The Mail-Journal, Volume 21, Number 4, Milford, Kosciusko County, 8 February 1984 — Page 8

THE MAIL-JOURNAL - Wed., February 8,1984

8

Sports

| Lakeland is first regional foe —

I Lady Warriors rally to grab fourth straight sectional

g By TOM CHARLES :$ Sports Editor X; They came through the S fire without getting burned — barely. Thanks to an im:s pressive comeback and some sparkling play from $ sophomore reserve Michelle Harter, the Lady Warriors captured their fourth consecutive Warsaw sectional crown with a 55-46 win over Triton on Saturday night. x Wawasee, now 19-1, advances to the Warsaw regional x with Lakeland, Winamac and L defending champion Columbia * City. The Lady Warriors will X; tackle 20-1 Lakeland in Thursday’s 6:30 p.m. game. Winamac and Columbia City , x are scheduled for the second contest. x Coach Dale Brannock and :£ his charges found themselves playing catch up for most of the sectional. In the opener x against Warsaw, Wawasee :£ had the lead at 6-4, but did not regain the upper hand until a :v Michelle Harter bucket made it 53-52 late in the contest. The same scenario repeated itself •x in the finale against Triton, x Aside from a brief first-period •x lead, Wawasee chased Triton $■ until early in the fourth ;X period. £•: “1" think we entered the sectional with a different attitude this year,” noted Brannock. "We knew we were human enough to get beat if the breaks didn’t go our way. :*:■ But we played good basketball X: at times, and the wins were very gratifying ” "These sectional games :•? helped us to prepare for’the regional,” said Brannock in reference to the pressure of coming from behind. The Wawasee mentor was especially pleased with the composure his players x displayed in reversing the •*.; contests. $ S The Championship >l.orea Fe’dman. That name alone g ve the Lady Warriors reason to be concerned about Triton. The Lady Trojans earned their berth in the finals by virtue of a 73-32

Regional ticket sales- ——

Tickets for the Warsaw girls' basketball regional have been distributed to the four schools participating in the tournament. Approximately 700 tickets are available for purchase at the Warsaw High School athletic office until 1 p.m. on Thursday. A single-session ticket is priced at $3.00. Season tickets

Sports comment —

Calling the shots CHARLES

TRITON'S LOREA FELDMAN didn't get the sectional title she was hoping for on Saturday night. But she showed a crowd of nearly 2,600 that she is one of the best girls’ basketball players in the Hoosier state. Feldman’s awesome sectional performance, 66 points and 21 rebounds, was simply par for the 6’o” star. Over the course of her four-year career she has netted close to 1,600 points — one of the highest totals in the history of Indiana girls’ basketball. Among her many talents, perhaps none stands out more than her ability to hurt another team from several spots on the floor. In the semifinal game against Tippy Valley most of her points came inside the lane. However. Wawasee found out that she can pop from the perimeter as well. Her smooth turn-around jumper is nearly impossible to stop. Will she be the 1984 “Miss Basketball?” Her chances were not aided by Triton’s early departure from the tournament. But she is a sure bet to make the All-Star team which will represent Indiana in the annual series with Kentucky. After that, it is on to the University of Michigan and what promises to be a sparkling college career. FORMER WHS BASKETBALL MENTOR MIKE JONES, now at Delphi (Ind.) High School, picked up his 300th career win on Jan. 27. Delphi downed Benton Central in overtime, 61-59, for the landmark win. Jones was the basketball coach at Wawasee from 1978 to 1981 during which time his teams compilMfc record of 28-35. His best record while at Wawasee was 13-8. NOMINATION’S FOR THE M-J ATHLETE OF THE WEEK? — The Wawasee wrestling team has a sound reason for suggesting that DeKalb’s Bob Thompson receive this week’s honor. The Warriors held a six-point lead over Concordia going into Thompson’s match with Concordia s Dan Goeglein. In order for Concordia to grab a share of the title, Goeglein had to pin Thompson. Anything short of a pin would give Wawasee sole possession of the title. Thompson cafiiif through. Despite suffering a

