The Mail-Journal, Volume 27, Number 52, Milford, Kosciusko County, 8 February 1989 — Page 8
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THE MAIL-JOURNAL — WecL, February 8,1989
Sports
Opponent's hot hand spells defeat for Warriors
By SCOTT DAVIDSON Sports Writer
A slow start combined with the hot shooting of Rochester's Steve Ruckman spelled defeat for' the Wawasee boys' basketball team on Friday as they dropped a 89-79 decision at Rochester to fall to 6-10 on the season Ruckman, one of the state s top scorers with an average of just over 30 points per game, connected for the first five points of the game on Friday as the hosts raced to a 14-2 lead. Two field goals by Wawasee center Rob Huey cut the Rochester lead to 14-6 but a 13-9 run by the Zebras left them with a 27-15 advantage after the first quarter of action. The visiting Warriors scored the first four points to open the second quarter as Matt Koble connected on two free throws and Tim Lilly added a basket to cut the Zebras lead to 27-19.,The remainder of the second period saw the hosts outscore the Warriors 21-13 to double their lead to 16 points at 48-32 at halftime Wawasee came out more aggressive to start the third quarter and were able to whittle the
K 0 X . . . • ■ V.' • I —- aaa>» w •i ‘ ' w . * T ' L <***• > lS *L " , *■ A A 4 ft - AfflwO rv v ®£ X •<■ Ll I iJSRWJ IP FOR TWO— Wawasee center Rob Huey shoots over the outstretched hand of Craig Shambarger during action from the Warriors 89-79 defeat at Rochester last Friday. Huev scored seven points and snared five rebounds but it wasn't enough as the Warriors fell to 6-10 on the season. (Photo by Scott Davidson)
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Rochester advantage to 53-41 as Matt Dick hit two consecutive field goals with about five minutes left in the quarter. From there, it was the Chris Conkling show for Wawasee as the senior scored the next 11 points for the Warriors even though Rochester was able to extend its lead to 61-52 during the stretch. The third quarter came to a conclusion with the Zebras owning a 65-54 lead. The Warriors put on a surge to start the fourth quarter and closed the gap to 72-67 as Koble connected on a three-point bomb with about five minutes left in the contest. After each team scored four points to make the score 76-71, Ruckman was able to put the nail in the coffin as he connected on consecutive three-point bombs to make the score 82-71. The teams exchanged scores in the game’s final couple of minutes with the Zebras holding on for a 89-79 win as the final buzzer sounded. “We played as a team for one quarter and half of another but obviously that wasn't enough/' stated Gary Goshert, Wawasee head coach. after the game. Rochester coach Bill Titus
remarked that the key to the game was the good start that his team got off to in the first quarter. “I think that we were mentally ready to play and I also felt that we had better balance tonight in the scoring column,” said Titus. “I thought that we were able to hang tough when Wawasee cut the lead in the fourth quarter but I also think that you have to give them (Wawasee) credit because they fought back and they are a good basketball team,” commented Titus. From a team standpoint on Friday, Wawasee connected on 30-58 field goals (52%) including 3-9 from three-point range while Rochester hit on 29-54 ( 54%) which included 5-13 three-point shot attempts. The Warriors hit 16-20 (80%) from the free throw line on Friday night while Rochester connected on 26-35 (74%). Wawasee outrebounded Rochester 31-28 with Conkling snaring six boards to lead the squad while teammate Huey added five caroms. The Warriors committed a total of 23 turnovers while the Zebras tallied just 14 miscues. For the Warriors. Dick led the offense with 21 points including one three-pointer. Conkling added 18'points while teammate Pete Bonner chipped in with 12 points to go with a team high seven assists before fouling out late in the contest. The Rochester Zebras were paced by the game high 37 point performance of Ruckman which included four three-pointers and and a perfect 7-7 effort from the free throw line. Ruckman wasn't the entire offense for Rochester-, however, as Sean Kelly and Bill Pfeiffer each scored 13 while teammates Craig Shambarger and Brad McMillen added 11 a piece for the hosts. The Wawasee junior varsity raised its record to the .500 mark at 8-8 with a scrappy 41-40 victory over Rochester on Friday night. After falling behind 10-8 after the first period, the visiting Warriors took the lead and led 19-17 at halftime and 34-30 at the end of the third quarter before holding on for the one point victory. The JV squad received a balanced offensive attack versus the Zebras as Dennis Garland. Randy Cesco and Keith Hardyeach tallied eight points to lead the team. Jerry Smith and Jason Mickley chipped in with seven and five points respectively to aid the winning effort for the Warriors. After a brief two game losing streak, the Warriors will -look to get back into the win column at home on Friday night as they host the North Wood Panthers with the junior varsity tip-off getting the evening's action underway at 6:15 p.m. Wawasee will also play on Saturday evening as they travel to Mentone to face the Vjkings of Tippecanoe Valley in a contest that was postponed on Jan. 12 due to inclement weather. Saturday night's action will begin at 6:30 p.m. with the junior varsity contest.
