Lady Redskins Improve To 18-2 With Senior Night Win!
It was a regular season celebration of three Knox Seniors on Tuesday night, as the Knox Lady Redskins played host to the South Central Lady Satellites at Weinberg Gym.
Emotions were running high at the start of the evening, as Knox Community High School honored their three Senior basketball players. Remi Jordan, Felicity Olejniczak, and Preston Minix have logged countless hours in Harold Weinberg Gymnasium, not just in games and practices, but convocations, P.E. classes, concerts, and awards nights. The pregame celebrations would only be in the spotlight for the moment, as soon after their recognition, the trio would trade in their flowers and balloons for their game faces, preparing to take on an extremely athletic Lady Satellites basketball team
The first quarter would be as competitive as everyone in Northwest Indiana had anticipated. The two teams would both sport zone defenses at the start, looking to trap at certain parts of the floor, while the offenses relied heavily on multiple quick passes, trying to stay ahead of the defense. For Head Coach Neill Minix and his Lady Redskins, things were not too much out of the ordinary on the offensive end in the first half, with Jordan and Olejniczak handling the bulk of the scoring. Despite being contested on most of their shot attempts, Knox appeared to be in attack mode constantly throughout the first eight minutes, as Jordan and Olejniczak were in a constant state of attack. With South Central refusing to go away, the first quarter would come to an end with Knox holding onto a slim three point lead at 17-14.
The score would being to stretch out in the second quarter, as the defense of the Lady Redskins would continue to gain momentum. With relentless trapping and constant communication, the home-standing girls in red, white, and blue were seemingly covering every inch of the court, forcing the opposing red, white, and blue team into nine second quarter turnovers.
“I thought our defense did great” Knox Head Coach Neill Minix said following the win. “Every girl contributed to the defense. Felicity Olejniczak had eight steals, so she tied the all-time record with Lindsay Simpson for most steals tonight. Megan Bolen had a few steals, Preston Minix, Riley, and Remi (as well).”
When the horn sounded to end the first half of play, Knox was able to outscore South Central fifteen to six, giving them a twelve point lead, thirty-two to twenty at intermission. Both teams struggled with the opposing defenses, as the Lady Redskins turned the ball over eleven times in the first half, while the Lady Satellites committed sixteen first half turnovers of their own.
The Lady Redskins would continue to stretch the lead out in the second half, with consistent scoring coupled with a smothering defense, which continued to gain momentum throughout the third and fourth quarters. After logging thirteen steals as a team in the first half, Minix’s crew would pick off another six in the third and fourth quarters, giving them nineteen for the game. Often times, the turnovers by South Central would result in points for Knox at the other end, while the Lady Redskins outscored the Lady Satellites fifteen to ten in the third quarter. The biggest quarter for Knox would come in the final eight minutes. The fourth quarter would see the Lady Redskins wear down the Lady Satellites, outscoring them twenty-three to four in the final quarter of play, forcing four more turnovers. While the turnover battle was fairly close in the first half, the second half was a completely different story. The Lady Redskins recorded only five tallies in the turnover margin, while the Lady Satellites committed fourteen more, giving them thirty total for the game, compared to Knox’s sixteen.
“One of the things we said before the game is that we need to rebound well, and I think we did that tonight” South Central Head Coach Wes Bucher said following the game. “There were some bright moments, if we kick the fourth quarter out, I think we really fought with these guys tonight”.
When the final horn sounded, the Lady Redskins came away with their eighteenth win of the year, giving the program its fourth straight season with at least eighteen wins.
The Starke County Co-Op Play of the Game on WKVI came with 1:31 left in the second quarter when Riley Messer scored off of her own steal to give the Lady Redskins their first double-digit lead of the ballgame. The honorary play of the game came in the fourth quarter. Knox Head Coach Neill Minix put in three substitutes for his three Seniors. As Remi Jordan, Felicity Olejniczak, and Preston Minix began to jog off the floor, the three stopped at mid-court, where they dropped down to the floor and simultaneously kissed the red “K” in the middle of Weinberg Gym, with a great symbolic gesture of “thanks” to the Historic gymnasium.
The Ashley Derrickson/Five Star Player(s) of the Game on WKVI went to the trio of Seniors for the Knox Lady Redskins. Jordan, Olejniczak, and Minix combined for forty-two points, eleven rebounds, and ten steals in the Senior Night victory.
Game Statistics
Scoring
Knox(70): Riley Messer-9, Morgan Downs-2, Megan Bolen-15, Remi Jordan-22, Felicity Olejniczak-20, Madison Moss-2
S. Central(34): Delanie Gale-7, Lauren Bowmar-4, Falyn Anthony-2, Abbie Tomblin-8, Lillian Tolmen-4, Olivia Marks-9
Made 3-Point Shots
SC(4): Delanie Gale-1, Abbie Tomblin-2, Olivia Marks-1
Knox(2): Riley Messer-1, Felicity Olejniczak-1
Free Throw Shooting
Knox: 14-22 63%
SC: 2-4 50%
Rebounding
Knox(25): Riley Messer-3, Megan Bolen-8, Remi Jordan-7, Felicity Olejniczak-2, Brianna Korcha-1, Madison Moss-4
SC(18): Delanie Gale-3, Lauren Bowmar-3, Falyn Anthony-1, Sadie Marks-3, Lillian Tolmen-3, Olivia Marks-4, Kate Welsh-1
Steals
Knox(19): Riley Messer-2, Megan Bolen-5, Remi Jordan-1, Felicity Olejniczak-8, Brianna Korcha-1, Madison Moss-1, Preston Minix-1
SC(6): Lauren Bowmar-3, Falyn Anthony-1, Abbie Tomblin-1, Kate Welsh-1
*Statistical Information In This Article Provided By Kankakee Valley Broadcasting Staff. These Are Not Official Game Statistics*