rout of Tippy Valley in the semifinals. Feldman lived up to her billing in the opening two stanzas as she was perfect on her first seven attempts from the field. Brannock switched defenses periodically, going from his standard 1-2-2 zone into a box-and-one. However, Feldman was not slowed by the variations, and finished the half with 18 points. Largely due to Feldman’s efforts and Wawasee’s mediocre shooting, Triton enjoyed leads of 18-14 and 32-26 at the first two breaks. Wawasee’s pressure press and Christy Speicher’s hot shooting kept the Lady Warriors close in the first half. The second half opened with both schools trading baskets. But, as the half wore on, Triton began to run out of steam. The Lady Warriors narrowed the gap to two at the end of the third stanza, and charged into the lead as the final period got underway. Wawasee jumped on top 42-40 on Dee Stump’s basket. The Lady Warriors stretched their advantage to 47-42 before Feldman cut it back to 47-44. From then on in. however, it was all Wawasee. The Lady Warriors made sure that Stump, Swope and Payne held the ball until Triton was forced to foul. Once at the charity stripe Wawasee had no trouble in securing the win. "The key for us tonight was Composure,” said Triton’s Larry Wattenbarger. "We didn’t do a bad job. but when it was critical we didn’t execute.” The Lady Trojans had 26 turnovers against a pressure full-court press used by Wawasee. On the other side of the coin, Brannock thought that his team’s ability to remain calm was an important factor in the win. The Lady Warriors had only 13 miscues despite playing from behind for most of the night. Another key for the Lady Trojans was their failure to feed Feldman in the closing stanzas. "We weren’t going to

are also available at a cost of $4 .50. The tickets have been distributed among participating schools as follows: Wawasee, 614 tickets; Columbia City, 485 tickets; Lakeland, 600 tickets, and Winamac, 479 tickets. Warsaw’s gym can hold approximately 3,000 spectators.

16-0 defeat. Thompson avoided the pin, and the Warriors got their win. LAST WEEK’S RESULTS: Michigan State 72, Michigan 67; Illinois 54, lowa 52 (2ot); Indiana 81, Wisconsin 67; Warsawsß, Plymouthss; Wawasee 61. Rochester 43; Penn 68, Concord 53. This week’s slate of games is made up of the following contests: lowa at Purdue, Tippy Vally at Bremen, Wawasee at North Wood, East Chicago Washington at Warsaw, Wisconsin at Ohio State and Goshen at East Noble. Charles (.625) — This will be the year when Wawasee finally gets the regional monkey off its back. The Lady Warriors are playing good basketball and they won’t be denied their first regional crown. Winners: Purdue, Bremen, Wawasee. Warsaw, Ohio State and East Noble Kuhn (.661) — “The Lakers will sink in the big lake and the Eagles will return to Columbia City minus their tail feathers,” said the M-J stats man. “I hope to see everybody in Fort Wayne on the 18th!” Winners: Purdue, Bremen, Wawasee, Warsaw, Ohio State and East Noble Rhodes (.667) — “Wawasee will make it to the final game of the semi-state,” said Rhodes. “So it is obvious that they will take the regional.” Winners: Purdue, Bremen, Wawasee, Warsaw, Ohio State and Goshen. Weinstein (-557> — “Lakeland is probably the worst 20-1 team in the state,” noted-Weinstein. “The Lady Warriors should have no problems with them, and will get even with Columbia City on their way to the ‘Sweet 16’ level.” Winners: lowa, Bremen, North Wood, Warsaw, Ohio State and East Noble Guest (.636) — The Lancer mentoris following the mold set by the rest of our pickers this week. Or, perhaps it is the other way around. Here are Kessler's choices for the week: Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Warsaw, Wawasee, Penn, Whitko.

■■■■■ i ■H ■ w Bi Il ’J /v- Eh OggEjKs 4 ~'”T ’ ■ ‘ ■ - *

FELDMAN’S FAREWELL — Triton’s senior sensation Lorea Feldman (30) edged Wawasee’s Michelle Harter for the tip to start the second half of the sectional championship game, but her Triton team lost the contest. 55-46. Feldman capped a brilliant career by scoring 24 points in the finale. Harter, a sophomore, played an important role in the win as she gathered in nine rebounds and eight steals. Other Triton players in the picture are Amy Ellinger (44) and Julie Lozier (50). (Photo by Tom Charles)

Feldman enough in the second half,” said Wattenbarger. “She was open, and we wanted to get it to her but we didn’t.” Feldman was only 2 of 5 in the final 16 minutes. ‘‘We worried about Feldman the first half, but we didn't in the second half,” said Brannock. "We just played our zone and anyone who was near her picked her up.” Christy Speicher had an excellent night for the Lady Warriors. She poured in 16 points and hauled down seven rebounds. “She has come on

The tournament gets underway at 6:30 p.m. Thursday when Wawasee squares off against Lakeland. Winanmac and Columbia City meet in the second contest. It is scheduled to begin around 8:00 p.m. The two winners return at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday for the championship game. Columbia City is the defending champion.

very, very well in the last five ballgames.” praised Brannock. Another forward, Michelle Harter, turned in her finest performance of the year in the championship. She only took four shots, but sparked Wawasee’s momentum with nine rebounds, eight steals and an assist. “We worked on cutting off the baseline pass,” noted !» Brannock. “She did an outstanding job. Everybody played their role well.” Payne finished the night

