Clarkston’s defense leads in win over Seaholm

By Wendi Reardon Price
Clarkston News Sports Writer
INDEPENDENCE TWP. — Clarkston Girls Varsity Basketball opened 2024 with a 46-22 win over Birmingham Seaholm last Friday.
“We knew we could lock them up in a good way defensively and really make them work for every basket,” said Aaron Goodnough, head coach. “They gave us exactly what we wanted on offense, but we just didn’t take advantage of it. It’s us, we just aren’t there yet. We are still struggling on the offensive end. We have moments where it looks okay. Then, we have large voids where it doesn’t. I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
The Wolves dominated the first half, finishing with a 29-11 lead.
“The first half we just came out motoring,” said Goodnough. “I knew we could get up and down the floor.”
Both teams scored six points in the third quarter with four points from sophomore Elli Robak and two points from freshman Brooklyn Covert.
Junior Elia Morgner opened the final quarter with a basket and one point on the free throw line at 7:23.
Seaholm scored two points before the Wolves added five more to the score with a 3-point shot from Covert and a basket from Robak.
“Later in the second half we pulled the reins back on them because we wanted to run,” Goodnough said. “They get a little tired of beating each other up in practice. I am not going to run up the score – that’s not my style. We got a lot of time for the girls who really support and work really hard in practice so I was glad about that.”
Robak led with 16 points with one field goal. Covert had eight points and Morgner had six points.
“Elli was playing really well. She was playing really hard to the point she was getting exhausted. I had to keep pulling her,” said Goodnough, adding junior Ellery Hernandez had a good game. “I have been really happy with her this year. She has just committed herself to defense. We had seven possessions in the first half we stole it in a row – seven in a row that’s our kind of defense. It’s tough because we will play you at the foul line, half court, we will play you all the way. We aren’t just going to stand back and let you run your stuff. The defense is really getting to where we want it to be now we just need to catch up.”
The Wolves (7-2) head to Rochester Adams on Thursday. JV plays at 5:30 p.m., varsity follows.
“They are really young,” said Goodnough. “They have some athletes, but they are really young.”
They play Grosse Pointe South on Saturday at West Bloomfield’s MLK Classic, 3:30 p.m.
“They have a talented player, Maddy Bernand. She’s really good,” said Goodnough, adding the team reminds him of Howell, who the Wolves played early in the season. “They have a couple of players you have to lock in on. There are girls I can throw in and put on her to wear her out.”
Clarkston starts their OAA Red league play on Jan. 16 at Stoney Creek, 7 p.m. They are back home when they host Lake Orion on Friday, Jan. 19, and back on the road at West Bloomfield, Thursday, Jan. 25.