HART – A bit of rust was evident for Hart’s girls basketball team in their season opener Monday, Dec. 2, but it didn’t take long for the Pirates to take control. A 44-32 home win over Grant was the result.
Grant won 15 games in 2023 and with a returning crew of seven seniors, the Tigers figured to be a tough non-conference test for Hart and head coach Travis Rosema.
Both teams struggled to find a flow in the first quarter. Grant deployed an evident defensive strategy, packing the paint to force Hart to live on the perimeter. The Pirates still found their way down low, but several missed layups kept the score close.
“(Cleaning up our mistakes) will come naturally, this is just the first game jitters,” Rosema said. “Grant was second in their league last year, so hard earned wins are still good wins. I think later down the road our shooters will start making more shots.”
Senior guard Addi Hovey and sophomore guard Rilynn Porter hit a trio of big three point shots that pushed Hart in front. The Pirates led Grant 9-6 after the first eight minutes of play.
“There’s a lot of things to clean up, but I think we did a really good job pushing the ball up the court,” Hovey said. “Sometimes the transitions turned into turnovers. While we did a lot of good things, there’s plenty to clean up.”
The second quarter saw Hart heat up as Hovey scored two quick buckets out of the gate. Sophomore Reese Smith and seniors Kelsey Copenhaver and Breslyn Porter got involved as well. Grant’s offense completely stalled out, mostly due to three empty trips to the free throw line. That helped the Pirates add to their lead, owning a 22-6 advantage at halftime.
Grant added several deep shots in the third quarter in an effort to get back into contention, but Hart responded enough to keep the Tigers at a distance.
Leading 30-16 heading into the fourth, Hovey provided one final spark to propel the Pirates to a 1-0 start to the year. Hovey scored 12 of her team-high 19 points in the final quarter as her teammates picked apart Grant’s zone defense.
Hovey had a double-double, adding 15 rebounds and seven steals to her 19 point scoring performance. Rilynn Porter followed with 10 points and three assists while Copenhaver had four points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Hart will get some weekend action as they head to Aquinas College in Grand Rapids Saturday, Dec. 7 to face Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian. The Pirates will open conference play Tuesday, Dec. 10 against rival Shelby.