Wrestlers win regional, four advance to semistate

By TOM CHARLES Sports Editor It was close, but the Wawasee High School wrestling team took its second consecutive Carroll Regional title last Saturday. The Warriors’ 87*2 points provided a one-point margin over Fort Wayne Concordia which placed second with 86'2. • “It was very different this year," said an excited coach Rich Welborn. “Last year we weren’t expected to win. This year everyone was pointing at us, and telling us that we were going to win.” The Warriors received good performances out of several wrestlers to help make those predictions come true. Brad Traviola and Dave Melendez captured individual titles. Rob DeSomer and Mike Hernandez finished second in their weigh

Be ■ SECTIONAL WINNERS — These six Wawasee High School wrestlers won titles at the East Noble sectional, and were part of the team which captured the regional title at Carroll oa Saturday. Pictured in front are Jeff Dunithan. Rob DeSomer and Dave Melendez. In hack are Brad Traviola, Mike Hernandez and Steve Yoder. Traviola and Melendez won individual titles at the regional meet. They, along with runners-up DeSomer and Hernandez, will participate in this Saturday’s semi-state meet at Fort Wayne North Side. (Photo by Tom Charles)

with 16 points — her second double-figure performance of the sectional. Stump tossed in 10 points despite being 1 of 13 from the floor in the first three quarters. Anita Swope, still bothered by a thigh bruise, tossed in nine points. The Semifinal " For most of the Thursday night contest it looked as though the Lady Warriors would not make it to the sectional championship for the' first time in four years. Warsaw came out smoking, and kept Wawasee frustrated for the entire first half. “The kids were really tight in the first half,” noted Brannock. “We panicked a little bit and didn’t run our offense like we wanted to.” Warsaw employed an effective trapping half-court defense which shut down Wawasee’s potent guard attack. The Tigers’ Tina Manns and Angie Ryman did a good job of overplaying on Stump, Payne and Swope. Without their accustomed rhythm in the backcourt, the Lady Warriors could not get on track. Manns used her passing skills and shooting to pick apart Wawasee’s defense in the first half. She hit Michelle Sand inside for a couple of easy buckets, and tossed in eight points of her own. Sands was 4 of 8 from the floor in the half, most of which came inside the lane. Warsaw led by as many as 12 in the first half and took a 26-17 lead into the locker room ,at the half. After an even third quarter of action, the Tigers held a nine-point lead going into the final eight minutes. That is when the tide turned in Wawasee’s favor. “The difference in the first half was that we were playing with too much emotion,” said Brannock. “We played with emotion later on, but at that point we were in the flow of the game.” Wawasee switched its defenses off and on in the final periods, a move that was suggested by assistant coaches Jim Hite and Barb Brouwer.

classes. All four wrestlers will advance .to this Saturday’s semistate meet at Fort wayne North Side. The action is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. “The key to winning the regional was that we got six of 11 wrestlers out of the first round,” said Welborn. That fact, combined with some help from DeKalb’s Bob Thompson, ensured the warriors of their title. Thompson, a 185-pounder, wrestled Concordia’s Dan Goeglein in the finals. Concordia needed a pin from Goeglein to gain a tie for the team crown. However, Goeglein could only win by a surperior decision, and Wawasee was the undisputed champion. “I told the kids that we would win by two,” Welborn said with a smile. “This year the outcome was less certain than it was last year. It was incredible. We were

The strategy worked. Warsaw had a hard time adjusting to the defensive changes and failed to generate any offense. Slowly but surely the Lady Warriors chipped* away at the lead with some full-court pressure. Wawasee closed to within one, 52-51, off a Sandy Payne basket with a little over a minute remaining. A few seconds later, Michelle Harter put Wawasee On top for good 53-52. The rest of Wawasee’s points came from the charity stripe. Payne finished the night with 18 points. Speicher, who finished with 14 points, played a key role in the win by hitting six of 10 foul shots in the fourth quarter. “Payne is a leader,” said Brannock. “She is a natural, she assumes that role well, and it frees Stump to shoot more.” “Speicher did a heck of a job,” Brannock said in reference to the junior forward. “She decided that she

* *IIEI E •• jy c ■ w t .■ tx OFF TO THE RACES Sandy Payne heads down the floor during the final quarter of action in last Thursday's sectional win over Warsaw. Giving chase for the Tigers are Tina Manns (25) $ and Angie Ryman (11). Payne topped the Lady Warriors with 18 points as they staged a fourthquarter rally to post a 56-52 victory. Warsaw bowed out of the tournament witlba 15-4 mark. (Photo by Tom Charles) x

on pins and needles till the end.” The Champions Traviola raised his record to 28-1 on the year with his fine regional performance. He scored an impressive 13-4 decision over Concordia’s Jim Keller in the finals. Keller was 26-1 heading into the regional. Melendez picked up his second regional title with a tough 3-0 decision over DeKalb’s - Yogi Weimer in the finals at 126 pounds. He is now 27-2 heading into the semistate. Team Effort Wawasee also picked up two seconds, one third and one fourth. DeSomer fell to Harding's Gary Clancy in the finals at 119 pounds. “He wrestled well in the afternoon," noted Welborn. Hernandez, who was unable to practice lastZweek due to a shoulder injury, fell in :47 to Concordia’s Alan Druhot.

