BY DAN STICKRADT
CORRESPONDENT
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
ROCHESTER HILLS – If Rochester Stoney Creek can gain back its entire roster soon, the Cougars could be dangerous.
Stoney Creek moves out of the holiday season with a 4-3 record, including a 53-15 decision over Rochester but a 57-31 setback to Flint Carman-Ainsworth — although that loss saw the Cougars miss three starters for various reasons.
“It’s hard to gage how we would have done in that game. The three girls we were missing our or ball-handlers, our attackers,” said second-year coach Kellen James. “It’s hard when you’re missing that much. In the Rochester (win), we had most of our players and we played very good defensively. We had to call off (the press) early in the game because we were playing very good defense.”
Stoney Creek owns wins over Rochester, Utica (53-25), Birmingham Seaholm (30-12) and Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy (54-40). The other two losses came against Holly (44-34) and perennial state powerhouse Waterford Kettering (34-24).
Most of the contests featured key players absent from the lineup.
“I think once we’re healthy, we can compete with anyone in our league,” said James, whose team tied for third in the OAA Red Division last winter in his first season as head coach. “We have some good players. We don’t have that one superstar like a lot of teams that we play, so when we’re missing 2-3 kids in a game it shows.”
Stoney Creek is in its 15th season of athletics and the Cougars have performed quite well in recent years, especially in the postseason. After failing to win a postseason district game from 2002 to 2009, the Cougars have played in seven straight district finals and captured district crowns in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016.
In 2012 and 2014, Stoney Creek advanced to the Class A regional finals (Sweet 16), falling to Waterford Kettering and Birmingham Marian, respectively.
“We’ve had a lot of success recently,” reminded James, who was an assistant coach for four seasons before taking over for Brad Crighton before the 2015-16 campaign. “We’ve been to at least the district finals every year since I’ve been on staff and a couple of years before that.”
While Stoney Creek has had a handful of All-State players since the inception of the program in 2002-03 — Bethany Campbell, Brittney Nelson, Gabbi Yurik and Maria Zandi — this year’s team does not bolster that type of a standout. But the Cougars do have solid balance on this roster.
Sophomore Emily Eckhout averages around 10 points a game, while junior Morgan Porter averages around 7.5 points a game and Division I soccer recruit Emily Solek averages around 7.5 points and 7.2 steals a game.
“Emily is a great athlete. Even when she’s not near the ball, she moves so well, always thinking and anticipating,” praised James.“In seven games, she has 50 steals. She might not score a ton, but she means a lot to this team.”
Still, Stoney Creek hopes to be a factor in league play, which begins the second week of January, and again contend for a district crown come early March.
“By the end of the year, if we are healthy, I expect that we’ll compete for a district title,” reminded James. “That’s always the goal.”
Stoney Creek cruises past Rochester
Rochester Stoney Creek had little problems against shorthanded Rochester over Christmas break, topping the Falcons 53-15 at Rochester Holiday Classic.
Stoney Creek opened the game on a 17-4 run and never looked back, unleashing a deadly full-court press. By halftime, the Cougars were in complete control with a 34-6 advantage.
Stoney Creek outscored Rochester 19-9 in the second half.
Emily Solek scored 12 points and Emily Eckhout followed with 11 points for the Cougars. Madison Rochow chipped in with seven points for Stoney Creek.
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