The Stillman Cup between Vermilion and Firelands is guaranteed to be a hard-fought and physical battle.
The doubleheader at Firelands on Nov. 26 was no different as the Falcons swept the Sailors in both matchups.
“The physicality totally added up to what today’s hype was for sure,” Firelands coach Onyx Lopez said. “I enjoy a physical game. I think my girls enjoy a physical game, and we play with a chip on our shoulder when we are in situations like that.”
Firelands girls’ defense dominated to win, 47-27, and the boys team edged out the Sailors, 47-42.
PHOTOS: Firelands-Vermilion boys and girls basketball doubleheader, Nov. 26, 2022
"We just proved that we are the better team," Firelands forward Jimmy Aunspaw said. "We scored off fast breaks. That's what we have been trying to do all year. If our defense is good, we are winning games."
Aunspaw finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Aunspaw gets the and-1
Falcons lead 31-30 in Q3@MJournalSports @TheSailorNation @FirelandsFalcon pic.twitter.com/QWJBsSGxGl
— Mark Perez-Krywany 🤓 (@MarkPerezK10) November 27, 2022
Firelands had to fight off Vermilion, which kept the game tight and took a 37-36 lead in the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer from M.J. McCann. The Falcons responded with a 7-0 run to put the game out of reach.
Firelands takes lead in Q4 @MJournalSports @TheSailorNation @FirelandsFalcon pic.twitter.com/s4A8CW5snj
— Mark Perez-Krywany 🤓 (@MarkPerezK10) November 27, 2022
"I told (the team) that (Vermilion) is going to go on their runs," Firelands coach Colin Myers said. "We just have to weather (the storm) and we will go on ours. That is exactly what we did. We were physical all night long, and we just kept pounding (the ball) inside. They tried to throw a press. Our guys just executed (the press-break) really well."
Not only was it the first win for the Falcons' boys team, but it was also the first win for their first-year coach Myers.
"When I played (Vermilion), I never beat them," he said. "This time, being a coach, we beat them, especially breaking in a new gym like this. The fans were awesome. It was a packed house. Our players stepped up and they played hard."
Vermilion started out with a quick 6-0 lead in the boys game. Firelands fought back with a 15-3 run as the Sailors looked to recover their 3-point shooting in the season opener.
"We were taking what (Firelands) was giving us," Vermilion coach Kurt Habermehl said. "Normally, we knock shots down we are a good shooting team. I would have bet that we went 8-for-35 tonight. You are not going to win games when you don't make wide open shots, and we had plenty of them."
Andrew Hendershot finished with 17 points.
Hendershot cuts Firelands’ lead to 45-42 in Q4 @MJournalSports @FirelandsFalcon @TheSailorNation pic.twitter.com/K7e80FA3ek
— Mark Perez-Krywany 🤓 (@MarkPerezK10) November 27, 2022
Firelands' defense paved the way for the girls team. The Falcons' rebound imposed their physicality on Vermilion with a 41-21 rebounding advantage.
"We definitely had the size advantage on (Vermilion)," Firelands center Lauren Valerius said. "At practice, we focus a lot on boxing out and getting rebounds. That is a lot of what we work on. I led the team in rebounds for the past two years, so I think that it is my responsibility to get down in the paint."
Valerius led the Falcons with 14 rebounds to go with 12 points.
Firelands also forced 21 turnovers on the night. The defense was at its peak in the second quarter.
"We run like three different types of defenses so they are constantly adjust every single play. (Our play style) was definitely a big help," Valerius said. "It throws (opponents) off a lot. They come out and just panicked and don't know what to do out there."
The Falcons entered the second quarter with a 10-7 lead. They allowed three points for the rest of the first half to lead, 25-10, at halftime.
"It's hard to get any rhythm against (a defense like that)," Lopez said. "For us, it's not really getting to them. It's about how we get fired up. Switching defenses and throwing new defense at (Vermilion) gets my team pumped up and ready to play harder so we are picking things up on the defensive end."
Firelands point guard Bella Simmons led the team with 14 points and six steals. Freshman Jordyn Copley had nine points and eight rebounds.
Firelands improved to 2-1 for the girls team and 1-1 for the boys, as Vermilion's girls team dropped to 1-2 and the boys went to 0-1.
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