Whitko Girls Fall In Sectional Action
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
Hosting Class 3A Sectional 21, the Lady Eagles (12-9) utilized their friendly rims, hitting 22 of 35 field goals in a 63-44 win over the Whitko Lady Wildcats (9-11). The win advanced the Lady Eagles into Friday's 7:30 p.m. semifinal game against NorthWood, which defeated West Noble 52-40 in Tuesday's early game.[[In-content Ad]]"They were ready to roll tonight," Columbia City coach Amy Shearer said about her team's 63-percent shooting night. "We've had games when we shoot the ball really well, and a few games this year, I don't know where they are."
It was Whitko coach Rob Bell who had the feeling of not knowing where the shooting was last night.
"They'd get the kids in the open spot and hit the shots," Bell said about his Whitley County rivals. "We'd get the kids in the open spots and just weren't getting them knocked down. You have to put the ball in the basket."
Whitko finished the night hitting just 11 of 48 shots, good for 23 percent, although the Columbia City defense helped contribute to the low number.
"(Junior Micaela) Sylvester, (junior Karissa) Olinske and (senior Rachelle) Kessie are their three go-to kids," Shearer said. "A lot of tape-watching, a lot of scouting helped us put a game plan in that helped the kids know tendencies and what they were going to look to do. We did a pretty good job of stopping it."
And Bell knew exactly what the Lady Eagles were going to do against his top three players.
"It was stop Sylvester on the drive, pack it in on Kessie and don't let Olinske shoot," he said. "They put a kid in Olinske's face all night, so she couldn't get an open look. Then, they doubled-down on Kessie. At that point, we needed a backside kid to stop up and shoot. Unfortunately, tonight, we couldn't get those shots to fall."
Olinske ended up leading Whitko with 23 points and four steals, but Kessie struggled with just six points and five rebounds and Sylvester got just one half of play in before injuring her knee just 33 seconds into the second half.
Sylvester injured herself after landing awkwardly while grabbing her own rebound, ending her night with six points and five rebounds and leaving Whitko without its floor general in the process.
"That was hard," Bell said about Sylvester, who averaged 14 points, four assists and three steals this year. "I wondered how (the team) would take it. I thought they came back and did a good job. (Junior) Katee (Reiff) stepped over and (sophomore) Cagney (Craig) stepped over, running the point. They're different styles of kids than Micaela. You just have to change your style of offense."
Jumping out to a 15-2 lead, which included consecutive steals on Whitko's first two possessions, Columbia City never had to worry about changing its offense.
"We got the start we wanted," Shearer said. "We came out strong and got some good buckets. I thought our defense was real good. We had a game plan and executed it."
In their half-court set, Columbia City found the gaps in the Whitko defense, and nailed repeated jumpers, led by senior Sierria Burlage's 8-of-10 night for 21 points and nine rebounds.
"Those seniors do not want this season to be over," Shearer said. "She's our vocal team leader. That's her, that's our leadership right there."
Columbia City also got 14 points from senior Kayla Dunn and 12 from senior Maddie Hinen, pushing the Lady Eagles farther in the tournament.
As for Whitko, the season ends on a sour note, but Bell does return three starters next season.
"They did the same thing they did all year, which is giving all they that they had the entire game," Bell said.
COLUMBIA CITY 63, WHITKO 44
W 6 14 13 11 - 44
CC 17 16 16 14 - 63
CC - Kayla Dunn 4-9 6-8 14, Sarah Oplinger 0-1 4-6 4, Sierria Burlage 8-10 5-5 21, Maddie Hinen 5-7 2-2 12, Corinna Raypole 1-1 0-0 2, Sidney Bunyan 1-3 1-2 3, Anna O'Dell 0-0 1-2 1, Miriah Hicks 1-2 0-0 2, Samara Qureshi 0-0 0-0 0, Hannah Schnorr 2-2 0-0 4, Lindsey Hinen 0-0 0-0 0, Lacey Jahn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-35 19-25 63.
Whitko - Karissa Olinske 4-16 13-15 23, Micaela Sylvester 2-8 2-2 6, Nicole Slaymaker 0-3 0-1 0, Katee Reiff 2-5 1-2 5, Rachelle Kessie 1-6 2-2 4, Cagney Craig 0-4 0-2 0, Lynsi Hicks 0-0 0-0 0, Josie Sparks 1-2 2-2 4, Cassie Jones 1-3 0-0 2, Melanie Kelsey 0-0 0-0 0, Kelly Reiff 0-1 0-0 0, Jordan Hall 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 11-48 20-26 44.
