December 23, 2020 at 4:57 a.m.
Jay starts fast in rout
Patriots score first 15 points in beating Warriors
Jay starts fast in rout
The Patriots scored three points on their first trip down the court.
They got three more on their third possession, too. Then their fifth. And sixth. The seventh ended the same way four previous possessions did, with three points on the scoreboard.
By the time the Warriors made a field goal, there were just two tenths of a second left in the first period, and they trailed by 18.
Jay County High School’s girls basketball team scored the first 15 points of the game and avenged a pair of 2019-20 losses by thumping the defending Allen County Athletic Conference champion Woodlan Warriors on Tuesday, 50-28.
“It was a big game,” said JCHS coach Kirk Comer, whose team moved to 9-2 on the year and 2-0 in ACAC play. “They kept us last year from winning the conference, first time since I’ve been back that we haven’t won some part of the conference, either the tournament or the (regular season). They kept us from both, beating us both times. It was a big game on our schedule but we take them one game at a time.”
Jay County sophomore Renna Schwieterman, who had nine of the team’s first 15 points, said Tuesday’s win was a bit of redemption.
“It was really important for all of us because they beat us by quite a bit last year,” she said. Woodlan won the regular season meeting 55-51 on its way to the regular season crown, then got a 36-25 win in the opening round of the conference tournament.
“They had a really good senior guard and she kind of took over the whole game,” Schwieterman continued. “This year we came out with more intensity and we were ready to beat them again.”
Schwieterman, who led all players with 21 points for the second consecutive game, nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing on the Patriots’ opening possession. She then got three the hard way to make it 6-0 before Gabi Bilbrey made a layup and a foul shot as well.
Schwieterman had the ball on the right wing during Jay County’s next possession, and after taking a quick jab step she pulled up to make another 3-pointer.
Following a timeout and an empty possession from Woodlan (3-4, 0-2 ACAC), it was Madison Dirksen’s turn to make a 3-pointer, converting a Schwieterman assist to make it 15-0.
“Well, you alway want to get off to a quick start,” Comer said. “We’re not a team that presses, so we’ve got to get stops in the half court to get a stretch there where we can make a run. It’s not like we can turn people over easy.
“I thought early on our defense was pretty good. We were aggressive defensively. They missed some shots and we hit some shots. That’s always good for your confidence. We were playing with a lot more confidence than they were early and I think that carried through the game.”
Woodlan missed its first six shots of the game and also had five turnovers in the first quarter. Its first points came on a pair of free throws from Avah Smith with 3:44 to go in the period — it stopped the Patriots’ 15-0 run — and their first field goal was a Smith fast break with two tenths of a second left in the stanza.
Jay County continued to outscore Woodlan in each of the final three quarters, including a 15-9 margin in the third quarter that gave the Patriots a 43-20 advantage eight minutes to play.
Schwieterman was 4-of-7 from the 3-point line as she was 7-for-17 from the field. She also had six assists and four rebounds, two days after scoring 21 points in a loss to South Side.
“We’ve talked about it many times, she’s got to be involved with most of our points,” Comer said. Doesn’t necessarily mean she’s scoring but she’s got to be involved. She’s making a lot better decisions and that’s just through maturity and reps. She’s just playing really smart basketball now.
“Other side of that, we have to finish when she makes those passes and we’re doing a better job of putting people in the right positions to finish.”
Izzy Rodgers and Dirksen had a pair of 3-pointers each. Rodgers finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Dirksen scored all six of her points in the first quarter and led all players with eight rebounds.
Dakotah Krohn matched her season average by scoring 13 points to lead the Warriors. Smith was held to half of her average of 14 points.
Junior varsity
Jay County shut down Woodlan in the third quarter on its way to a 32-17 victory.
The Patriots (6-3) led 10-7 after one quarter and pushed the advantage to 19-11 at halftime. That’s when they buckled down and kept the Warriors without a point, all the while pushing the margin to 17 at the end of the third.
