bath’s lead is at 43-21.

Maddie Crawford gets her hand on the ball and a Bath dribbler loses it out of bounds. Christian misses a threeball from the side. Ava Mustapha gets the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Christian turns the ball over. Maddie Crawford’s inspired defense forces a Bath double dribble violation. Aubri Torok knocks the ball away from the Pilgrims, but Christian is able to recover.

Christian misses a three point shot from the corner. Bath drives and dishes the ball out of bounds. Christian travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches can be interesting. Somehow, I don’t see how traveling without the ball is all that newsworthy.) Anna Schaibly passes to Kaitlyn Dickey, who hits a layup and is fouled on the play. She misses her free throw. Christian is fouled on a driving layup and misses two free throws. With 5:12 left on the clock, Bath’s lead is at 45-21.

Lydia Brogan blocks a Bee layup. Christian misses a threeball from the side; Ava Mustapha pulls down the offensive rebound for Christian. Christian misses a threeball from the side. The rebound is tied up. The Possession Arrow polls its Christmas Decoration Committee, which votes to give the ball to Christian. The Pilgrims miss a three point shot from the side. Kassi Buck goes coast to coast with the ball and is fouled on a layup. She hits one of her two free throws to give Bath a 46-21 lead with 4:25 to go.

Aubri Torok steals the ball and hits a fast break layup for the Bees. Christian drives the baseline, but misses a layup. The rebound is tied up and the Possession Arrow’s Decoration Committee decides the ball would look nicer in the hands of the Bees, so Bath gets the ball. Ava Mustapha nearly steals the ball for Christian and knocks the ball out of bounds. Bath retains possession. Lydia Brogan steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Bath makes a great open field tackle to stop Christian’s fast break. The referee decides this is not fair and calls a foul. Christian takes the ball out.

The Pilgrims miss a three point shot; the rebound goes out of bounds and Bath gets the ball. Ava Mustapha knocks the Bee inbound pass out of bounds; Bath retains possession. Ava Mustapha steals the ball for Christian, but her momentum makes her step on the baseline and Bath gets the ball back. The Bees miss a three point shot from the top of the key. Kaitlyn Dickey gets the offensive rebound for the Bees.

Bath misses a threeball from the side. Quinn Chamberlain pulls down the offensive rebound for the Bees. Christian misses a driving layup. Quinn Chamberlain passes to Jordyn Lira, who hits a layup for Bath. Maddie Crawford passes to Rylie Wayner, who hits a layup for Christian. She is fouled, but misses her free throw. With 1:25 left on the clock, Bath has a 50-23 lead.

Bath misses a driving layup. Alyssa Shank passes to Rylie Wayner, who drives the baseline and hits an eight foot jump shot for Christian. Bath misfires on a threeball from the side; the rebound goes out of bounds and Christian takes possession. Jordyn Lira blocks a Christian ten foot shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and Christian gets another possession.

The Pilgrims miss a three pointer from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and Bath gets the ball. Bath misses an eight foot shot off the dribble from the side. Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Bath runs out the final few seconds.

Bath wins the game 50-25 to remain undefeated.

Lydia Brogan led the Christian scoring with 8 points. Ava Mustapha contributed 5 points. Rylie Wayner tossed in 4 points. Sophie Hazelton and Ava Waldron each put in three points. Alyssa Shank and Esther Lee each tallied 1 point.

Aubri Torok and Aubrie Schaibly shared scoring honors for Bath with 13 points each. Abby Smith supported her teammates with 7 points and Kassi Buck added 6 points. Anna Poppema scored 4 points. Anna Schaibly had 3 points. Jordyn Lira and Kaitlyn Dickey each chipped in with 2 points.