The Mail-Journal, Volume 20, Number 1, Milford, Kosciusko County, 19 January 1983 — Page 9

Sports

Lady Warriors 14-1; now tied for NLC lead

By SHARON STUCKMAN Coach Dale Brannock’s Lady Warriors had no trouble getting their 14th win of the season, but the big news for the now 10th rated team was another upset loss for arch-rival Goshen. The Lady Redskins dropped out of a tie for first-place in the Northern Lakes Conference race when Concord beat Goshen 57-52 this week at the Goshen gym. Goshen shot an all-time low of 22 per cent from the field in the Concord ‘ loss and the Minutewomen’s Shelly Roberts led all scorers with 23 points. Wawasee is now in a virtual tie with Bremen with a 4-1 mark in loop play. Bremen is 5-1.

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LIGHT LOAD — Varsity cheerleader Annette Bushong gets a lift from Warrior rowdy David Workman during action at the basketball game with Northridge Friday night. (Photo by Gary Lewis)

v fc! " 1 ju •>** w> * '^A■ v gg/r W w AJCII Ay- W®HSKA&OB I ' if i s I A l»/<? r 301 .i : < 4 A d&Jiil eL) J Y Jb ', 4®*'" Z * a*«Z ■%’-'■:■? \ '■■''• ■■■■■■■■■■■■K ’ L± SPUNAR TOWERS — Towering over the smaUer Northridge players, senior center Ron Spunar gets a shot offdnring action at last weeh’s basketball game vs Northridge. (Photoby Gary Lewis)

Wawasee will have its destiny in hand when the Lady Warriors travel to battle conference foe Plymouth next Tuesday night and Bremen Thursday, Jan. 27. Goshen’s first loss of the season was against Warsaw last week, a team the Lady Warriors easily ' handled. Wawasee, now 14-1 overall, was led in its victory over Elkhart Central Saturday afternoon by Maude Packer, who, scored 23 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Central scored only 11 field goals against the Lady Warriors’ defense. The Blue Blazers went to the charity stripe 29 times but could only come up with 11 free throws. Wawasee outscored the girls

from Elkhart 21-12 in the first period. In the second quarter, the Lady Warriors scored eight points and Central seven, to put WHS in the lead at 29-29 at the half. But in the second half Wawasee outscored the Blazer girls 40-10, with Elkhart Central scoring only 10 points in the third quarter. Grace Stichter was back in the Warrior lineup and scored 10 points. Although Grace has played two games since December 18, this was the first game she had been able to play at full strength. Dee Stump added 11 points for the Warrior girls, Cheryl Walker assisted, bringing down 10 rebounds. Carol Walker scored eight points and had nine rebounds. Wawasee outrebounded Elkhart Central 53-30. Annette James led the scoring for Elkhart with 11 points.

( College rankings

By PETE FRITCHIE WASHINGTON, DC. Although college football ended with the traditional bowl games, and the topic today is the Superbowl, a last word about college rankings might be justified. Bobby Collins at Southern Methodist was unhappy SMU was not voted number one. He had a good claim — his was the only major unbeaten team in the Photo Night On Thursday, Jan. 20, a special autograph and picture night will be held after the last home basketball game for the girls’ basketball team. The game, with Wawasee hosting Whitko, will also be senior recognition night for the Warrior girls.

Athlete of the Week

You have probably seen this week’s Mail-Journal “Athlete of the Week” on just about every section of the basketball floor if you frequent the boys’ basketball games. The best word to describe senior guard Brian Walls is “desire.” Walls gives his best effort 100 per cent of the time for coach John Wysong’s crew. His

The Lady Warriors host Whitko Thursday 1 , Jan. 20 before heading for Plymouth and Bremen in the season’s final two games. WAWASEE (69) — Stump 512, Sellers 0 0 2, Stichter 4 2 4, Ca. Walker 4 0 3, Ch. Walker 13 4, Packer 10 3 4, Swope 3 0 1, Speicher 001, Swensen 301. ELKHART (33) — Janes 4 3 4, Shroff 3 02, Horton 110, Sturges 0 22, Carr 0 01, Lewis 03 5, Curry 3 10. JV Victory The junior varsity Lady Warriors retained their unbeaten status at home Saturday. However, a Michelle Harter field goal in the final seconds of the game was the saving factor, as Wawasee defeated Elkhart Central 25-24. Wawasee trailed by 10 points at one time during the contest, but came back to make the game against Elkhart the 14th victory this season.

nation. And he played a tough schedule. Had the Mustangs beaten Pittsburgh 42-7 or something like that, they might have been voted number one. But the pollsters had on several occasions underrated Penn State. Joe Paterno’s team, though beaten soundly by Alabama, was better and better as the season progressed and the Mustangs seemed to ease off. So the vote for the Lions, among some, was an overdue gesture. Penn State was an awesome team by the end of the season — seldom does one see a better collection of great athletes. This team would have been number one in almost any year. It stopped Hershel Walker — who didn’t seem to play with his usual zip in the Sugar Bowl. He seemed less quick. Maybe it was his hurt shoulder — though he didn’t alibi.

