Coach calls victory 'a major bonus for our program'

Glen Lake coach Todd Hazelton hugs senior Jack Drow after the Lakers bet Leland on Wednesday, Feb.13. Senior Aaron King Right makes a free throw to ice the victory for the Lakers.

It was a busy week of Northwest Conference play leading up to matchups played Tuesday, but the most emotional night occurred last Wednesday when host Glen Lake hustled its way to a 58-55 win over Leland.

Glen Lake forced four turnovers in the final five minutes of play, with Kyle Klumpp responsible for the final two. With the game tied at 55, Klumpp dove for a loose ball at midcourt and managed to flip it to a breaking Aaron King, who scored a layup for Glen Lake’s first lead since the opening minutes. Ryan Dyksterhouse followed with a free throw, and the Lakers blocked Leland’s 3-point attempt to tie.

Dyksterhouse finished with 14 points, followed by Matt O’Brien with 11 and 8 from King. Will Hendricks grabbed 13 rebounds.

The Comets were paced by Jordan Gibson with 14 points, followed by Marcus and Galen Whittaker with 11 and 9 points, respectively.

Leland jumped to an 18-8 lead, and held on for 27-21 and 47-40 advantages at halftime and after three periods. But Glen Lake hung close, and buoyed by a packed gym dominated by Laker fans mostly controlled the last eight minutes.

"It was packed," said Glen Lake coach Todd Hazelton. "It was a real fun atmosphere. I was real leery of our energy level, but our energy level was great. To me, Leland is great, so it was a major bonus for our program."

Glen Lake’s energy checked in low on Tuesday, Feb. 12, at East Jordan, a 71-59 loss. Dyksterhouse still managed 18 points.

Glen Lake followed the Leland win with an upset Saturday over Kingsley, 57-50, propelled by 25-of-37 shooting at the free throw line. "They had to foul us, and we went to the line," said Hazelton.

O’Brien helped Glen Lake maintain its lead, hitting 9-of-9 free throws in the last quarter and all 10 of his attempts for the evening. O’Brien, a freshman, finished with 14 points and scored double figures in five of his last six games.

Dyksterhouse had a monster of a night, scoring 25 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Hendricks, a defensive specialist who comes off the bench, pulled down 11 boards.

The wins assured Glen Lake of finishing better than last season’s 7-14 mark. The Lakers are 10-9 overall and 7-6 in Northwest play following a win Tuesday over Mesick.

In other Northwest Conference games played last week, Leland dumped Mesick Saturday; and Suttons Bay fell Wednesday at Frankfort and Friday at Benzie Central. Frankfort and Benzie are tied for the Northwest lead with three losses apiece.

Leland 74, Mesick 53

The Comets used a big third quarter to blow the game open, outscoring the Bulldogs 27-9. Leland hit 33-of-73 shots for the game — the second largest number of shots taken all season. Marcus Whittaker canned 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, while Adam Nedow and Galen Whittaker scored 14 points apiece.

Frankfort 54, Suttons Bay 44

Cold shooting plagued the Norsemen, who normally rely on the long-range ball for points. But Suttons Bay hit just 2-of-23 at Frankfort, and trailed after every quarter.

Nick Loberg scored 12 points, with Craig Jasinski adding 9.

Benzie Central 68, Suttons Bay 50

The Norsemen managed just 15 second half points, and were outscored 21-6 in the third quarter by the Huskies. Dwaun Anderson scored 16 to pace Suttons Bay, with Ben Walters adding 10 and Loberg contributing 9. M. Gomez canned 22 for Benzie, including 9 in the third period.