By: Joe Blystone
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
MORENCI, MI (December 22, 2025) – Morenci was big. Morenci knew exactly what they wanted each time down the floor and were big doing it.
The undefeated Bulldogs entered the post over and over again, and did we already say they were big?
The Bulldogs used a supreme size advantage and superior post play over and over to expand a second-quarter lead to 15 at the half, and went on to take down Fayette, 63-47.
Emersyn Bachelder got inside twice early to give Morenci a quick lead, but the Eagles stayed tight most of the first quarter. A Kelsie Storrs spin move in the paint with 4:42 left kept the Eagles within 6-5. Kennedy Kunkle’s bucket off an inbounds play had Fayette within a bucket at 9-7.
Hailey Cleveland scored a three-point play sliding down the slot to boost the Bulldogs up 12-7, but Addison Schang tripled to again put Fayette down just a pair at the three-minute mark.
It was then that Colbie Ekins took over inside, scoring again and again in the first half. Ekins’s two baskets on post moves pumped the Morenci lead to 17-12 at the quarter, but her work was far from finished.
After Bachelder scored on a stick back and off a steal, Addyson Valentine went baseline to push the Bulldog gap to double figures at 23-12.
Mesa Gorsuch’s bucket and 2-2 at the stripe from Kunkle made the margin single digits again at 25-16, but Ekins went to work down low once, twice, and actually a total of four times the rest of the half to spur an 11-0 run, making it 36-16 with 45 ticks left.
Kunkle’s three and Willow Mitchell’s basket off her own miss got Fayette back to 36-21 at half, but again Morenci opened it up in the third.
Two Gorsuch free throws got Fayette as close as 38-25 with 6:08 to go in the third. Evelyn Joughin drilled a triple to begin an 11-4 run that regained a 20-point gap with 1:35 to go in the quarter.
Joughin and Bachelder each scored off steals, and Joughin got inside for another bucket to make it 49-29.
Twice in the fourth, Morenci (6-0) went ahead by 20, the last time with 3:53 to go when Bachelder hit from outside the arc to make it 59-39.
Bachelder had 22 for the Bulldogs with Ekins adding 21 and Joughin tallied 12. Morenci shot 67% (26-39) from the floor, much of that coming from inside the paint. The Bulldogs had 18 turnovers.
Fayette (6-2) was paced by Kunkle, who hit for 19 and Schang chipped in with 10. Fayette shot 16-37 and had 22 turnovers.
FAYETTE (47) – Schang 10; Storrs 5; Simon 0; Mitchell 3; Kessler 0; Phillips 2; Gorsuch 8; Kunkle 19; Beers 0; Totals: 13-3-12 – 47
MORENCI (63) – Ekins 21; Joughin 12; Zuvers 0; Dominique 4; Curtis 0; Cleveland 0; Rose 0; Kruse 0; Valentine 4; Bachelder 22; Totals: 24-2-9 – 63
FHS 12 9 12 14 – 47
MHS 17 19 16 11 – 63