Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 134, Number 2, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 9 January 2014 — Page 3

Page A8

Panthers capture Holiday Tournament title, improve to 7-0

ROCHESTER/ NAPPANEE - Zach Zurcher scored 22 points and Jonathan Wilkinson added 15 as North Wood rallied from a sluggish first half to defeat Fairfield 54-37 in the championship game of the 2014 holiday tournament, played at North Wood High School. In the tournament opener at Rochester, Wilkinson sparked a sec-ond-half comeback as the Panthers downed rival Tippecanoe Valley 58-43 in a possible sectional tournament preview. The pair of victories improved North Wood to 7-0 on the year.

North Wood 54 FMH37 As has been the case in several games this year, North Wood was sluggish out of the gate against the Falcons, except for Zurcher who poured in eight firstquarter points to give North Wood a 12-8 lead at the first stop. The second period was a defensive struggle, with the Panthers allowing just five points to Fairfield but managing only six of their own, four of them by Zurcher, for an 18-13 halftime advantage. The third quarter, which North Wood has owned all year, was the turning point again as the Panthers outscored Fairfield 14-4 behind six points from Wilkinson and four from Zurcher, making it 32-17 North Wood with eight minutes remaining. In the final stanza, North Wood quickly opened up an 18-point advantage which featured a pair of monster fast-break jams from Wilkinson and Will Stueve, but the Falcons hung tough, nailing a pair of threes to cut the lead down to 11 and force the Panthers to put their starters back into seal the'Ciwjte.

SCOREBOARD

GHsbastotM LADY PANTHERS BEAT PLYMOUTH North Wood's girls basketball team earned a convincing 54-32 win over Northern Lakes Conference-rival Plymouth in a road game Dec. 21. Fresh off a nomination as an IBCA/ Subway Player of the Week, Morgan Olson went 9-of-ll from the floor to lead her team with a game-high 24 points. She also clutched another game-high eight rebounds in the win. Jordyn Frantz finished with 16 points in the backcourt for the Black Swish, who improved to 6-3 overall with a perfect 2-0

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Advance News * Thursday, Jan. 9,2014

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The North Wood boys basketball team won their holiday tournament with a 54-37 defeat of Fairfield last week. Picuted is the team. From left to right, pictured are Front Row (all kneeling): manager Austin Stutzman, Chad Sellers, David Eshelman, Kyle

Zurcher and Wilkinson each scored six more points in the period, earning all-tour-nament honors along with Stueve. Zurcher led all scorers with 22 points, while Wilkinson added 15 for the Panthers. Josh Stephens had seven points to lead Fairfield, while Mitch Dewitt, John Stack, Brock Goeglein, and Joe Line all scored five in the balanced but insufficient Falcon attack. ■■ -■ ■■a.. „ j| rwPmvvOOd Do, lippecnoe VUtey 48 In the much-anticipated showdown between two of the area's top 3A teams, North Wood came out hot, scoring the first six points but then allowing Valley to go on an 11-0 run as the Vikings took a,13-81ead after, one quartet waiSiu^vg,

Zach Zurcher each had four points for the Panthers, but Zurcher picked up his second foul at the 3:00 mark and went to the pine for the remainder of the period. In the second quarter, North Wood slowly began to recover from what Seared to be post-holiday argy, as the relentless Stueve worked the offensive glass and poured in six more points. Valley senior Tanner Andrews countered with eight points on three jump hooks and a pair of free throws, and the Vikings clung to a four-point lead at 25-21 going to the locker room. Apparently Panther mentor Aaron Wolfe's halftime oration was a good one, as North Wood played much more aggressively in the their the

NLC start with their third straight win. Plymouth was led by Hunter Stevens' 10 points and seven rebounds as the Lady Pilgrims slid to 6-4 and 1-1 in the NLC. • NORTHWOOD 54, PLYMOUTH 32 At Plymoulh Score by Quarters Plymouth: .6 16 26 32 North Wood: 10 21 35 54 Plymouth (32): Ashley Harrell 0 0-0 0, Elise Patrick 0 0-0 0, Hunter Stevens 18-10 10, Bailey Brown 0 0-0 0, Libbie Porttetts 0 0-0 0, Kaydon Foster 4 0-0 9, Haley Harrell 0 3-5 3, Allie Wright 0 0-0 0, Dylan Holiday 0 0-0 0, Shannon Stephenson 0 0-0 0, Kirstin Riise 0 0-0 0, Nicole Horvath 4 1-2 10. Totals 9 12-17 32. North Wood (54): Andrea Tuttle 0 0-0 0, Tori Schwartz 0 0-0 0, Jordyn Frantz 5 5-6 16, Morgan Olson 9 1-2 24, Karen Holmes 0 0-0 0, Haley Roe 0 4-4 4, Inger Yoder 0 0-0 0, Taylor Fielstra 2 3-7 7, Shyla Southern 0 0-0 0, Tiffanie Alexander!) 1-2 1. Totals 17 19-25 54.

