Each Sunday, yours truly will take a look at some of the bigger stories and important notes of the week with a wrap up column.
So what caught Bounce’s eye this week?
TRIPLE OVERTIME
Tuesday produced not one, but two triple overtime games. That just doesn’t happen much.
In Woodburn, Angola and Woodlan had themselves a slugfest that ended with an 81-72 win for the Hornets in a fun non-conference matchup that may be the best game we see on the boys side before 2024 comes to a close. The Hornets rallied many times to make multiple overtime even happen. In the second overtime, Angola trailed by as many as five and the Warriors just couldn’t put them away. Junior Tyler Ruple took the lead with 20 points for Angola.
Angola’s last overtime victory came on February 18, 2023 over West Noble; they last went to multiple overtimes in a 2014 win over Hamilton. Angola’s last triple overtime effort takes us all the way back to November 27, 1999 when coach Jim Speicher led the Hornets to a 73-67 win at Wawasee.
The other triple OT game took place in Elkhart where Prairie Heights pulled off the win over Elkhart Christian 63-55. The Panthers actually played a three overtime game just two and a half years ago, beating Lakewood Park in February of 2022. The Panthers and Elkhart Christian were actually tied at 26 at the end of the third period of play before a lot of scoring got us to the final on Tuesday.
WAS COLUMBIA CITY UNDERRATED?
That headline question means a lot, but a better question may be why were they underrated?
On Tuesday, the Eagles scored their biggest victory of the season with a 51-47 triumph at home against Homestead. It was the first Columbia City win over the Spartans since the 2009-2010 season, back when they shared a conference in the now-defunct NHC.
The Eagles graduated a lot of really important pieces and it led many, Bounce maybe included, to believe that this would be a down year in Whitley County. I mean, we all knew they still had Addison Baxter and that alone has been worth some big wins so far this season. But the consistency their lineup has had makes Columbia City so tough and we saw that on Tuesday. Torah Holler has been exceptional all season and followed Baxter in scoring in the win over Homestead and Laney Ziliak also added nine points, hitting three triples and adding three steals.
Also during the game Tuesday, Baxter moved to second on Columbia City’s all-time scoring list getting to 1,396 career points with only Connie Myers ahead of her at this point. Baxter got there with just 13 points, but she also had 11 rebounds and seven assists. Myers’ 1,629 career points keeps getting closer and closer.
On Friday, things got even better as the Eagles earned NE8 control with a massive win over Norwell. That combined with the win over Homestead may have this as the best week of Columbia City girls basketball in recent memory. The 74-67 win over Norwell was led by Baxter’s rare but exceptional triple double as she finished just shy of her career high in scoring with 32 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. Anisa Tonkel scored 18 of her 25 in the second half and Torah Holler added 12.
Baxter’s 32 points against Norwell now has her at 1,428 career points and counting.
LAKEWOOD’S BIG SCORERS
Does Lakewood Park have two of the best offensive players in Northeast Indiana? They sure do.
On Tuesday, the Panther stars showed out, but both the boys and girls teams ended up falling in their respective games. Avery MacFarlane scored 27 in a loss to Heritage, while Ava McGrade did just the same in the girls’ loss to Central Noble. MacFarlane scored 20 on Saturday, again in loss, this time to Fremont.
Lakewood Park is small and their big successes come few and far between. The boys team and the girls team each won their lone Sectional titles in 2018. And they each did so behind big scorers and offensive players with Keegan Fetters and Chloe Jolloff each helping to lead the way. Jolloff was young in her career at that point but the breakthrough helped her become one of Northeast Indiana’s biggest stars during that time, eventually becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer.
That title now sits with McGrade, who scored 16 points as one of Lakewood’s eight different scorers in Thursday’s win against Blackford. McGrade now sits at 1,299 career points and surpassed Jolloff’s 1,291 that was the previous record. McGrade is the 8th highest scorer in DeKalb County history.
Lakewood Park’s boys are looking for their first winning season since that 2017 title triumph, while the girls have had a pair of above .500 efforts since then, including last season’s 16-7 mark.
Without a conference, the Sectional goal remains Lakewood’s big focus. And in Class 1A, having a high end scorer can be a big boost towards a possible crown. Eight years later, in 2025, will the Panthers girls and/or boys be back in the running for that? The each have the right lead players for it.
ACAC DRAW TAKES PLACE
On Wednesday, the draw was made for the annual ACAC Tournaments in January. In a time where we lose a lot of traditions, it is great to see the ACAC is always right on formula with their luncheon with coaches and draw up on the big board.
It is such a unique thing that has some old school history. This will be the 102nd season for the boys tournament and 51st for the girls.
For the first time in a while though, a winner seems up in the air. Adams Central boys have won the last two on that side and Jay County girls have thoroughly dominated since they’ve been in the conference. But this season, well things look up in the air now and also may not by the time we get to the tournament in January.
On the top half of the bracket, which both the boys and girls follow, Adams Central will meet Southern Wells with Heritage awaiting the winner and the bye. On the bottom side, Jay County faces off with South Adams while Woodlan and Bluffton battle it out with the winners of those two games facing each other.
Who are the favorites? Ah, its too early to say that and you know we will talk more about it in January. But this frog will tell you that anything can happen then and before then.
OTHER BOYS NOTES
South Side shot 66 percent from the field in Tuesday’s win over Leo; with Friday’s win at North Side, the Archers are now 5-0 for the first time since 2006….Marshawn Warfield continued his breakout early season with 24 points Tuesday in Northrop’s 63-44 upset win over East Noble….Chase Barnes scored 33 Wednesday as Wayne beat New Haven 91-69, marking Wayne’s seconds straight 90 point game after only scoring 43 in a season opening loss at Leo….Fort Wayne Hawks‘ Trevon Maley had 17 rebounds Friday in their win over West Michigan….Angola boys had a big week: Tyler Ruple scored 20 Tuesday in a 3OT win against Woodlan and on Friday, Niles Knox had 20 as the Hornets handed Garrett their first loss of the season.
OTHER GIRLS NOTES
Bluffton‘s Isabella Stout scored a career high 27 points Tuesday in a win over Wabash; she did so on 12-of-18 shooting….Prairie Heights‘ Emily McCrea also had a career high Tuesday with 26 points in a win over Canterbury….Miley Wareing made her Northrop debut Tuesday; one of last season’s breakout stars, she had 12 points and 11 rebounds in a win over East Noble….Warsaw scored 91 points on Carroll Wednesday, marking the second 50 point win of the season for the Tigers; they last scored in the 90s in 2001 with a 91-65 win at Northridge….Eastside had 5 girls in double figures scoring in Wedesday’s win over Churubusco, led by 19 from Sydnee Kessler….Northrop‘s Swynn Jackson had 9 steals Friday in a win over Bishop Luers….Angola‘s Bailey Holman had a career high 27 points Saturday in a win over Concordia….Ava Stafford broke her own Adams Central three point record with 7 makes Saturday against South Adams; she scored 30 total points…Marissa Trout of Huntington North also had a career high Saturday with 29 points in a win over Marion.
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I think it’s about time to give the Bluffton Lady Tigers some respect. They are not a one lady show and also have a coach that deserves respect.