ESCANABA, Mich. — Milwaukee Area Technical College women's basketball showed resilience at the Terrace Bay Hotel Holiday Classic this past weekend, earning a split with North Central Michigan and Bay College. The Stormers' 1-1 mark in Escanaba moved them to 5-6 overall and 4-3 away from home.

MATC opened the two-day event with a convincing win Friday behind sophomore forward Moriah Landry's fourth career double-double, but momentum swung the other way Saturday as the Stormers struggled to protect the ball. Bay College forced 31 turnovers and converted them into 35 points, handing MATC a double-digit defeat to close the weekend.

"Getting the split is good, but getting two wins would have been great," MATC head coach Arom Murrell said. "Our defense and our ability to get out in transition, along with our rebounding, propelled us to the win over NCMC. Turnovers were a direct contributor to our fall Saturday — 35 points off 31 turnovers will always produce a loss. We were dominated in the paint and we played flat, uninspired basketball."

Game 1 (Friday):
Stormers 71, North Central Michigan 48

Milwaukee Area Technical College controlled the pace Friday night, building a 25-point cushion and rolling to a 71-48 road win over North Central Michigan. The Stormers seized momentum with a dominant second quarter, outscoring the Timberwolves 19-9 to take a 39-25 halftime lead, and later closed strong with an 18-8 fourth-quarter push to even their record at 5-5.

Both offenses struggled to find rhythm, with each side shooting under 35 percent, but MATC imposed its will in every other phase. The Stormers overwhelmed the glass with a 63-35 rebounding margin that translated into a 24-2 edge in second-chance points. They controlled the lane with a 46-22 advantage in paint scoring, sprinted to a 16-2 fastbreak tally, and forced 28 turnovers while committing just 20 themselves.

Offensively, MATC shot 34.1 percent from the floor and 16.7 percent from 3-point range. North Central Michigan finished at 30.2 percent overall, holding a slight edge from deep and at the free-throw line. The Stormers' volume of attempts proved decisive as they converted 29 field goals to the Timberwolves' 16.

Landry powered MATC with her fourth double-double of the season, posting a team-high 15 points and 15 rebounds, including nine on the offensive glass. Freshmen guards Emani Summers, Sa'Nyai Mitchell and Laila Hamiel each added 11 points. Summers also contributed nine boards and four steals, Mitchell chipped in three rebounds and two assists, and Hamiel filled the stat sheet with six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Sophomore guard Rachel Schlies added nine points, eight rebounds, two assists and five steals, while freshman center Zihre Sellers matched her scoring output and pulled down 10 rebounds.



Game 2 (Saturday):
Bay College 87, Stormers 53

A night after rolling past North Central Michigan, MATC found itself on the other side of the momentum swing Saturday. The Stormers were outmatched in the second and fourth quarters, where Bay College combined to outscore them 46-20, including a decisive 28-11 surge in the second.

The Stormers, typically the ones who control the glass, were beaten on the boards 49-40 and struggled to find offensive rhythm. MATC shot 33.3 percent while Bay College converted at a 43.8 percent clip and hit six 3-pointers. The Norse capitalized on 31 Stormer turnovers for 35 points and held advantages of 19-8 in second-chance points, 46-28 in the paint and 32-17 off the bench.

No Stormer reached double figures, but Schlies and Summers each finished with nine points to pace the offense. Summers added eight rebounds, three steals and an assist, while Schlies contributed five steals, four boards and a block. Sellers chipped in eight points, six rebounds, three steals and a block, and Mitchell provided eight points, four rebounds, two steals and an assist in 23 minutes off the bench. Lacee Rodriguez rounded out the effort with seven points, six rebounds and a steal.

UP NEXT
MATC (5-6) will travel to Moraine Valley Community College a t 5:15 p.m. Tuesday.