BRIAN WALLS II commitment to basketball shows up on the scoreboard. Along with teammate Kevin Smith, Walls leads the defensive attack with his ball-hawking ability. On offense, he is a deadly threat from the outside. (Just ask defending state champions Plymouth) He scored 17 points Saturday and 20 Friday in the Warriors two wins last week end. His 'parents are Mr. and Mrs. Eastel Walls of North Webster. Wawasee 82 » Northridge 60 Wawasee worrthe Northridge contest because of fine play in the opening minutes, downing the Raiders 82-60. Wawasee never trailed in the contest, scoring the first six points in the opening stanza and opened up a 12 point lead at the end of the quarter Jon Vitaniemi and Brian Walls were the leading scorers for the Warriors with 20 points apiece. Vitaniemi was a razor-sharp 9-of--11 from the field and Walls teamed with Kevin Smith to lead the Wawasee fast-break that converted several of Norf thridge’s 18 turnovers into easy ° baskets. Smith added 14 in the winning effort. Northridge was without the services of 6-5 senior center Mark Bates in the contest and could never get things going, shooting a cold 38.7 per cent from the field. Wawasee’s lead bulged to 59-30 in the third stanza, but the Raiders could get no closer than 17 the rest of the way. WAWASEE (82) — Smith 6-14 2-2 1, Zurcher 1-2 4-4 1, Doll 2-3 0-1 0, Atwood 2-4 0-0 2, Walls 9-20 2-2 2, Vitaniemi 9-112-3 4, Hare 1-41-2 0, Spunar 2-84-72, Rhoades 1-31-22 NORTHRIDGE (W) — Troyer 2-4 2-2 2, Herschberger 0-0 0-0 I, Pratt 0-40-31, Wiederman 3-10 0-0 3, Caudill 8-17 4-4 1, Schlabach 310 4-4 1, Hackett 3-59-0 2, Ritchie 6-140-05 Wawasee 22 23 19 18-82 Northridge 10 16 16 18-60 Shooting: Wawasee 33 of 68 for 49 per cent, Northridge 25 of 64 for 52 per cent Rebounds: Wawasee $7, (Spunar 10, Vitaniemi 8, Smith 7), Northridge 40 (Caudill 11, Ritchie 7, Schlabach 6) B-team score: Wawasee 50, Northridge 39

Warriors seek 'Skins scalp Friday

By GARY LEWIS After sweeping another doubleheader last week end, it would seem the Wawasee Warriors are ahead of schedule. But for coach John Wysong, the Warriors don’t have a schedule this season. “I don't think we re on schedule. We don’t have a schedule. We just take one week at a time. Every week is a new test,” said Wysong. Last week, Wawasee showed little indication of a letdown while beating two weaker teams and extending its record to 9-3. But the road gets tougher from here on, with four conference games slated in the last eight contests. The first of those four contests will be the toughest game of all. Wawasee travels to Goshen Friday and a piece of the NLC crown could be on the line. After getting knocked out of the ranks of the unbeaten two weeks ago, the 8-2 Redskins will be hungry Friday night. After reaching the state’s top 20 poll during the first half of the season, the Redskins will be coming back from a rare, mid-season layoff. Goshen’s bid to extend its unbeaten string to nine, a school record, was ended when the Bremen Lions downed the powerful team 56-46. That loss took the lustre away from the big showdown with seventh-rated Elkhart Memorial the next night. Memorial won that contest 65-63, but the bad news for area opponents was that the Redskins came within two points of Memorial without leading scorer Marc Ruhling (19.5). At 6-5, Ruhling is the team leader of a lineup that lists at 6-5, 6-4,6-4 and 6-5. “Goshen has tremendous talent, a lot of balance, and aTeally nice blend,’ ’ Wysong said. Senior Todd Allberry (8.9), Bodie Stegelmann (10.1), Jeff Beisler (9.7) and Bruce Anglemyer (5.9) lead an almost allsenior team into Friday’s contest. Wysong believes the Redskins’ two-week layoff will be a help, and so does second-year Goshen coach Jim Welsh. “I think it will help us to get healthy.” Welsh said. Goshen has been battling the flu bug and injuries lately. The team's starting guard, 5-8 Tim Yoder, may miss the contest due to an injury. “I’m really impressed with what coach Wysong has done with them,” said Welsh. “After losing an almost all-senior group, they weren’t expected to do much. They use Spunar excellently on defense. He really intimidates some people. The other four kids are just good athletes, ” he said. Wysong said Goshen might have the edge because of the two-week break, but he doesn’t think the layoff means all that much. “I think the layoffs are really overrated myself,” he said. “I know some teams come off and play poorly We always played pretty well after a layoff,” he added. Goshen’s five should be smarting after their two losses after Christmas break and the Warriors may be catching the Redskins at the wrong time. “I think Goshen; has established itself as the big team in the area. I say that mostly after the loss Saturday (Jan. 8). They nearly beat Memorial Without Ruhling.