was gonna get out there and play” The Regional The next question facing Wawasee is whether or not this will be the year that the team can make it out of the regional. Last year, the Lady Warriors were upset in the opening round by Culver Girls Academy. Lakeland, 20-1 on the year, will provide a tough obstacle in the opening round. Although the Lady Lakers have not played many bigname schools, they own impressive wins over Goshen and Elkhart Central. They earned a regional ticket with a 42-40 win over East Noble in the sectional finals. Like Wawasee, Lakeland’s team is geared around the guards. Unlike Wawasee, Lakeland has a tall backcourt. That fact, and the Lady Lakers record, means that Brannock is going to treat them with plenty of respect. This is the first year that

Tim Fraser took third place at 177 pounds; a result that Welborn termed “a big key for us.” Steve Yoder placed fourth at 145 pounds to round put Wawasee’s scoring. The Semistate Here are the pairings for this Saturday’s semistate matches: Rob DeSomer vs. Abbott, 22-5, (Muncie South); Dave Melendez vs. Smith,23-4, (Lakeland); Brad Traviola vs. Snyder, 23-4, (Adams Central); Mike Hernandez vs. Johnson, 28-0, (WesDel) Regional Results 98 — Vince Mastrangelo (Dwenger) dec. David Thompson (Churu.), 11-5 105 — Oliver Richmond (Elm.) dec. Mike Eller (C.C.), 22-3 112 — Mike Schmitz (Car.) dec. Dave Carlson (Cone.), 14-2 119 — Gary Clancy (Hard.) dec. Rob DeSomer (Waw.), 12-4 126 — Dave Melendez (Waw.) dec. Yogi Weimer (DeKalb), 3-0 132 — Brad Traviola (Waw.) dec. Jim Keller (Cone.), 13-4 138 — Alan Druhot (Cone.) pin Mike Hernandez (Waw.), :47 145 — Greg Sauers (C.C.) dec. Todd Kendrick (Hom ). 6-2 155 — Darren Salmons (Car.) pin Jeff Reese (North), 5:08 167 — Dan Brook (DeKalb) pin Jeff Davis (Elm.), 2:35

Athlete of the week

Christy Speicher, who scored a team-high 16 points while grabbing seven rebounds in the Lady Warriors’ sectional championship contest against Triton has earned this week’s honor of The MailJournal “Athlete of the Week.” Speicher helped set the stage for Wawasee’s fourth straight sectional crown with her 14 point, 13 rebound performance in first round action against Warsaw. She currently averages 10.5 points per contest, and has grabbed a team-high 148 • rebounds.

the regional will be conducted on two separate days. Brannock is happy about the :$ switch. “I like it. I like the sectional setup when you are able :$ to watch the other game and then have a day and a half to prepare,” said Brannock. “It is a lot better than trying to prepare in three or four hours.” The regional final is x scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. :£ All Sectional | First Team $• Christy Speicher WHS Sandy Payne WHS x ■ Lorea Feldman THS < Julie Lozier THS $: Michelle Sand WCHS Second Team Michelle Harter „ WHS Amy Ellinger THS $: Tina Manns WCHS x Christi Harmon WCHS $: Dee Stump x WHS :$

177 — John Nellems (Np.) dec. Randy Taylor (Dwen.), 14-5 «■ 185 — Dan Geoglein (Cone.) dec. Bob Thompson (DeKalb), 16-0 Hwt. — Jim Rooney (Hard.) dec. Alonzo Drenon (Elm.) 7-4 ONE MINUTE SPORTS QUIZ 1. Lou Holtz recently resigned from coaching which college football team? 2. For what team does Billy Sims play pro football? 3. What team won the Citrus Bowl? 4. Who won the Chrysler PGA team best ball tournament? 5. What professional sport does Wayne Gretzky play? SPORTS QUIZ ANSWERS ifaipoq aoi S J 9(HW ‘sneppiN ipef fr £Z puqAjepi *o£ aossauuaj, g suoiq iioxjoQ g sipeqjozeH sesumfjv I »OOCBPCPgPP BBBI Old tracks On the gravel flats between the dunes in the Namib Desert, tracks of animals and people can linger for years. In one place, 30-year-old tracks of the vehicle of a diamond prospector still show plainly.

Bk CHRISTY SPEICHER