Three-point goals - CC 0-4, Whitko 2-14 (Olinske 2); Team Fouls (fouled out) - CC 18, Whitko 20 (Ka. Reiff); Turnovers - CC 18, Whitko 18; Rebounds - CC 26 (Burlage 9), Whitko 26 (Slaymaker 6); Assists - CC 10 (Dunn 4), Whitko 2 (Ka. Reiff 2); Steals - CC 9 (Oplinger 4), Whitko 10 (Olinske 4); Blocks - CC 3, Whitko 0; Records: CC 12-9, Whitko 9-11
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Hosting Class 3A Sectional 21, the Lady Eagles (12-9) utilized their friendly rims, hitting 22 of 35 field goals in a 63-44 win over the Whitko Lady Wildcats (9-11). The win advanced the Lady Eagles into Friday's 7:30 p.m. semifinal game against NorthWood, which defeated West Noble 52-40 in Tuesday's early game.[[In-content Ad]]"They were ready to roll tonight," Columbia City coach Amy Shearer said about her team's 63-percent shooting night. "We've had games when we shoot the ball really well, and a few games this year, I don't know where they are."
It was Whitko coach Rob Bell who had the feeling of not knowing where the shooting was last night.
"They'd get the kids in the open spot and hit the shots," Bell said about his Whitley County rivals. "We'd get the kids in the open spots and just weren't getting them knocked down. You have to put the ball in the basket."
Whitko finished the night hitting just 11 of 48 shots, good for 23 percent, although the Columbia City defense helped contribute to the low number.
"(Junior Micaela) Sylvester, (junior Karissa) Olinske and (senior Rachelle) Kessie are their three go-to kids," Shearer said. "A lot of tape-watching, a lot of scouting helped us put a game plan in that helped the kids know tendencies and what they were going to look to do. We did a pretty good job of stopping it."
And Bell knew exactly what the Lady Eagles were going to do against his top three players.
"It was stop Sylvester on the drive, pack it in on Kessie and don't let Olinske shoot," he said. "They put a kid in Olinske's face all night, so she couldn't get an open look. Then, they doubled-down on Kessie. At that point, we needed a backside kid to stop up and shoot. Unfortunately, tonight, we couldn't get those shots to fall."
Olinske ended up leading Whitko with 23 points and four steals, but Kessie struggled with just six points and five rebounds and Sylvester got just one half of play in before injuring her knee just 33 seconds into the second half.
Sylvester injured herself after landing awkwardly while grabbing her own rebound, ending her night with six points and five rebounds and leaving Whitko without its floor general in the process.
"That was hard," Bell said about Sylvester, who averaged 14 points, four assists and three steals this year. "I wondered how (the team) would take it. I thought they came back and did a good job. (Junior) Katee (Reiff) stepped over and (sophomore) Cagney (Craig) stepped over, running the point. They're different styles of kids than Micaela. You just have to change your style of offense."
Jumping out to a 15-2 lead, which included consecutive steals on Whitko's first two possessions, Columbia City never had to worry about changing its offense.
"We got the start we wanted," Shearer said. "We came out strong and got some good buckets. I thought our defense was real good. We had a game plan and executed it."
In their half-court set, Columbia City found the gaps in the Whitko defense, and nailed repeated jumpers, led by senior Sierria Burlage's 8-of-10 night for 21 points and nine rebounds.
"Those seniors do not want this season to be over," Shearer said. "She's our vocal team leader. That's her, that's our leadership right there."
Columbia City also got 14 points from senior Kayla Dunn and 12 from senior Maddie Hinen, pushing the Lady Eagles farther in the tournament.
As for Whitko, the season ends on a sour note, but Bell does return three starters next season.
"They did the same thing they did all year, which is giving all they that they had the entire game," Bell said.
COLUMBIA CITY 63, WHITKO 44
W 6 14 13 11 - 44
CC 17 16 16 14 - 63
CC - Kayla Dunn 4-9 6-8 14, Sarah Oplinger 0-1 4-6 4, Sierria Burlage 8-10 5-5 21, Maddie Hinen 5-7 2-2 12, Corinna Raypole 1-1 0-0 2, Sidney Bunyan 1-3 1-2 3, Anna O'Dell 0-0 1-2 1, Miriah Hicks 1-2 0-0 2, Samara Qureshi 0-0 0-0 0, Hannah Schnorr 2-2 0-0 4, Lindsey Hinen 0-0 0-0 0, Lacey Jahn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-35 19-25 63.
Whitko - Karissa Olinske 4-16 13-15 23, Micaela Sylvester 2-8 2-2 6, Nicole Slaymaker 0-3 0-1 0, Katee Reiff 2-5 1-2 5, Rachelle Kessie 1-6 2-2 4, Cagney Craig 0-4 0-2 0, Lynsi Hicks 0-0 0-0 0, Josie Sparks 1-2 2-2 4, Cassie Jones 1-3 0-0 2, Melanie Kelsey 0-0 0-0 0, Kelly Reiff 0-1 0-0 0, Jordan Hall 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 11-48 20-26 44.
Three-point goals - CC 0-4, Whitko 2-14 (Olinske 2); Team Fouls (fouled out) - CC 18, Whitko 20 (Ka. Reiff); Turnovers - CC 18, Whitko 18; Rebounds - CC 26 (Burlage 9), Whitko 26 (Slaymaker 6); Assists - CC 10 (Dunn 4), Whitko 2 (Ka. Reiff 2); Steals - CC 9 (Oplinger 4), Whitko 10 (Olinske 4); Blocks - CC 3, Whitko 0; Records: CC 12-9, Whitko 9-11
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