'We played our game': St. Clair girls basketball rolls Richmond as districts begin

ARMADA — Eleven girls basketball teams in the Blue Water Area were supposed to open postseason play Monday. But Mother Nature had other plans.

Thanks to a mix of snow and sleet, only four local teams continued as scheduled in the quarterfinals of the MHSAA district tournaments. The remaining seven have to wait until Tuesday.

Here are the highlights from Monday's action.

St. Clair 47, Richmond 31

This was the Saints' first game in 10 days. And it showed early on.

"In the first quarter, I thought we were a little bit rusty," St. Clair coach Darren Pietrykowski said. "We weren't as aggressive as I'd like us to be. We talked about it and how to be more aggressive on defense."

"It took a little bit for us to realize that we're in districts right now and we have to get going," sophomore Allie Komarowski said. "But after that, we figured out what we needed to do and we just went from there. We played our game."

St. Clair outscored Richmond 27-6 over the next two quarters and ran away with the victory. Komarowski totaled a game-high 16 points for the Saints, who improved to 15-6 overall and advanced to Wednesday's district semifinal against Armada.

The Blue Devils finished the season at 3-19. They were led by Elizabeth Kocher's 15 points.

"That's where our strength is — in our defense," Pietrykowski said. "We were more aggressive, we started taking the ball to the hole and that's when we're at our best."

The change in urgency allowed St. Clair to close the second quarter on a 13-0 run. That gave the Saints some breathing room with a 23-11 lead at the half.

"Driving to the basket more definitely helped," junior Alexa Vickers said. "When we're the aggressor, we draw the fouls. And then (the opposing team) is trying to stop us."

Their defensive intensity also rose to the occasion. With Ashlyn Zimmer and Audrey Schindler patrolling the paint, St. Clair's perimeter defenders played with confidence.

"Knowing that somebody has your back behind you ... it's a lot of encouragement (to defend more aggressively)," Komarowski said. "There's a lot of trust."

The Saints passed the first test convincingly. But their next challenge comes against an unfamiliar opponent in Armada.

"I know they're going to bring everything," Pietrykowski said. "They have the home-court advantage. I know the BWAC is a very tough league … they're going to bring everything."

The last time these programs met was Feb. 28, 2018, back when the current players were all in middle school.

"It's refreshing, actually," Vickers said. "With a different team, you have new stuff to work on. You can get really stagnant playing teams over and over again."

"We're all hungry for that district title," Pietrykowski said. "I know we're going to get (Armada's) best game. And hopefully we'll bring our best game."

Wednesday's matchup is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Armada High School.

Marine City 34, Algonac 25

It was a typical day at the office for Jade Blanchard. The junior scored a game-high 17 points for the Mariners, who improved to 18-4 overall and advanced to Wednesday's district semifinal against Marysville.

Nine of Blanchard's points came in the first quarter. Paige Nelson finished with five points while Josalyn Dietlin added three points and 10 boards for Marine City.

The Muskrats, who ended the season at 5-14, were led by Ella Stephenson's 12 points. Danielle Rolan contributed seven. This marks the fifth straight season that Algonac has been eliminated by the Mariners.

Heading into Wednesday, Marine City is 0-2 against Marysville this year. The game will also be a rematch of last season's district final, which the Vikings won in thrilling fashion, 42-37. Tipoff is 5:30 p.m. at Armada High School.

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: 'We played our game': St. Clair girls hoops rolls as districts begin