It took a few weeks to get to
this point, but the Midwest Athletic Conference will finally
be down to one league unbeaten after Thursday evening.
Minster plays host to Marion Local at Wildcat Gymnasium on Thursday
night to see who takes full control of the top of the MAC standings.
Over the past few seasons, the Wildcats (10-2, 5-0 MAC) and
Flyers (12-2, 6-0 MAC) have engaged in some big battles. The
Flyers swept the two games last season, but the second game
was one of the most intense battles in the history of the rivalry.
The Flyers took a 24-22 win at the sectional where both teams
combined for just 14 field goals in 57 attempts. The Flyers
used that game to springboard the team to a Division IV state
basketball title.
Both teams have continued their winning ways this season. Marion
is coming off an overtime win against always-tough Elida on
Saturday and the Wildcats held off Ottoville in Minster.
Looking at the teams, both look to be evenly matched in many
categories. Both have an inside game that tends to dominate
and that is matched by strong guard play. Both teams pride themselves
in a relatively deep bench that provides scoring.
Marquee Matchup: Jenna Barhorst vs. Robyn Hoying.
While both teams boast strong guard play, the battle in the
middle will likely play a key part in the outcome of the game.
Hoying the past several seasons has been Nann Stechschulte’s
silent assassin. With the Wildcats boasting so many threats
to score, Hoying has been able to get her 13.2 points and 6.6
rebounds without a lot of fanfare. The thing that makes Hoying
so potent is accuracy. Going into last week, Hoying attempted
just 66 field goals, making 44 (66.7 percent).
Barhorst has become, in her first full season of varsity after
dressing for the tournament last season, a perfect successor
to Margo Moeller, who controlled the middle last season for
the champion Flyers.
The sophomore is back over the double-digit line after a 19-point
game at Elida. Barhorst is also very accurate in her shooting,
hitting 50.5 percent of her shots. Her 5.1 rpg. leads a team
that has three players averaging at least 4.8 boards per game.
Ottawa-Glandorf at
Celina
Jack Clouse hopes his team learned something from the first
meeting with the Titans.
The Bulldogs and Titans met (Continued from page 1B)
in the finals of the OVISCO Classic in the first weekend of
the season and the Titans held off the Bulldogs, 53-50.
Celina has rebounded to hold a 9-6 record but has been eliminated
from the WBL race with a 2-3 mark. The rest of the slate is
huge for Celina considering its sectional is at Wapakoneta and
features all of the WBL teams except for Defiance and Wapakoneta.
The Titans have played well despite losing reigning WBL Co-Player
of the Year Stacey Verhoff to a season-ending knee injury, losing
just twice and only once in the WBL.
Marquee Matchup: Shelly Bellman vs. Kelli Williams.
Bellman had to take over the main scoring chores for the Titans
since Verhoff’s injury. The 5-10 junior swing-player has
worked out well, averaging 12.6 ppg. this season, still below
the 18.7 ppg. that Verhoff averaged in her six games. Still,
Bellman has been a shining light on a good season.
Williams will likely get the matchup with Bellman. The 5-10
senior has been racheting up her game this season, averaging
14.7 ppg. this season. Williams was the only strong performer
against Bath last week, scoring 13 and pulling down 10 boards.
New Bremen at Fort Recovery
Both the Cardinals and the Indians have been coming on strong
of late. The Cardinals, especially have been hitting a hot streak
after starting the season defensively sound but offensively
lacking.
The Cardinals have taken care of that in getting three straight
wins, including a three-point win over an always-tough Jackson
Center team.
The Indians are 9-6 after winning at St. John’s last week,
putting the team closer to snapping just a one-year slide under
.500.
Marquee Matchup: Jenny Homan vs. Joscie Kaup.
Homan has finally broke into the double-digit department after
getting a boost in her scoring the past several games. The senior
had 15 points in the win over Jackson Center and continues to
be a sharpshooter from the three-point line, hitting 41 percent
of her shots.
Kaup has had many breakout games this season and that continued
against St. John’s as the senior scored 27 points. Kaup’s
leadership skills have been a big thing for Jeff Roessner’s
team, which plays several freshmen in the rotation.
St. Marys at Kenton
The Roughriders continue to dominate while waiting for a chance
to get back to the top level of the WBL. The Roughriders still
have a chance to get a share when they play Bath towards the
end of the season.
Kenton has been unable to get out of its rut at the bottom of
the WBL standings. Only Shawnee (0-6) has a worse WBL record.
Marquee Matchup: Krissy Haines vs. Haley Blevins.
This could be a game where Haines makes a big run at points.
Haines has been leading the Grand Lake Area in scoring all season
and a big game against Kenton could solidify her top spot for
the rest of the season.
Blevins has been the go-to player for the Wildcats for a good
portion of the season. In her last four games, The 5-7 guard
hit double figures three times and had seven in the fourth,
making for a 12.0 ppg. average. Her biggest game of the stretch
came against Bucyrus Wynford, where she scored 17.
St. Henry at New Knoxville
St. Henry matches up with a New Knoxville team that comes off
a big win over Versailles to maintain a winning record in the
MAC.
The Rangers have turned to a scorer by committee system of getting
points lately. Last Thursday, four players combined for 36 of
the 48 points with two players scoring 12 and two more adding
six.
Marquee Matchup: Brenda Hemmelgarn vs. Kara Katterheinrich.
For either team to be sucessful, the two scoring leaders for
their respective teams must be on with their shooting touch.
Hemmelgarn continues to be a fine entry in coach Charles Maier’s
lineup. The sophomore leads the team with 11.0 ppg.
The 5-3 Katterheinrich has made 27 three-pointers this season
for the Rangers, averaging 11.3 ppg.
St. John’s at Coldwater
The Cavaliers got a much needed win over Lima Central Catholic
on Saturday thanks to the clutch free-throw shooting of Brittany
Firks. The win keeps Coldwater from tying the record for least
wins in a season. That occured in 1975-76 when the Cavaliers
made their varsity debut, going 2-6. The Cavaliers picked up
18 points from Amanda Harting in the win.
The Blue Jays lost last week to surging Fort Recovery. At 7-6,
St. John’s still has a tough stretch of games with Bath
being on the slate for Saturday and games with Minster, Ottoville
and New Knoxville upcoming on the schedule.
Marquee Matchup: Andrea Morrow vs. Katie Homan.
Morrow continues to impress other teams with her play. The 6-1
sophomore leads the team in scoring with 9.7 ppg.
Homan’s presence inside plays much bigger than her 5-10
frame shows. Homan can hold her own with most of the bigger
centers in the league. Her 6.4 ppg. is second best on the team
and her 6.0 rpg. is best on the team and puts her among the
top boarders in the MAC. Homan added to her stats with a 10-point,
13-rebound performance in the win over LCC.
Parkway at Versailles
Two teams suffering through a tough year should make for a very
competitive game in Darke County on Thursday. Both teams have
been compeititve this season but haven’t been able to
dent the win column as often as either team would like.
After leading by 11 at the half against New Bremen last week,
Parkway suffered a cold spell and suffered a tough loss to the
Cardinals.
The same thing happened to Versailles, which was outscored 21-8
in the fourth quarter in losing by 13 last week.
Marquee Matchup: Janelle White vs. Emily Snyder.
White is the main presence in the middle for Jackie Stonebreaker’s
team. The 5-11 White averages 5.0 rpg. and 6.8 ppg. for the
Tigers, scoring nine in the loss to New Knoxville last week.
Snyder’s play this season has made teams respect the inside
game of the Panthers. Her 10.2 ppg. and 8.0 rpg. this season
is tops on the team.
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