SYRACUSE - As fifth-year Viking coach Gary Teel described it, Tippecanoe Valley's girls basketball win at Wawasee Tuesday night was a total team effort.

And that it was.

Behind four quarters of strong defensive play and hot-handed shooting, the Vikings upended the host Warriors 65-49, putting a damper on Wawasee's senior night.

Valley fueled its first-quarter drive with numerous steals in the early going, pushing the Vikings out to a 19-8 lead with 2:16 remaining in the first. The game was knotted at 4, but a field goal by Sherise Denny and then back-to-back three-pointers from Denny and Abby Shafer ignited the Viking crowd and caused Warrior coach Kem Zolman to call a full timeout just three minutes into the game.

"The whole team had the passion to win tonight," Teel said. "Everything came together, there was a lot of unselfish play, we made some good passes and stepped up and played defense."

The win improved Valley to 16-2, while Wawasee fell to 10-8, winners in just three of its last eight games.

While wintery weather left its mark on northern Indiana Tuesday evening, both Valley and Wawasee were blistering hot from the field.

The Vikings finished the game 28 of 45 (62.2 percent) from the field, 5 of 6 from the three-point arc, while Wawasee shot 17 of 34 (50 percent) from the field and 5 of 10 from the arc.

The strongest part of Valley's game was the very thing that has carried Wawasee so many times - inside play.

Five-foot-11 Viking senior Kathy Prater put together arguably the best game of her career, dominating the inside with a 9-of-11 performance from the field for a team-high 19 points.

Her counterparts, 6-0 Wawasee seniors Jessica Leach and Jocelyn Higginbotham, combined for 13 points.

"This was a huge game for Kathy," Teel said. "She brought her A game tonight. She played with a lot of tenacity, the whole team did. Leach and Higginbotham are good inside, and I thought we got good defensive play on them. Our guards did a great job doubling down on them. We gave (Meagan) Wallen more than we wanted to, but it's a give-and-take situation."

Wallen led Wawasee with a game-high 22 points, but was the only Warrior that scored in double figures.

Leach added nine, while Rachel Canen chipped in with seven, Higginbotham four, Stephanie Sorensen three and Crystal Fawley and Rachel Stichter two each.

Valley, on the other hand, packed a balanced scoring attack to go with a defense that led to 16 first-half turnovers for Wawasee and held the Warriors to just four points in the final 9:25 of the game.

Junior Rebekah Parker scored 15 for Valley, while Shafer added 11, Denny and Kara Kramer eight each and Beth Leckrone and Holly Green two each.

The Vikings led 52-45 after three quarters, and then outscored the host Warriors 13-4 in the fourth, allowing Wawasee just five shots from the field. Valley was 6 of 9 in the fourth quarter.

The Vikings are in action again when they host Three Rivers Conference foe Manchester Saturday. Wawasee plays host to Northern Lakes Conference opponent Concord Saturday.

TIPPECANOE VALLEY 64, WAWASEE 49

Valley 19 15 18 13 - 65

Wawasee 16 15 14 4 - 49

Valley FG FT R S Pts.

* Kramer 3-7 2-2 2 3 8

* Shafer 4-6 0-0 0 2 11

* Denny 3-5 0-0 3 2 8

* Parker 7-12 1-3 6 5 15

* Prater 9-11 1-2 5 1 19

Green 1-3 0-0 1 0 2

Leckrone 1-1 0-0 2 2 2

Patterson 0-0 0-0 0 0 0

Totals 28-45 4-7 19 15 65

Wawasee FG FT R S Pts.

* Sorensen 1-4 1-2 1 0 3

* Fawley 0-1 2-2 1 0 2

* Wallen 8-1 3-4 3 2 22

* Leach 3-4 3-4 5 0 9

* Higginbotham 2-3 0-0 3 1 4

Stichter 1-1 0-0 2 3 2

Canen 2-5 1-2 0 2 7

Hershberger 0-2 0-0 1 1 0

Totals 17-34 10-14 16 9 49

Three-point goals - Valley 5-6 (Shafer 3-3, Denny 2-3), Wawasee 5-10 (Wallen 3-6, Canen 2-4). Turnovers - Valley 13, Wawasee 23. Fouls - Valley 11, Wawasee 10. Fouled out - none.

JV - Tippecanoe Valley 44, Wawasee 37 [[In-content Ad]]