Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
COLUMBIA CITY - Described by veteran coach Will Wienhorst as a second-half team, Warsaw's varsity girls basketball team lived up to the billing Tuesday evening.
Leading just 23-17 at the half, the Class 4A No. 5 Tigers did away with unranked DeKalb in the second half, claiming a 64-40 win in the first round of the Columbia City 4A Sectional.
The Tigers led by as much as 11 twice in the second quarter, but Wienhorst had to sit 6-footers Jaclyn Leininger and Michelle DeGeeter with foul trouble.
Leininger made up for it in the second half, scoring 21 of her game-high 27 points in the third and fourth quarters.
"There's a reason it was only a six-point game," Wienhorst said. "We had two juniors on the bench with foul trouble. We sacrificed a bigger lead rather than let them pick up a third foul. This team plays well in the second half, and you can't do that with foul trouble."
The 24-point win improves the fifth-ranked Tigers to 21-1, setting up a 6 p.m. semifinal matchup Friday with Carroll (18-3). The Tigers came from 12 points down earlier in the season to top the Chargers 61-58.
DeKalb ends its season with a 9-12 mark.
Though Warsaw impressed many with a 20-1 march through the regular season, for many of the Tigers Tuesday was their first sectional experience.
For two quarters, Warsaw, a team with just one senior, played like it. For the final two quarters, the young Tigers played like the fifth-ranked team it is, like the experienced team it has become.
"This was their first tournament game, and they'd like to see a lot more," Wienhorst said. "I remember my first tournament game, I was junior. These girls are sophomores, and Julie (Seiss) is just a freshman."
Leading 25-17 early in the second half, the Tigers blew the game open with an 11-0 run, a run that included a big three-point basket by lone senior Rachel Franklin as Warsaw jumped out to a 14-point lead with 3:28 remaining in the third.
As has been the case all year, Warsaw won with a fundamental-style of play, outrebounding the Barons, hitting its free throw opportunities, and shooting at a high percentage from the field. Warsaw also converted on DeKalb miscues, scoring 33 points off Baron turnovers.
The Tigers finished the game 25 of 55 (45.5 percent) from the field and 12 of 14 at the line, while DeKalb was 15 of 43 (34.9 percent) from the field and 5 of 10 at the charity stripe.
Leininger led all scorers with 27 points, hitting 10 of 17 attempts to go with her seven rebounds and three steals. The talented 6-0 junior was 7 of 7 at the free throw line.
Seiss added 16 points, six rebounds and two steals, while sophomore frontliner Rebekah Reichard was 5 of 6 from the field for 10 points. Reichard also added five rebounds and four steals in the 24-point win.
Senior Jackie Recker, sister of former Indiana and Iowa star Luke Recker, led DeKalb with 11 points, but did so on 11-of-17 shooting. The 5-foot-8 guard was just 1 of 8 from three-point range.
Jenny Snyder added nine for the Barons, hitting a trio of three-pointers, while Andrea Stegeman chipped in with six.
NO. 5 (4A) WARSAW 64, DEKALB 40
DeKalb (9-12) 8 9 13 10 - 40
Warsaw (21-1) 14 9 22 19 - 64
DeKalb FG FT R S Pts.
* Recker 5-17 0-0 2 0 11
* Wallace 0-0 0-0 2 0 0
* Prokupek 2-5 0-0 4 0 4
* Snyder 3-6 0-2 4 1 9
* Turner 1-4 1-2 4 0 3
Kertz 1-1 0-0 0 0 2
Donaldson 1-2 0-0 0 1 3
Haggarty 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
Getts 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Grogg 0-1 0-0 3 0 0
Stegeman 1-6 4-6 5 2 6
Totals 15-43 5-10 25 6 40
Warsaw FG FT R S Pts.
* Seiss 6-13 3-5 6 2 16
* Reichard 5-6 0-0 5 4 10
* Hepler 1-4 0-0 5 0 2
* Leininger 10-17 7-7 7 3 27
* DeGeeter 1-2 0-0 5 2 2
Mayer 1-7 0-0 1 1 2
Braddock 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Durcholz 0-1 2-2 2 0 2
Harman 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Franklin 1-4 0-0 1 1 3
Sand 0-1 0-0 0 0 0
Heiman 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
Totals 25-55 12-14 33 13 64
Three-point goals - DeKalb 5-16 (Snyder 3-6, Recker 1-8, Donaldson 1-2), Warsaw 2-10 (Seiss 1-3, Franklin 1-3, Mayer 0-2, Hepler 0-2). Turnovers - DeKalb 22, Warsaw 15. Fouls - DeKalb 17, Warsaw 10. Fouled out - none.
