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By Ryan Schlehuber, ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Sportswriter

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Makenna Rautio is becoming a force to be reckoned with.Ìý

The sophomore guard (Big Rapids, Mich) led the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Centurions women’s basketball team to its first back-to-back wins of the season and its first road win with a 55-51 victory against Kirtland Community College Saturday, Jan. 25.Ìý

Rautio made up almost 50% of ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s offense, scoring 25 points while collecting 15 rebounds, both career-highs. She has led the team in scoring now three consecutive games.Ìý

The Centurions are now 3-10 on the year and 2-2 in the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍøAA Northern division, having beaten Alpena Community College in their previous game to earn consecutive wins (ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s road game against Muskegon Community College was postponed due to weather).ÌýÌý

Two key elements to the Centurions’ win were their three-point shooting, which they went 13-of-41 to Kirtland’s 4-of-28, and ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø outrebounded the Firebirds, 47-38.Ìý

ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø, however, turned the ball over 17 times to KCC’s nine and the Firebirds outscored the Centurions in the paint, 26-4, and points off turnovers, 11-4.Ìý

The Centurions came out hot, hitting four unanswered three-pointers from freshman guard Emily Putnam (Sidney, Mich), who returned from an ankle injury that kept her out of the previous game, one from freshman forward Kennedy Schilling (Flushing, Mich.) and two from Rautio to give ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø a 12-0 lead.ÌýÌý

Kirtland’s Mariah Ellis finally scored on a layup to stop ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s scoring run.Ìý

Freshman forward Emma Rewa (Greenville, Mich.) made it 17-5 after rebounding a missed shot and getting a put-back shot. The Centurions then went on an 11-6 run to earn their largest lead of the game, by 17, after freshman guard Madi Longoria (Wyoming, Mich.) dropped in a three-point shot, making it 34-17.Ìý

ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø went into halftime leading, 35-20.Ìý

The Firebirds began a comeback in the second half, cutting ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s lead to 10 after Ellis scored a layup, making it 41-31, and then went on another scoring run, this time a 15-8 run, to pull within three points.Ìý

Longoria managed to give ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø a little more breathing room after hitting a three-point shot, making it 52-46. After the two teams traded single free throws, Ellis put in a layup and, after forcing an ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø turnover, teammate Adrianna Gilmore put in a layup to dwindle the Centurions’ lead to just two.Ìý

The Firebirds were then forced to foul to stop the clock, but Putnam sank both free throws, making it 55-51 and sealing the win.ÌýÌý

Along with Rautio’s team-leading numbers, Putnam scored nine points, collected seven rebounds and led the team in assists with seven. Longoria finished with 11 points, Schilling with five points and nine rebounds, and Rewa finished with three points and seven rebounds.ÌýÌý

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Media inquiries, please contact:

Shelly Springborn
Director of Communications and Public Relations
shellys@montcalm.edu
989-560-0833