Cash Hollowell scored nine points to lead the Patriots, and Molly Muhlenkamp was second with eight points. Breanna Dirksen chipped in seven points.
They got three more on their third possession, too. Then their fifth. And sixth. The seventh ended the same way four previous possessions did, with three points on the scoreboard.
By the time the Warriors made a field goal, there were just two tenths of a second left in the first period, and they trailed by 18.
Jay County High School’s girls basketball team scored the first 15 points of the game and avenged a pair of 2019-20 losses by thumping the defending Allen County Athletic Conference champion Woodlan Warriors on Tuesday, 50-28.
“It was a big game,” said JCHS coach Kirk Comer, whose team moved to 9-2 on the year and 2-0 in ACAC play. “They kept us last year from winning the conference, first time since I’ve been back that we haven’t won some part of the conference, either the tournament or the (regular season). They kept us from both, beating us both times. It was a big game on our schedule but we take them one game at a time.”
Jay County sophomore Renna Schwieterman, who had nine of the team’s first 15 points, said Tuesday’s win was a bit of redemption.
“It was really important for all of us because they beat us by quite a bit last year,” she said. Woodlan won the regular season meeting 55-51 on its way to the regular season crown, then got a 36-25 win in the opening round of the conference tournament.
“They had a really good senior guard and she kind of took over the whole game,” Schwieterman continued. “This year we came out with more intensity and we were ready to beat them again.”
Schwieterman, who led all players with 21 points for the second consecutive game, nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing on the Patriots’ opening possession. She then got three the hard way to make it 6-0 before Gabi Bilbrey made a layup and a foul shot as well.
Schwieterman had the ball on the right wing during Jay County’s next possession, and after taking a quick jab step she pulled up to make another 3-pointer.
Following a timeout and an empty possession from Woodlan (3-4, 0-2 ACAC), it was Madison Dirksen’s turn to make a 3-pointer, converting a Schwieterman assist to make it 15-0.
“Well, you alway want to get off to a quick start,” Comer said. “We’re not a team that presses, so we’ve got to get stops in the half court to get a stretch there where we can make a run. It’s not like we can turn people over easy.
“I thought early on our defense was pretty good. We were aggressive defensively. They missed some shots and we hit some shots. That’s always good for your confidence. We were playing with a lot more confidence than they were early and I think that carried through the game.”
Woodlan missed its first six shots of the game and also had five turnovers in the first quarter. Its first points came on a pair of free throws from Avah Smith with 3:44 to go in the period — it stopped the Patriots’ 15-0 run — and their first field goal was a Smith fast break with two tenths of a second left in the stanza.
Jay County continued to outscore Woodlan in each of the final three quarters, including a 15-9 margin in the third quarter that gave the Patriots a 43-20 advantage eight minutes to play.
Schwieterman was 4-of-7 from the 3-point line as she was 7-for-17 from the field. She also had six assists and four rebounds, two days after scoring 21 points in a loss to South Side.
“We’ve talked about it many times, she’s got to be involved with most of our points,” Comer said. Doesn’t necessarily mean she’s scoring but she’s got to be involved. She’s making a lot better decisions and that’s just through maturity and reps. She’s just playing really smart basketball now.
“Other side of that, we have to finish when she makes those passes and we’re doing a better job of putting people in the right positions to finish.”
Izzy Rodgers and Dirksen had a pair of 3-pointers each. Rodgers finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Dirksen scored all six of her points in the first quarter and led all players with eight rebounds.
Dakotah Krohn matched her season average by scoring 13 points to lead the Warriors. Smith was held to half of her average of 14 points.
Junior varsity
Jay County shut down Woodlan in the third quarter on its way to a 32-17 victory.
The Patriots (6-3) led 10-7 after one quarter and pushed the advantage to 19-11 at halftime. That’s when they buckled down and kept the Warriors without a point, all the while pushing the margin to 17 at the end of the third.
Cash Hollowell scored nine points to lead the Patriots, and Molly Muhlenkamp was second with eight points. Breanna Dirksen chipped in seven points.
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