Boys' cage squad to face Panthers and Vikings
I By SCOTT DAVIDSON Sports Writer
With a modest two-game losing streak dropping his club's record to 6-10, Wawasee boys' basketball coach Gary Goshert is looking to get the team back on track with a home contest this Friday against North Wood and a Saturday night date at Tippecanoe Valley Despite North Wood’s 2-14 record after a loss at Goshen last Friday, Goshert claims that they’re a team that he has a lot of respect for. “We’ll have to prepare very well for North Wood and we’d better not take them lightly,’’ stated Goshert. The probable starting line-up for North Wood on Friday night is likely to be Gessinger (5’7”) and Todd Gongwer <5'10”) at the guard positions, Weldy (6’1”) in the pivot and Kevin Moore (6T”) and Nathan Wiggins (6’0”). at the forward slots. Rhoade. a 6’l” senior, will probably be the first Panther off the bench for Coach Phil Lechlitner's North Wood squad
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. XX 3 4 ip w Er I ■ wk " , BATTLE FOR THE BOARD — Chris Conkling, a senior forward for Wawasee, tries to get in position for a rebound during action from the Warriors 89-79 loss at Rochester last Friday. Trying to keep Conkling off the boards is Craig Shambarger of Rochester while Zebra teammate Steve Ruckman looks on. Conkling snared six rebounds to lead the Warriors 31-28 advantage on the glass while also contributing 18 points in a losing effort. Wawasee will try to get back on the winning track this Friday when they host the North Wood Panthers with the action beginning with the junior varsity contest at 6:15 p.m. (Photo by Scott Davidson)
Freshman eagers prepare for rematch with Concord
By SCOTT DAVIDSON Sports Writer
The Wawasee boys’ freshman basketball team, after having their regular season finale versus Warsaw postponed last Thursday. are now gearing up for a rematch with conference foe Concord tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m. in first round action of the NLC boys' freshman tourney. The Warrior freshman squad dropped a 51-33 decision to Concord back on Jan. 12 as the visiting Minutemen were able to exploit the Wawasee defense as they connected on 55% of their field goal attempts. Thanh Tran led the Warrior offense in the first Concord game as he tallied 15 points while teammate Mason Robbins chipped in with six markers. \ “Against Concord the last time we played some very poor transition defense and we didn't do a very good job of blocking them off of the boards," stated freshman coach Roger Brady. Brady commented that if his squad is able to block out on the defensive boards and is able to do a better job on their transition from offense to defense tomorrow evening, it should be a close game and the Warriors will have a very good chance to win. “We have to put more pressure " on their guards tomorrow and we also have to force them to shoot from farther out and to take more time with their offense," em-
After hosting the Panthers on Friday evening, the Warriors will travel to Mentone to face the Vikings’of Tippecanoe Valley in a contest that was originally scheduled for Jan. 14 but,was postponed due to inclement weather on that evening. The Vikings, under sixth year head coach Bob Dußois, were 9-5 on the season heading into last night’s game versus LaVille “Tippe Valley has some very good athletes and all of their players have the ability to shoot and the ability to run and press on defense,” remarked Goshert when asked about the Viking The probable starting line-up for the Vikings will include Scott Smith and Dion Anglin at the guards, Pete Terpstra in the mid die and Craven Lynn and Steve Dunnuck at the forward slots. “We’ve got very good balance and our bench has been playing well for us lately,” commented Dußois All five of the starters for the Vikingsare averaging right -at or over 10 points per game “I
phasized Brady. He added that if his squad is able to play effective on the defensive end of the court tomorrow then they will be able to win the contest if they execute on the offensive end. If the Warriors are victorious tomorrow at home, they will host another game of the NLC tourney on Saturday against either Plymouth or Goshen. No matter what happens with tomorrow's
Lady Warriors derailed in emotional roller coaster game
I By MITCHELL STINSON Sports Writer
Thursday’s girls' basketball sectional at Warsaw was an emotional roller coaster for Wawasee players and fans alike. The ride started off slow, with the Lady Warriors facing a 15-5 deficit after one quarter of battle with the Triton Lady Trojans. • It speeded up momentarily when Wawasee's girls cut the margin to 20-13 at the half, but the Trojans extended the lead back to 10 by the end of the third quarter. The fourth quarter looked like a Wawasee highlight film, however, and the Lady Warriors
