Lady Redskins Remain Undefeated At Home
It was a tale of two halves at Weinberg Gymnasium in Knox on Friday night, as the Knox Lady Redskins played host to the Winamac Lady Warriors in Hoosier North Athletic Conference competition.
It was clear from the start, the last thing Winamac Head Coach Kole Kroft wanted to see was his Lady Warriors get into a fast paced, high scoring game against the long and athletic Lady Redskins on their home floor. From the start, Winamac would be patient with the basketball on offense, being very deliberate as they attempted to shorten the game as much as possible. The strategy would absolutely pay off in the first half. Through the first eight minutes, the slow paced offensive possessions of the Lady Warriors had the Lady Redskins frustrated, as the pass heavy offense prevented Knox from being able to get out and run, like they usually do. The Lady Redskins would also be hampered by some early foul trouble, as 6’1 Junior point guard Megan Bolen picked up two early fouls in the ballgame, forcing Head Coach Neill Minix to sit her for the majority of the first half. When the horn sounded to end the first quarter of play, the Lady Redskins held a narrow three point lead at seven to four.
The second quarter would show much of the same in regards to the pace of the game. Winamac continued to be very deliberate with each possession, once again not allowing the Lady Redskins to get out and run. So effective was the strategy of the Lady Warriors, Knox leading scorer Remi Jordan, (who has a chance to become the all-time leading scoring in Knox Girls Basketball History), was held to zero points in the first half!
“I thought the first half they did a good job sticking to the game plan” Kroft said about his team following the game. “We’ve got a confidence problem and I don’t know why. They’re outstanding young ladies and I coach them to be confident. We just need a leader to pick them up when they’re down.”
The Lady Redskins would be able to squeeze out seven more points in the second quarter, while the Lady Warriors would only be able to put up a single two-point basket in the second eight minutes, making it a very close fourteen to six score in favor of Knox as the two teams retreated to their locker rooms at the half.
As the two teams emerged from their halftime discussions, a different look appeared to be on the faces of the Lady Redskins. Perhaps it was being re-focused, or maybe it was just wanting to vent frustration over not being able to play the kind of basketball they are accustomed to in the first half. After Winamac scored the first point of the third quarter, Knox would immediately go on the attack, pounding the ball inside to Bolen on a pass from Senior Preston Minix. Bolen would receive the pass and put the ball strong off the backboard for her first field goal of the game. As Winamac brought the ball back down the floor, Bolen would provide a huge defensive highlight for the Lady Redskins that would result in points at the other end. Anticipating a long pass down the court, Bolen was able to see where it was going, getting a hand on the ball. The ball, almost certain to be heading out of bounds off of Bolen’s deflection, was then chased down by the Junior, who then made a beautiful pass down the court to Senior teammate Felicity Olejniczak, who was able to lay the ball in giving Bolen the assist. After picking up her third foul of the game, just minutes into the third quarter, Bolen would continue to be on the attack. Moments after her assist to Olejniczak, a shot attempt by Bolen would be blocked on an incredible effort by Winamac Senior Maggie Smith. Bolen would haul in the rebound and put another shot up, banking it in for her second bucket in less than a minute. The momentum created early in the quarter for Knox, would carry through the entire eight minutes, furiously ending with back-to-back huge offensive plays for the Lady Redskins.
With about fifteen seconds remaining in the quarter, Bolen would complete an extremely difficult pass, lobbing the ball from deep on the right wing to teammate Riley Messer who was set up on the left block. After pulling down the pass, Messer took a hard, single dribble towards the middle of the paint, getting the defense to shift in anticipation of a shot attempt coming from just in front of the basket. With the defense now off balance, Messer spun back over her right shoulder, banking in a left-handed shot with only twelve seconds remaining on the clock. The Lady Warriors would go back on the attack as time continued to tick down. Miscommunication would lead to an over-and-back call against Winamac, giving Knox the ball out of bounds at mid-court with five and a half seconds remaining in the quarter. After receiving the inbounds pass from Jordan, Bolen would take the ball to the left side of the court, where she dished it off to fellow Junior Madison Moss. Moss pulled in the pass and, without hesitation, released a three point shot that sailed in the air towards the basket before ripping through the net as time expired. When the horn sounded at the end of the third quarter, the Lady Redskins had outscored the Lady Warriors twenty-seven to seven giving Knox a forty-one to fourteen lead heading into the final quarter of play.
“I need to see if there’s a way we can just start the game in the third quarter” Knox Head Coach Neill Minix said, jokingly, following the win. “It seems like the last few games, in the first half we were just going through the motions. I don’t know if it was nerves or just trying too hard, but we talked a little bit at halftime and came out and executed in the second half. I was very proud of our girls. That third quarter they did really well” Minix continued. “They put the ball where it needed to go, made good passes, slipped to spots, and just executed very well”.
The Starke County Co-Op Play of the Game on WKVI came with 6:57 remaining in the third quarter, when Knox Junior Megan Bolen chased down a loose ball before making a pin-point outlet pass to Felicity Olejniczak, who laid the ball in, putting the score at eighteen to seven, ultimately putting things out of reach for the Lady Warriors.
The Ashley Derrickson/Five Star Player of the Game went to Knox’s Megan Bolen who, after being held scoreless in the first half, put up thirteen points in the second, while also pulling down five rebounds, and logging one steal, despite being on the bench much of the first half in foul trouble!
The Knox Lady Redskins (16-2, 5-0) will be back in action Saturday, January 9th, when they travel to Culver in Hoosier North Athletic Conference competition, while the Winamac Lady Warriors (8-4, 1-2) will be back at it on January 22nd, when they play host to the Triton Lady Trojans in another HNAC matchup.
Game Statistics
Scoring
Knox(51): Riley Messer-5, Megan Bolen-13, Remi Jordan-14, Felicity Olejniczak-13, Madison Moss-4, Preston Minix-2
Winamac(22): Piper Link-2, Aubrey Gearhart-2, Kingsley Kroft-6, Alyssa Villanueva-2, Maggie Smith-7, Ella Gearhart-3
Made 3-Point Shots
Knox(5): Riley Messer-1, Felicity Olejniczak-3, Madison Moss-1
Winamac(2): Kingsley Kroft-2
Free Throws
Knox: 10-17 58%
Winamac: 4-6 66%
Rebounding
Knox(26): Riley Messer-2, Megan Bolen-5, Remi Jordan-7, Felicity Olejniczak-3, Brianna Korcha-1, Madison Moss-1, Preston Minix-6, Addison Eskridge-1
Winamac(20): Alyssa Villanueva-3, Maggie Smith-12, Ella Gearhart-1, Kaya Campbell-3, Lily Bennett-1
Steals
Knox(10): Megan Bolen-1, Remi Jordan-1, Felicity Olejniczak-5, Madison Moss-2, Ellah Fairchild-1
Winamac(3): Alyssa Villanueva-2, Lily Bennett-1
*Statistical Information In This Article Provided By Kankakee Valley Broadcasting Staff. These Are Not Official Game Statistics*
