Feb. 11, 2023, ESCANABA, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Community College women's basketball team scored the first 16 points of the second half and cruised to a 71-46 victory at Bay College on Saturday.
The men’s team fell short, losing 99-72.
After leading by just 11 at the break, the GRCC women’s team out-scored the Norse 41-17, while leading by as many as 41 mid way through the final quarter. With the win, the team is now 12-7 and in third place in the conference with a 6-3 record.
"Anytime we can get a win on the road in this conference, we’ve done some nice things,” coach David Glazier said. “Today it was specifically on display when looking at our play coming out of halftime. I’m especially proud given the added challenge of traveling nearly six hours away for this one. Credit to our kids for locking in and keeping a business-like focus for this trip."
Sally Merrill led all scorers with 26 points on an efficient 12 of 19 from the floor, while grabbing six rebounds. It was her 16th career game with 20 or more points and fourth in her last five games.
As a team, GRCC shot 44.8 percent from the field, which was their third best performance of the season. It also bested Bay College in every other statistical category including 10 more rebounds, 11 more assists and 11 fewer turnovers.
Grace Lodes, 12 points, Allison Kellogg, 11 points, and Karissa Ferry, 11 rebounds were the only other Raiders in double figures.
The men's team trailed by 14 at the break, and went on a 13-3 run to start the second half and make it a four-point game. But Bay College coasted to a 99-72 victory to stay unbeaten in the conference. GRCC dropped to 4-5 in conference play and 15-7 overall.
Herman Brown came off the bench to score a team-high 16 points, including four-of-eight from behind the arc.
Danyel Bibbs and Chris Coleman were the only Raiders in double figures with 11 and 10 points.
Both teams will return home on Feb. 15 to take on rival Muskegon Community College. The women will tip-off first at 5:30 p.m.
This story was reported by Ben Brown.