haven't seen Wawasee play since back in November but 1 know that they have several players who can score and that makes it difficult from a defensive standpoint for us because.you can’t concentrate on trying to stop just one player,” remarked Dußois. He added that just like in any other game, his team will have to play hard, rebound well and keep their turnovers down in order to be successful on Saturday against the Warriors. “We’re going to have to get in a position to contest their shots because they shoot too well to leave them open,” stated Goshert. He added that his squad will also have to execute against the defensive pressure that the Vikings will use. With just a total of four regular season contests remaining (North Wood Tippecanoe Valley, at Elkhart Central on Feb. 18 and Bremen on Feb. 24) and just three weeks before sectional play begins on Wednesday, March 1, Goshert stated that he’s looking for his squad to get back their enthusiasm for the game. “If we get back our enthusiasm, the other parts of our game such as teamwork and execution will come,” concluded Goshert. The Warriors action this weekend will begin at 6:15 p.m. on Friday evening with the junior varsity game versus North Wood and at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday evening as the JV squad tips off against the Tippecanoe Valley JV team
game versus Concord, the Warriors will conclude the season at home next Tuesday when the rescheduled game against Warsaw will be played. “Our practices have been going well and our guys have a lot of confidence right now and they believe that they can beat Concord tomorrow night,” stated Brady. “We'll be ready for them," concluded Brady.
dove headlong into a frenzied comeback attempt. In the end, Wawasee's eagers fell victim to a desperation shot that.gave Triton a 36-34 victory and a berth into the sectional championship game against the mighty Warsaw Lady Tigers. Wawasee’s girls came up a little short but they sure made things interesting. The Lady Warriors came out in the fourth quarter with a new defensive look that confused their opponents. That strategy turned the game around as Wawasee went on a 10-0 spurt to knot the game at 34-all with just seconds left. “We just backed off from the man-to-man press and went to a zone press and did some trapping,” Warrior coach Jim Hite said. It looked as if the Trojans were on their way to a game-winning layup in the waning moments but the Lady Warriors’ Sara Wilkinson made a gem of a defensive play by stripping her opponent of the’ball. "It was a beautiful defensive play,” Hite said. “She had to either make that play or it was over.” Wilkinson’s momentum caused her to step out of bounds and possession went over to the Tro-
KI3BE& a GETTING IN POSITION — Wawasee junior Julie Bender (right) battles with Katrina Klotz of Triton for rebounding position during girls’ sectional action at W arsaw last Thursday. Bender tallied two points for the Lady Warriors as they dropped a 36-34 decision at the buzzer to conclude the season with a 1-18 mark. (Photo by Scott Davidson)
Swimmers prepare for NLC meet
I By SCOTT DAVIDSON Sports Writer
With a 12-2 regular season complete, the Wawasee boys’ swim team is now preparing for their “second season” as they will take part in the NLC meet tomorrow and Saturday at Warsaw High School. The final regular season conference standings show Warsaw at the head of the pack in the NLC with an undefeated mark of 6-0. The Concord Minutemen concluded the regular season with just one loss in the NLC (to Warsaw) and are at second in the conference with a 5-1 NLC record while the Warriors dropped two conference meets (to Warsaw and Concord) to conclude the conference season at 4-2. Wawasee Coach Tim Caldwell commented that he is happy with the 12-2 overall record of the this year’s team. “We’ve swam well this season and the kids have done everything that they could and they’ve really been a hard working group,” added Caldwell. Caldwell remarked that the team’s two regular season losses to Warsaw and Concord were not due to any poor performances by any of the Warriors. “We knew that Warsaw would have a really fine team this year and their depth was just too much for us while Concord had a really outstanding freshman who won two events and also captured a second against us which made the difference in that meet,” said Caldwell. Looking towards tomorrow and Saturday’s conference meet, Caldwell remarked that Warsaw has to be the favorite with Concord and his squad close behind. "If I was a betting man I would have to say that the NLC meet will probably wind up like the regular season as far as the top three teams but with a little bit of luck and some good swims, we could move up,” emphasized Caldwell.