Wawasee 80 Valley 71

MENTONE — Wawasee overcame a poor third quarter and lasted out a 80-71 win over Tippe Valley. The Warriors never trailed in the contest, but things started to , get close in the third stanza. After leading 47-30 at halftime, the Vikings started to nibble at the Wawasee lead cutting it down to 10 with 2:30 to go in the quarter Shad McConkey scored on a lay-up and hit both ends of a one-and-one to cut the deficit to six at 57-51. That proved to be the closest the Vikings could get.

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DISGUST — It takes a little body language to get your point across sometimes aad that’s exactly what coach John Wyseng gives an during a recent game. The Warriors are 4-0 in 1983, advancing their season record to 9-3 last week end. (Photos by Gary Lewis)

Going into the final quarter of play. Valley’s Greg Van De Water scored in the opening seconds of play to make it 59-53 Wawasee, but the Vikings attempt at a full-court press failed when the Warriors converted the Tippe pressure into a series of easy lay-ups in the final four minutes of the contest. Junior Jon Vitaniemi was the Wawasee leading scorer with 21, followed by Kevin Smith and Brian Walls who scored 17 apiece. Kim Zurcher played well in a relief role with 12. Senior Pat Hard was a key performer in the team’s ninth win

Wed., January 19,1983 —THE MAIL-JOURNAL

“The loss at Bremen, of course, makes it a must game-for them in the conference. I’m sure they know that, and are approaching it that way. We ll be playing them at their mental best and there.” “There,” means at the Goshen gym, where jam-packed seating is becoming a common occurance. After losing two games, and off a week end, the Goshen fans will be ready for a basketball feast. “We won’t catch them flat. We won't catch them looking ahead, and we won’t catch them off-guard at all,” Wysong forecasted. Playing at Goshen will be a learning experience for his boys, saidWysong. “It should be a good experience for us, ” he said. Even with all of the hoopla, Wysong will tell his boys to keep their heads. “You just have to play. We just need to go out and play hard. You can’t worry about trying to keep from losing a ball game, or anything. You concentrate on the things that will work for you. You believe in those things, and you just try to do them,” says Wysong. The control of the inside game will be a big key in the contest. For Wawasee, that means 6-10 pivotman Ron Spunar must establish some control underneath the basket. If the Redskins go with their tall lineup. Wawasee will match-up with three 5-10 boys going against three 6-5 Redskins. “Ron is a key for us in every game,” Wysong explained. But Wawasee needs more than one key to win. “I think everybody is a key. We’re the kind of team where everyone is a key for every game,” he said. Despite the size disadvantage, don’t look for any drastic changes in Wawasee’s game plan. “Well make minor adjustments out of what we do, but not major We ll play within our framework. We re not going for one game and try to go with a whole new way of doing things, ” Wysong said. Last week, the Warriors’ bench showed signs that they’re ready to play. Always an important asset, a strong bench is especially needed if one or more of the Warriors get into foul trouble. Against Northridge (see related articles below) the bench gained some experience after the regulars blew the game open. Senior captain Pat Hare, who Wysong said has done his job as captain extremely well, came off the woodwork and playpd strong. At Tippe Valley, Hare and back-up guard Kim Zurcher played an even more important role by keeping the battling Vikings in check. In Saturday’s contest, the Warriors’ host will be Westview, a young club that’s hobbled by injuries. At 5-6 on the season, the Topeka Warriors list as doubtful for Saturday starters Tom Hostetler (9.0) and Kenlin Krops (12.0). Hostetler, a senior, is the team’s leading rebounder. Bryant Hart, a 5-10 junior guard and Ron Yoder (16.1) will be the principal characters in Westview’s starting five. The JV game gets underway at 6:15 p.m. for both contests, with the varsity game following. *

of the season. entered the contest early in the second half when Ron Spunar got saddled with four fouls and grabbed some important rebounds. He may have had the best play of the game with about one-minute to go when he went sprinting down the court to save the ball that was about to roll out-of-bounds. That play kept the clock running, something the Warriors needed at that point in the contest. For Tippe Valley, McConkey led all scorers with 23, followed by Van De Water’s 15 and Chan Tucker’s nine. WAWASEE (89) — Smith 6-10 5-6

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2, Zurcher 3-6 6-6 2, Atwood 1-10-1 2, Walls 8-17 1-2 3, Vitaniemi 8-13 5-7 4, Hare 0-0 3-6 1, Spunar 4-9 0-1 5 TIPPE VALLEY (71) — Flenar 1-5 1-12, McConkey 8-17 7-84. Van De Water 7-131-31, Lafferty 3-6 23 4, Alspaugh 0-4 3-4 3, Tucker 3-7 3-3 3t Boyer 3-9 2-2 2, Utter 1-2 0-0 5 Wawasee 25 22 12-80 Tippe 17 13 21-71 Shooting: Wawasee 30 of 56 for 53 per cent, Tippe 26 of 63 for 41 percent Turnovers: Wawasee 14, Tippe 21 B-team score: Tippe 39 Wawasee 37

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