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PiHANK YOU Tuj ( OUR GREAT J L EMPLOYEES! 5 FREDA, WILMA, MYRA, fL JOLENE, SUSAN, DORA, LYNDORA, LEORA, ABBY, ! r REGINA, ADAM & MIRIAM 5 ! A SUCCESSFUL 2013!^j pOSEOUT^ELy Kltllw I ' 111 IT'JIHi 1 ■TO lllllili

SPORTS

McCoy, Tanner Farmwald, Jonathan Wilkinson, Braxton Linville; Second row: Asst. Coach Trevor Shields, Zach Zurcher, Travis Bear, Trey Bilinski, Vincent Miranda, Cam Simpson, Zach Schwartz, Head Coach Aaron Wolfe; Back row: Statistician Aaron Arnold,

first quarter on a Jonathan Wilkinson drive with five minutes left in the quarter. Wilkinson slashed to the hoop like a man possessed on four separate occasions, finishing with 10 points and four rebounds in the quarter as the Panthers took a threepoint, 39-36 lead to the final period. As North Wood continued to aggressively attack the basket, legendary Valley coach Bill Patrick, who had been on the officials the entire third quarter, was whistled for a technical just one minute into the period for complaining about a non-call. Wilkinson drained both free throws and hit two more on the ensuing possession, as the Panthers began to pull away. Despite hitting just two buckets in

3-pointers: North Wood 1-4 (Frantz), Plymouth 2-14 (Foster, Horvath); Rebounds: North Wood 19 (Olson 8), Plymouth 13 (Stevens 7); Assists: NorthWotxl 3 (Frantz 2), Plymouth 3 (Harrell 2); Steals: North Wotxl 10 (Alexander 5), Plymouth 8 (Harrell 4). Bth grade beys baskettnl NORTHWOOD 9TH WINS North Wood's freshman boys basketball team defeated Plymouth 30-26 in a game on Dec. 19. Drew Minich dropped 16 points for the Panthers, while Travis Stephenson finished with seven points, four rebounds and three assists. Spencer Sheline crashed the boards for five rebounds for the Panthers, who improved to 4-2 with a 2-1 Northern Lakes

Photo by Dale Tobias Athletic Director Norm Sellers, Asst. Coach Dennis Hershberger, Principal David Maugel, manager Paul Scheets, Asst. Coach Sam Sheets, Asst. Coach AJ. Risedorph, Asst. Coach Zach Lechlitner, Will Stueve, Asst. Coach Phil Lechlitner.

the quarter, as the desperate Vikings resorted to some rough play, resulting in a heated sideline conversation between Wolfe and Patrick. Wilkinson and Kyle McCoy combined to make 15 of 16 free throws down the stretch as the Panthers pulled away for the victory. Wilkinson finished with a game-high 23 points and also added seven rebounds, while Zurcher had 17 points and five boards and Stueve added 10 points for the Panthers. Valley's Andrews was the only Viking in dou-ble-figures with 10 points, while Ben Shriver added nine and Robby Groom eight for the losers. North Wood (7-0) hosts Fairfield again on Jan. 7 in a makeup of a game postponed by snow in December, then travels to Wawasee qjijyAi jjjt r tf'NoWjfem

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Lakes Conference (NLC) tilt against the Warriors. JVlfrMs The North Wood JV team also won their holiday tournament on December 28, 2013, downing Tippecanoe Valley 44-36 in the opener and then capturing the title with a 42-25 thrashing of Fairfield in the nightcap. Against Valley, Dakyrion Fox was a man among boys, pouring in 22 points and hauling down 10 rebounds, while Vincent Miranda added eight points and dished out five assists in the win. Miranda then led the way in the victory over Fairfield, scoring 16 points, while Fox added eight and Cam Simpson seven for the winners, who improved to 6-1 on the season. • NORTHWOOD 54, FAIRFIELD 37 At The Pit, Nappanee,’•holiday Tournament - Championship Fairfield 8 13 17 37 North Wood 12 18 32 54 NORTHWOOD (54): Braxton Linville 1 2-2 5, Zach Zurcher 11 04) 22, Vincent Miranda 0 0-0 0, Tanner Farmwald 10-12, Chad Sellers 0 0-0 0. Kyle McCoy 1 2-2 4, David Eshelman 0 0-0 0, Jonathan Wilkinson 4 6-6 15, Travis Bear 1 0-1 2, Cam Simpson 0 0-0 0, Will Stueve 2 0-0 4 TOTALS 21 10-12 54 FAIRFIELD (37): Mitch Dewitt 2 1-1 5, John Stack 2 0-0 5, Josh Stephens 2 1-2 7, Brock Goeglein 2 0-0 5, Sam Brown 2 0-0 4, Clay Bontrager 1 2-3 4, Kegan Showalter 1 0-3 2, Joe Line 1 3-4 5 TOTALS 13 7-13 37 3-Point Goals: North Wood 2 (Linville, Wilkinson): Fairfield 4 (Stephens 2, Stack, Goeglein) • NORTHWOOD 58. TIPPECANOE VALLEY 43 At Rochester, Holiday Tournament - Game 1 Valley 13 25 36 43 North Wood 8 21 39 58 NORTHWOOD (58): Braxlon Linville 1 0-0 2. Zach Zurcher 7 3-3 17, Tanner Farmwald 1 0-0 2, Kyle McCoy 0 4-4 4. Jonathan Wilkinson 5 13-14 23, Travis Bear 00-00, Cam Simpson 0 0-0 0. Will Stueve 4 2-5 10 TOTALS 18 22-26 58 TIPPECANOE VALLEY (43); Ben Shriver 3 3-4 9, Robby Groom 2 3-6 8, Jarred Littlejohn 0 0-0 0. Tanner Andrews 4 2-3 10. Chaincy Zolman 2 3-3 7, Gavin Bussard 1 CM) 2, Neil Clampitt 0 0-0 0.1 ogan Britton 3 1-1 7 TOTALS 15 12-17 43 1 1 jjgyys

Conference record. Btn grade gris DasKeiDai FRESHMEN GIRLS FALL The North Wood freshman girls basketball team dropped a competitive 21-16 affair with Plymouth in a recent game. Summer Stillson paced North Wood with seven points, while Erin Graber and Taylor Grubbs finished with four and three points, respectively, and Nicole Flickinger and Sammy Juarez each scored a point. North Wood dropped to an even 4-4 with the loss. The team will end its holiday layover Jan. 13 against John Glenn.

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