jans with one second left in the game. The improbable became reality on the ensuing play as Dana Hall took the inbounds pass and fired up a baseline bomb that hit nothing but net. It was a dejected group of Wawasee eagers who found their way to the dressing room after the game. Some of them were crying. With momentum behind them and overtime just a second away, the Lady Warriors thought they had a good chance of winning. "They had shown that they could come back. They didn’t quit and then to lose with one second left.. . That hurt,” Hite said. Bobi Stookey led a balanced Wawasee scoring attack with eight points. Eisenhour chipped in seven points and Lora Hollar was good for five. The Trojans were led by Lara Anders’ gamehigh 11-point effort. Parting Thoughts The Lady Warriors ended the regular season at 1-17. After opening the season with a 37-36 victory over the Fairfield Falcons, Wawasee’s girls never tasted victory again. “It was disappointing to lose all the time but I felt there was progress in our positions <and) in our defense,” Hite said. He said he hopes to improve the
“We want- to swim fast and make a good showing at the NLC meet but due to our quality of swimmers and our lack of depth, we’re really looking towards the sectional next Thursday and Saturday (Feb. 16 and 18) and qualifying people for state,” commented Caldwell. Caldwell said that the sectional should be an interesting meet with some fast times being registered. In addition to Warsaw, Concord and Wawasee, Elkhart Central (the host school) should provide the competition’s top performers. The most performers that the Warriors boys’ swim team has ever been able to send to the state competition is eight but Caldwell believes that the team has the realistic chance of sending as many as 10 this year. “If we swim our best (lifetime bests) at the sectional we could send 10 guys to state and I would be very disappointed if we don’t send at least a minumum of five,” said Caldwell. Caldwell stated that Warrior seniors David Keener (one-meter diving) and Matt Fry back (100 yd. butterfly) are the team’s top performers heading towards the sectional as each one of them have went through the regular season undefeated in their specialty event. Both Keener and Fryback have qualified for the state finals the past two seasons with Keener finishing third in the one-meter diving competition last year. Additionally, both of the Warriors are the number one seed in each of their events going into tomorrow’s NLC competition. The NLC meet action gets underway with the swimming preliminaries beginning at 5:30 p.m. tomorrow in the Tiger Pool at Warsaw. The NLC meet will conclude on Saturday at Warsaw with the diving preliminaries getting started at 9 a.m. and the finals of the swimming and diving competition beginning at 1:30 p.m.
point-production of next year’s team. The Lady Warriors had flashes of defensive brilliance during the season but they couldn’t seem to score enough to win. “We'll still emphasize defense but we’re going to have to generate more points,” Hite said. Individual Statistics To nobody’s surprise, Bobi Stookey finished at the top of the Lady Warriors’ statistical leader board. The 5-foot-9 inch senior powered her way to 8.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in the 1988-89 season. Junior Kriss Eisenhour was good for 5.5 points and 5.6 rebounds. and senior Lora Hollar contributed 4.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. Final Team Stats Points scored: Bobi Stookey, 160; Kriss Eisenhour, 99; Lora Hollar,-77; Angie Kaufman, 53; Lisa Mikel, 40; Sara Wilkinson, 35; Julie Bender, 22; Kristine Gibson, 22; Lori Stiver, 18 Paige Price, 9; Jenny Noble, 8; Audra Bouse, 7; Lori Gargett, 4. Rebounds: Stookey, 124; Eisenhour, 101; Hollar, 76; Mikel, 56; Wilkinson, 33; Stiver, 33; Gibson, 24; Bender, 21; Bouse, 20; Price, 18; Kaufman, 16; Gargett, 15.