St. Clair achieved a significant victory over L”Anse Creuse with a score of 53-30 in a pivotal game for first place in the Macomb Area Conference Gold Division on Thursday night.
In Harrison Township, the Lancers had been riding a five-game winning streak fueled by strong defensive efforts since the start of the year. However, against St. Clair, led by senior guard Gracie Pickelhaupt, the Lancers struggled to maintain their dominance.
The Saints showcased their exceptional teamwork, improving to 4-0 in the MAC Gold and 10-2 overall. “That just comes from our good chemistry as a team,” Pickelhaupt stated. “We all get along. We look for each other and we know where everyone is. We”re not worried about who”s getting the most points. We”re just trying to win the game.”
St. Clair”s performance was highlighted by their ball movement, with nearly two-thirds of their baskets coming off assists. Coach Darren Pietrykowski emphasized the importance of their passing game, stating, “We take a lot of pride in it. We work a lot on bounce passing and breaking presses.”
Pickelhaupt”s influence was evident, although she faced a brief setback when an accidental poke to her eye sidelined her for a few minutes early in the second half. “I couldn”t see for the first five minutes after,” she recalled. Pietrykowski noted the team”s struggles in her absence, saying, “When Gracie got hurt we weren”t the same team. We lost some of our rhythm.”
The Saints dominated the first half, entering halftime with a commanding 41-9 lead. “I thought that was the best half we”ve played this season,” Pietrykowski remarked. “The second half showed that we still have stuff to work on. When Gracie”s not in the game it”s definitely a big difference.”
After finishing just behind Roseville in the MAC Gold last season, St. Clair has emerged as a strong contender this year. “We lost two games in the division and I brought a lot back this year,” Pietrykowski said. “Our JV program has been deep for a while. We”re reaping the rewards of having a team that”s played for me for a while. They came out ready today. That”s a compliment to our whole coaching staff and the girls.”
Looking ahead, Pickelhaupt noted the need for consistency to maintain their position at the top. “Just not taking any team lightly,” she said. “Always coming in knowing that we have to compete and playing hard from the start. We can”t start off slow. We have to put it on teams right away.”
In the second half, L”Anse Creuse fared better, outscoring St. Clair 21-12. Coach Dave Kuznia addressed his team”s performance, stating, “At halftime we talked about playing L”Anse Creuse basketball regardless of the outcome. You don”t want to build bad habits. We had to prove to ourselves that we could play with them — and in spurts we did. We”re going to really have to put it together next time to compete with them.”
Kuznia credited the press defense for the Lancers” improvement in the latter half of the game. “We wanted pressure on defense and we made that our focus,” he explained. “Pressure in the half court and full court. St. Clair was at a different level so we have to get faster at it, get more refined at it so we can put pressure on a team like that. St. Clair is like a well-oiled machine — super talented and very well coached.”
Pickelhaupt led St. Clair”s balanced scoring with 15 points, while sophomore Maliyah Smith added 10 points. Both Sam Champion and Ella Komarowski contributed with eight points each. For L”Anse Creuse, Alexa Maracle scored nine points, and Lily Androl added six points, with Allison Tuladziecki and Elisia Simpson each contributing five points.
