Warsaw confident it can win hoops rematch with Penn
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Dale Hubler-dhubler@timesuniononline.com
Winning the program’s first sectional title in nine years, said Michelle Harter, was satisfying. The fifth-year Warsaw girls basketball coach and her players, however, aren’t satisfied. There is still work to be done and things to be accomplished, starting with Saturday’s Class 4A regional at Valparaiso High School. The eighth-ranked Lady Tigers, who beat Elkhart Memorial, Concord and Northridge in the sectional, take a 22-1 record into their 12:30 p.m. ET contest with the Penn Lady Kingsmen (19-4). Fifth-ranked Merrillville (22-1) and Lake Central (16-7) square off in the first semifinal game at 10:30 a.m. ET. The regional championship game is slated for 8:30 p.m. ET, with the winner advancing to a one-game semistate next week at either Warsaw or Crown Point. “The exciting thing for me was seeing these girls win a sectional championship,” said Harter. “Winning the sectional was satisfying, but we are not satisfied. One of our goals is to not only win the regional, but play in front of the home crowd again. There’s some motivation there.” Harter and her players aren’t looking past the other three teams in the regional, but if the Lady Tigers win two games Saturday Warsaw’s five seniors could have the chance to play on their home floor one more time. “To play (in the Tiger Den) in the semistate as a senior, I couldn’t ask for a better feeling,” said Warsaw senior Lindsay Baker, who averages nearly 13 points, four rebounds and three assists per game. First things first, though. The Lady Tigers have to beat a Penn team that has won 13 of its last 14 games. Interestingly, the Lady Kingsmen’s only loss since Dec. 15 was a 55-42 setback on Jan. 16 to Warsaw. That game was played on Penn’s home floor, and Warsaw’s stingy defense held the Lady Kingsmen to just 29 percent shooting. Harter and her players aren’t overlooking Penn, and they are well aware the Lady Kingsmen will be ready Saturday and they will have players in the lineup that weren’t the first time. “The first time we played them, the girls really followed the game plan and we didn’t allow Penn to speed us up,” said Harter. “I’ve said this all year, but defense will be a big key for us. The big thing for us Saturday will be doing the little things.” Defense has definitely been Warsaw’s calling card this season. The Lady Tigers give up just 34 points per game and have allowed the opposition to shoot just an average of 32 percent from the field. Warsaw has made more than twice as many steals (266-131) as its opponents. “We’re a defensive team,” said Baker, who is among five Warsaw players who have at least 37 steals this season. “Coach Harter talks about defense all the time. Defense wins championships. We have a sign in the locker room that says “you may outscore the other team, but if they never score you will absolutely win.” In 23 games this season, only one team has scored more than 45 points on Warsaw. Marion scored 49 points against the Lady Tigers in a game at the Orthopaedic Capital Center on Jan. 3. Warsaw, however, won the game by 27 points. “Defense is something we really focus on,” said junior Brooklyn Harrison, who provided quite a spark both offensively and defensively in Warsaw’s three sectional victories. “Defense is important. Coach talks about it all the time. We’re very excited about playing in the regional. We’re not ready for the season to end.” Senior Jennifer Walker-Crawford leads the Lady Tigers in scoring with 14 points per game, while she is second on the team with six rebounds per contest. Junior Nikki Grose averages 11 points and nine boards per game. For Penn, seniors Olivia Carlton and Taylor Lutz average 11 points per game, while freshman Camryn Buhr and junior Caroline Buhr score eight points per game. Caroline Buhr just returned to the Lady Kingsmen’s lineup after suffering a knee injury during the AAU season. She has only played in the last three games, but with her 6-foot-1 frame she makes Penn a different team. “Penn will be different this time,” said Baker, alluding to the fact that Caroline Buhr has returned. “We’re very confident. There’s a difference between cocky and confident, and we’re confident. We know how they play. It’s going to be a matter of who wants it more.” Warsaw, the only team to beat the Lady Kingsmen in the regular season last year, is 6-1 all-time against Penn.
