WHITEHALL — Unsurprisingly given its inexperience, Whitehall has taken steps forward and backward over the course of its eight games so far. Wednesday was the latter, as the Vikings struggled to combat Fremont’s length and athleticism and dropped a 45-28 decision in West Michigan Conference Lakes play.
From the opening moments, the Packers flustered Whitehall with its full-court press, forcing a slew of turnovers. Whitehall was able to play strong enough defense to stay in the game despite the giveaways, even leading at a couple of points in the first half.
However, Fremont scored seven straight points late in the half to take a 21-13 lead. Clare Westerlund scored at the buzzer to get the Vikings back to within six, but Whitehall (2-6, 1-4 WMC Lakes) never got any closer.
“Obviously, credit to Fremont,” Vikes’ coach Brian Milliron said. “They run around. They’ve got four girls on this side and if we just keep our head up a little bit, maybe we can get some layups, but we did not handle the pressure well. We need to do a better job with that.”
Milliron said he believes in the guards on the team. With the exception of Kendall Osborne, though, most are still inexperienced at the varsity level, and the group hasn’t yet developed the on-court chemistry needed to break through in tough situations. The coach has seen it in practice, though, and believes it is coming.
“We had a similar situation last year where practices were going real well, and we were not having game translation,” Milliron said. “We eventually figured it out a little bit last year. This year, we’re going to have to.”
The Packers made things more difficult with their attacking mentality on defense. Jessica Bennett in particular was a thorn in the Vikings’ side, rejecting several shots in the lane and even swatting a three-point attempt at one point. That couldn’t have helped with whatever on-court jitters there may have been.
“She’s a real tough player,” Milliron said of Bennett, who had eight first-half points and 10 for the game. “The whole team is long. They play the same way in basketball as they do in volleyball. They’re scrappy. They don’t have any 6-2 kids on this team, but they play like they are. They get after it.”
The Vikings fell behind by double digits in the third quarter, but Milliron said the team was not yet out of the game - at least not as much as he thought they felt they were. Developing game toughness will be a focal point as the season moves on.
“Obviously the building, on a snow day, was quiet, but we’ve got to figure out, from the 10 of us and the coaches, some love and some passion and some energy and create our own,” Milliron said. “That’s something that we’re going to talk about at practice tomorrow.”
The coach credited Clare Westerlund, who had a team-best seven points, with making an impact on the team. Though only a freshman and still splitting time with the JV through the MHSAA’s five-quarter rule, Westerlund is forcing her way into the varsity lineup with her effort level and production.
“She plays hard on both ends,” Milliron said. “Clare’s been a very nice, pleasant surprise for us. She’s integrated in. The kids have accepted her. Sometimes that’s tough for freshmen. She’s done a great job with that.”
