Another week has gone by and that has given us more insight into girls basketball season as several teams picked up key out of area wins and others even started their conference seasons out right.
Take a look at some of the highlights of this week in area girls basketball.
WARSAW’S DOMINANCE
Warsaw has immediately taken on three of the best teams in Northeast Indiana and taken them all down successfully in the first two weeks of play.
After beating both Snider and Norwell on opening week, Warsaw opened this week on Tuesday with a successful trip to Northrop, beating the Bruins 67-44. Northrop trailed by just five after the opening quarter, but Warsaw widened the gap the rest of the way.
Three Tigers scored in double figures, led by Joslyn Bricker‘s 24, with Brooke Zartman scoring 22 and Reagan Huss adding 10 points; Zartman hit five more threes in the game, continuing to distance herself in the ‘best area shooter’ conversation. The Tigers shot 42.9 percent from the field in the game and their team rebounding numbers were impressive and balanced.
And that is the thing about what Warsaw looks like out of the gate this season. They are balanced and everyone does their job and fills their role. The structure in the program has always been evident but watching it play out on the court always remains fascinating. The fact that Warsaw has beaten those three teams by an average of around 13.5 points per game is highly impressive as all three of those area opponents are expected to compete for their conference and Sectional titles. So far, the Tigers have been almost surgical in their play.
On Saturday, Warsaw improved to 4-0 win a 60-49 win over #14 Valparaiso. Alexis Neely led the way with 18 points in that win.
BIG SCORERS IN THE NECC
Last week, it was Eastside‘s Adelaide Elden, Garrett‘s Sarah DePew and Fremont‘s duo of Mya Turner and Grace Scharlach that really lit up the scoreboard.
But in week two, the girls in the NECC really went to work and especially with games on Tuesday night.
Eastside and Garrett both saw big individual scoring nights, but not from the same players as last week. Instead, Lucy Kitchen scored 22 in Eastside’s win over Blackhawk Christian and then on Friday, it was Taylor Mack with 19 leading the Blazers to a big conference win, 54-46, over Fremont. Meanwhile Emma Coffman scored 29 points in Garrett’s win over Heritage on Tuesday, marking the first career win for new Railroader coach Wade Hantz. Garrett also saw freshman Avery Leech have a breakout game with her first career double double (14 points, 11 rebounds). On Saturday, Coffman would score 32 points in a win over New Haven to set a new sophomore single game scoring record for the Railroaders, passing Garrett great Brandi Dawson. Sarah DePew added 14 points and 15 rebounds against New Haven.
Coffman’s record now sits beside brother Carter, who tied Garrett’s boys sophomore scoring record (34) last season.
Turner (20 points) and Scharlach (19 points) were also back to their last week scoring antics Tuesday in a dominant win over Lakewood Park. Scharlach added 19 points on Friday in the hard fought loss to Eastside.
DEFENSIVE SHOWCASES
The week saw some strong defense showcased, again starting on Tuesday. Fremont held Lakewood Park to just 6 points, while Bellmont kept Concordia Lutheran at 13 points, holding Cadet standout Alivia Bolinger scoreless just says after she had a 30 point output.
Also on Tuesday, Joslyn Bricker of Warsaw picked up four steals against Northrop, as did Garrett‘s Emma Coffman against Heritage while freshman teammate Lucy Hefty had 6 steals. Speaking of steals on Tuesday, DeKalb‘s Abbie Harris had seven in a win over North Side, matched by the seven steals from Addison Deming in East Noble‘s win over Bishop Dwenger. Whitko forced Central Noble into 34 turnovers on Tuesday, completing a really strong day of defensive efforts. And outside of the realm of steals, Bluffton‘s Sophie Eisenhut had 5 blocks in Tuesday’s win over Northfield while teammate Eden Nash had four steals.
But the star of Tuesday’s big defensive night was Lakeland‘s Dulce Canedo with eight steals in a win over Goshen. It tied the program mark for fourth most steals in a game.
On Thursday, that steal total was topped as Heritage‘s Olivia Lybarger registered 10 swipes in the 38-32 win over Canterbury, helping new head coach Jason Miller to his first career win.
On Friday, Norwell picked up 22 steals against Culver Academies, led by six from Ashley Waldman. On Saturday, Macie Saalfrank led the Knights with four steals in a win over Northridge.
Southern Wells‘ Kaylee Davis flirted with a quadruple double Saturday in a win over Eastbrook, totaling 8 steals to go with 17 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds.
QUICK HITS
Mark Pixley got his first win leading DeKalb on Tuesday, topping North Side 57-21 behind 16 points from Kyla Tjendale…Hold on, another Schwieterman is on the loose; Karsyn Schwieterman debuted for Jay County Tuesday leading the team with 17 points in their win over South Side, while sister Hallie Schwieterman had 14 points; on Saturday it was Hallie with 25 and Karysn with 23 in a loss to Hamilton Heights….Lakeland‘s McKenzie Carlson tied for the 8th most rebounds in a game for the program on Tuesday with 12 in a win over Goshen….Homestead dominated Wednesday, winning a much anticipated game against Northridge 68-47; Whitney Ankenbruck led with 20 points while Gabby Helsom and Myah Epps each scored 17; on Saturday, the top ranked Spartans beat #3 Pike 71-57 behind 30 points from Helsom….Lakewood Park‘s Gracelyn Martin scored a career high 25 points Thursday in a loss to Adams Central….Columbia City girls had two massive wins late in the week that answers come questions about them from the preseason. On Friday, Izzy Knitter scorer 15 points as they edged county rival Whitko 51-48; on Saturday, the Eagles got 14 from Anisa Tonkel in a win over Fishers….East Noble‘s win over Bluffton Saturday was their first win on the road at Bluffton since the 1988-89 season….Central Noble has now won 16 straight over Prairie Heights.
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