Trojans Can Not Fend Off Cavaliers’ Advance

Thursday night would see an intense game between two opponents which will see each other again in the first round of Sectional play next week. The West Central Lady Trojans played host to the Culver Lady Cavaliers Thursday, as the regular season nears its end. On a night where West Central’s two Seniors, Jillian Hauptli and Camille Wuethrich, were honored in their final regular season home game, the Lady Cavaliers would come to town ready for an intense game.

Culver would not take long to get the legs working after a long bus ride to West Central. The Lady Cavs were ready from the start, jumping out to an early 16-3 lead in the first quarter. With an extremely balanced offensive attack, led by Alex Temme and Baleigh Binkley, who would combine for 14 of the team’s 24 first half points, the Lady Trojans would be unable to key in on just one individual. The second quarter would see the Lady Trojans begin to calm down somewhat, as they were able to outscore the Lady Cavaliers 9-8 in the second quarter, giving Culver a 12 point lead at the half, 24-12.

The third quarter would see an increase in defensive intensity. Culver would continue to apply the tough defense they had started the game with, while West Central would appear to be picking up steam. In an intense back-and-forth that would see the two teams in a dead heat, as both the Lady Cavs and Lady Trojans would put up 6 points in the third period, Culver would be able to do just enough to maintain a 30-18 lead, with one quarter left to go.

The Lady Cavaliers would be much more patient in the final quarter, using as much clock as they could on each possession in order to help apply more pressure to the Lady Trojans. Temme would continue to be the go-to in the second half for the Lady Cavaliers, as she would nearly match her first half total with 7 points in the final two quarters, giving her a game-high 15 on the night. The ball handling responsibilities for Culver would land on the shoulders of Kenzie and Baleigh Binkley, in order to help take some of the pressure off of Madi Shedrow, who has been battling a knee injury all season. The strategy would pay off for Culver Head Coach Tammy Shedrow, as West Central was forced into fouling to stop the clock, in an attempt to make a comeback.

When the final horn sounded, the Lady Cavaliers of Culver High School would be walking out of West Central with their 10th win of the season, getting them back to .500 on the year with just one regular season game left, before their rematch with West Central in the first round of the Culver Sectional. Meanwhile, the Lady Trojans drop to 5-17 on the season with five days to prepare for the Sectional rematch with Culver. One thing is for sure, the coaching rematch between Tammy Shedrow and Tyson Mellon will be every bit as exciting as the rematch of their two teams!

Game Statistics

Scoring

Culver(40): Kenzie Binkley-4, Baleigh Binkley-6, Cerenna Eakright-4, Madi Shedrow-3, Lily Hayes-4, Alex Temme-15, Alina Pizur-2, Sarah Walters-2

West Central(29): Tori Culp-10, Crisney Shepperd-4, Jillian Hauptli-4, Jenna Patton-6, Camille Wuethrich-4, Emma Nielsen-1

Free-Throws

Culver: 14-24 58%

West Central: 11-16 68%

3-Point Shooting

Culver(2): Baleigh Binkley-1, Alex Temme-1

Rebounding

Culver(20): Kenzie Binkley-2, Baleigh Binkley-2, Cerenna Eakright-1, Madi Shedrow-2, Lily Hayes-4, Alex Temme-3, Alina Pizur-1, Lizzie Pugh-1, Sarah Walters-4

West Central(20): Tori Culp-4, Crisney Shepperd-6, Jillian Hauptli-2, Jenna Patton-1, Camille Wuethrich-4, Emily Pilarski-2, Emma Nielsen-1

Steals

Culver(9): Kenzie Binkley-1, Cerenna Eakright-2, Madi Shedrow-2, Lily Hayes-3, Alex Temme-1

West Central(8): Tori Culp-3, Crisney Shepperd-1, Jillian Hauptli-1, Camille Wuethrich-1, Emily Pilarski-2

*Statistical Information Provided By Kankakee Valley Broadcasting Staff. These Are Not Official Game Statistics*