MONTAGUE – The Wildcats head into the rivalry with a 1-3 record, while Whitehall continues to ride its high coming off back-to-back wins against Spring Lake and Ludington.
Whitehall has been on the winning side of the rivalry in the last 11 meetings, including two playoff wins.
The Wildcats have a rough start this season. With one lone win against Orchard View and three large losses to Hart, Spring Lake and Fruitport.
Montague’s Riley Mulder and Cole Herremans led the Wildcats with seven points in the opener. While senior Jack Degan also added six. The game was close at the split, with Hart leading 20-12. However, the offense for Montague could never really find its footing, scoring just 29 points and giving up 59.
Fast forward to the following week against Orchard View, Montague came away with a 40-29 win on the road. Senior Courtland Schneider led the tribe with 14 points, followed by senior Kellan Francis and Mulder with nine points apiece.
The Wildcats continued their three-game road stint to Spring Lake for an out-of-conference affair.
That is when things took a turn for the worst for the blue and white, scoring just 19 points in a full 32-minute basketball game. Braylen Vansickle led all Wildcat scorers with six points.
Montague returned home to play Fruitport, hoping to get back on track. After the first quarter, Montague had them on the ropes tied at 13. Slippery guard play by the Trojans, led by DayDay Williams and Dexter Lillmars, combined for 38 points. Montague fell behind in the second quarter and momentum, dropping the game 62-43.
As for Whitehall, they opened on the road as well, but not with Hart. The Vikings traveled to Division One powerhouse Hudsonville.
Hudsonville shot a stellar 11-21 from three-point land and kept Whitehall out of the game, hitting dagger after dagger. Camden Thompson, a four-year starter for Whitehall, led all scorers with 31 points, as well as coming down with 14 boards. The Vikings ultimately dropped the season opener 78-55.
Before a three-game road trip, Whitehall had a mini-homecoming against Spring Lake and Ludington. Both were not very close games, with Whitehall taking care of Spring Lake 58-45 and Ludington 69-46.
Senior Brock Morningstar, along with senior Kal Koehler, are complementary scoring threats to Thompson. Morningstar and Koehler both had double-digit performances against Spring Lake.
If Montague wants to win this game, they are going to have find a new gear offensively. Averaging only 32 points per game as a team, may not be enough for the Cats’ to find the “W” Friday night.
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