Bronson girls defeat Union City in first hoops game of 2022; Bronson JV downs Union City JV

UNION CITY — The Union City Chargers played host to the Bronson Vikings in the first varsity girls basketball contest for both teams in 2022, a matchup the Vikings would claim by the score of 50-33.

“It was a good even paced game for us, we were even the whole game really,” said Bronson head coach Tony Lasky. “Coming off a 22 day lay off you’re a little concerned about what you are going to see on the court and I think we were, well I don’t want to say lethargic, but we were a step slow for us tonight, getting to the spots we needed to get to. In the end we were crisp on the offensive end and we did a pretty good job of sharing the ball, getting everyone involved.”

Union City actually hit the scoreboard first with a beautiful pass from Jordan Chard to Kassandra Kohsmann for two quick points on the Chargers opening possession.

Bronson answered back in a big way, embarking on a 9-0 run over the next three minutes of play, building a 9-2 lead as the game neared the midway point of the first quarter.

Union City finally broke the scoreless streak with a 15-footer from Megann Russell at the four minute mark, closing the score to 9-4.

Bronson continued to play crisp basketball on the offensive end, hitting a number of back door cuts with beautiful passes, eventually pushing their lead to double digits at 16-6 after a pair of Haylie Wilson free throws late in the first quarter, a score that would hold heading into the second quarter of play.

Union City managed to again hit pay dirt first in the new quarter as once again it was Russell with an inside bucket, closing the score to 16-8. Bronson answered quickly with a three pointer from Addison Harris on the next trip down, rebuilding the double digit lead to 19-8 thereby retaking control of the game.

The Bronson defense held the Chargers in check for much of the quarter as the Vikings continued to pull away despite battling a few miscues of their own throughout the period. Bronson managed to push their lead to 23-8 at the four minute mark after another back door bucket, this time from freshman Aubree Calloway.

Union City finally broke their scoreless run with a deep two pointer from Carly Gordon at the two minute mark, closing the score to 23-10.

After a quick four points from Bronson over the next minute and a half extended the Viking lead, it was Gordon hitting from downtown with just :15 seconds left in the half for Union City, closing the score to 27-13 at the break after the three point bucket.

After adjustments at the half for both teams it was Union City once again opened the scoring, this time with another three pointer from Gordon, closing the score to 27-16 just seconds into the third quarter.

The teams played nearly even basketball over the next five minutes of play, although Bronson did manage to outscore the Chargers to the tune of a 9-4 advantage thanks in large part to solid defense, building a 36-20 lead with just under three minutes to go in the third quarter, forcing a Charger timeout.

Bronson added to their lead just as the buzzer sounded to end the third quarter on a fast break bucket by Brealyn Lasky, giving the Vikings a 40-22 lead after three quarters of play.

The fourth quarter was a virtual stalemate between the two squads, as Bronson continued to rotate players in and out while Union City showed no quit on either end of the floor.

Bronson looked to have outscored Union City 10-9 in the fourth in the closing seconds, however the Chargers had the final say as it was Russell pulling in an offensive rebound and hitting a put back just before the buzzer sounded, finding the final score of 50-33.

Bronson was led on the night by freshman Aubree Calloway who scored 14 points to go along with six rebounds and two steals. Also pouring in 14 points was junior Haylie Wilson who also added three rebounds, one assist and two steals.

Chipping in for the Bronson victory was Addison Harris with seven points, six rebounds and six steals in a solid all-around effort; Brealyn Lasky with five points, one rebound and one assist; Jadyn Cary with four points, two rebounds and six steals; Helena Eley with two points, six rebounds and three assists; Ava Hathaway with two points; and Payton Springstead with two points, four rebounds and an assist.

“For our first game back after a long lay off and being on the road I can’t ask for much more than what they did tonight other than they know I expect more from them on the defensive end,” added Lasky. “We will improve on that and get back to it, we don’t have a lot of time to sit and think about it as we are right back at it tomorrow with Athens.”

Union City was led on the night by senior Megann Russell who scored a tough 12 points after a solid game in the paint.

Also adding to the Charger effort was Madison Wilbur with five points; Carley Gordon with eight points; Kassandra Kohsmann with four points; Aaleya Asher with two points; and Jordan Chard with two points.

With the loss Union City falls to 2-4 overall on the season and 0-2 in the Big 8 conference while Bronson improves to 5-2 overall on the season and 5-1 in the Big 8 conference. Bronson will next see action Wednesday when they host the Athens Indians while Union City will next see action Friday when they travel to Jonesville.

Bronson JV girls down Union City in first game of 2022

UNION CITY — The Bronson JV Lady Vikings opened their post holiday schedule with a Big 8 conference victory Tuesday night, defeating conference rival Union City 42-22.

Bronson’s defense played a huge part in the victory as Bronson only allowed three points in the first quarter and three points in the second quarter on their way to building a 20-6 lead at the half.

Union City finally started to get their feet under them after the long layoff, playing Bronson to a 10-10 stalemate in the third quarter as the Vikings held on to a 30-16 lead after three quarters.

Bronson managed to put the game away with a 12-6 advantage in the fourth quarter, finding the final score of 42-22.

Bronson saw two players reach double figures, led by Ava Hathaway with 16 points and Ciara Blankenship with 14 points. Also adding to the Viking win was Ryleigh Fee with eight points and Jasmine Jewett with four points.

Leading the Union City effort was Milania Seaman with 10 points, the lone Charger in double figures. Also adding to the Charger effort was Nevada Gillons with five points, Willow Austin with four points, and Addison Meyer with three points.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Reporter: Bronson girls defeat Union City in first hoops game of 2022