By By SCOTT NOVAK / Dowagiac Daily News
RICHLAND – Sometimes the hole you dig early on in a game is too deep to climb out of.
Such was the case for visiting Dowagiac Thursday night. The Chieftains shot 3-of-26 in the first half and trailed 21-7 at halftime of their Wolverine Conference basketball showdown with Gull Lake.
The Lady Blue Devils, faced with a must-win situation, handed Dowagiac a 38-33 setback.
The loss dropped Dowagiac into a second place tie with Gull Lake. Both teams, now 12-4 in the league, trail Otsego by a game. The Lady Bulldogs improved to 13-3 with a victory over Allegan on Thursday night.
Dowagiac (12-6 overall) couldn't get anything going in the first half. The Chieftains kept attacking the basket, but were not getting to the free throw line like they usually do.
In fact, Dowagiac had just 11 foul shots in the contest.
"As much contact and as much as we penetrated to the basket, I am disappointed we did not get more free throw attempts," Dowagiac coach Greg Blomgren said. "We attacked the basket again and again, but we weren't rewarded for our aggressiveness."
Despite the 14-point halftime deficit, the Chieftains were able to come back in the second half and make a game of it.
Dowagiac cut the lead to 35-33 with 2:40 to play when Katy Stuppy connected on a 3-pointer.
Dowagiac would miss its next five shots, which allowed Gull Lake to put the game away at the free throw line.
"What did we have, four or five shots when we got it down to two?" Blomgren asked.
Gull Lake made the most of its free throw opportunities down the stretch, although a couple of misses with just over 30 seconds left to play allowed Dowagiac a chance.
Again, the Chieftains couldn't connect and Gull Lake accomplished what it came into the game to do – keep their league title hopes alive.
"I don't know if we should have pulled up and taken threes or continued to drive to the basket," Blomgren lamented following the game. "But I am not going to second guess our shot selection. We just couldn't make a basket tonight."
The Chieftains trailed 10-4 after one period of play. Dowagiac hit just 2-of-14 shots, while Gull Lake connected on 5-of-9.
The shooting woes of the Chieftains continued in the second quarter as they hit just 1-of-12 from the field. Gull Lake remained hot as it hit 5-of-11 attempts.
Stuppy became the school's all-time leading scorer as she tossed in a team-high 14 points. Stuppy now has 1,013 points in her career. She is also just the second player in school history to surpass the 1,000 point mark. Stuppy broke April Danzy's record of 1,001 set in 1998. (see related story)
Dowagiac also got six points from Torie Lowe and four points from Shardatsha Fitchett.
Amanda Gajor's 13 points led Gull Lake. Carrie Grudius added seven points.
The Chieftains will be trying to force a tie atop the league standings on Tuesday night when they host Otsego. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
DOWAGIAC 33
Holly Lowe 0 0-0 0, Torie Lowe 2 0-0 6, Kristy Cooper 1 1-2 3, Sada Nealey 1 0-0 2, Katy Stuppy 4 4-7 14, Shardatsha Fitchett 2 0-0 4, Britnee Allerton 0 1-2 1, Beth Williams 1 0-0 3. Totals: 11 6-11 33
GULL LAKE 38
Kate Petty 2 0-0 4, Heather Ploehn 1 1-3 3, Carrie Grudius 2 1-2 7, Kerry Harrison 0 0-0 0, Karlee Petersen 1 0-0 2, Amanda Gajor 5 3-4 13, Jessie Eckler 1 0-1 3, Christine White 1 0-0 2, Jamie Smith 2 0-0 4. Totals: 15 5-10 38
Gull Lake 10 23 31 38
Dowagiac 4 11 20 33
3-point baskets: Grudius (GL) 2, Eckler (GL), Stuppy (D) 2, T. Lowe (D) 2, Williams (D). Total fouls: Gull Lake 14, Dowagiac 18. Fouled out: T. Lowe (D). Records: Dowagiac 12-6, 12-4 Wolverine; Gull Lake 13-5 overall, 12-4 Wolverine