Muhlenkamp makes a dozen

Editor’s note: In more than six years, Chris Schanz has seen his fair share of individual performances, whether in a single contest or over the course of a career. In this “Exceptional Efforts” series, he will take a look back at some of those standout games or careers.

••••••••••

It was supposed to be just another Tuesday night.

But it turned into one extraordinary shooting performance.

The Jay County High School girls basketball team had just rebounded from losses to New Castle and Muncie Central by beating Adams Central four days earlier.

It was Dec. 15, 2015, the Patriots were 9-2 and entertaining the 3-7 Blackford Bruins.

Senior Abby Wendel and junior Taylor Homan were out of the starting lineup for the third consecutive game. They were on the bench in khakis and the team’s long-sleeved warm-up shirt. There was no chance they’d see action on the court.

The normal starters were freshman Shelby Caldwell, sophomore Hanna Ault, senior Ava Kunkler, Wendel and Homan.

Without the last two, someone had to step up.

Enter 5-foot, 6-inch senior Lyla Muhlenkamp.

See, Muhlenkamp was normally one of the first two players off the bench. But when she got the chance she made the most of those minutes. The third game into her senior year she set a career high of 13 points. Two games later she scored 17.

And in that 66-41 win against Adams Central to prevent a three-game losing streak, Muhlenkamp shot 6-of-11 from the field, including making half of her eight 3-point attempts, on her way to 16 points.

Just a tune-up for the game against Blackford.

On this night, the Bruins couldn’t stop her.

“We didn’t defend her well,” then-Blackford coach Jack Norton said. “It was a team failure, not just one person. It was a team defensive failure.”

Almost an understatement.

Muhlenkamp etched herself into history by making a dozen 3-pointers to shatter the school record. Her effort, exceptional as it was, still ranks second all-time in the state for 3-pointers made in a game — Jill Reynolds of New Harmony made 13 during the 1995-96 season.

Oh, Muhlenkamp also made a 2-point field goal and two of her three free-throw attempts to finish with 40 points, matching Patriot great Shannon Freeman’s school record for points in a game.

Freeman, a 1986 graduate, held the record for 29 years before Muhlenkamp matched it, and two years later Caldwell claimed it for her own with 41 points.

Muhlenkamp’s night started out well by making two of her first four 3-point attempts in the first quarter. She notched four more — on six attempts — in the second quarter, creating a bit of a buzz among the fans in attendance. Fully aware of what was happening, spectators began thumbing through the program to see the school record.

What they found: Cassandra Huelskamp was atop the list with seven.

Muhlenkamp tied the record 2:09 into the third quarter. Twenty eight seconds later it was hers.

She still wasn’t done, though. Muhlenkamp, who is now married to her high school sweetheart Justin Dirksen, was 4-for-4 in that third quarter and entered the fourth with as many points as her uniform number: 32.

She made her 11th 3-pointer for 35 points just 38 seconds into the final period.

Next up was Freeman’s record.

“Knowing the record was 40, I was sitting on the bench keeping track of her points,” Wendel said in 2015. “I wanted her to reach that goal.”

But her 12th and final 3-pointer didn’t come easy. She missed three straight attempts over the next six minutes. That 12th went in with 1:19 to play, putting her two points shy of Freehman’s mark and a triple away from having the record for points in a game.

With one-tenth of a second on the clock — the Patriots were leading 62-39 — Muhlenkamp heaved the potential record-setting 3-pointer from in front of her team’s bench, getting fouled in the process.

She was sent to the line, three free throws away from making history.

The first bounced off the front of the rim; the crowd let out a collective groan knowing there would be no new record.

The second swished. The third went in too, making her — for one night, at least — an equal with the most prolific girls basketball player in Jay County history.

“Well, I just tied the record that I never thought I would do,” Muhlenkamp said on that record-setting night. “I was definitely excited and proud of myself and my teammates because they definitely helped me. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Muhlenkamp ended the night 13-for-21 from the field, including a 12-for-19 mark from beyond the arc. The corners, the wings, the top of the key; no matter where she was open along the perimeter she let it fly.

“In 21 years of coaching I have never seen anyone shoot like that,” JCHS coach Kirk Comer said following the game. “It was neat to watch. She was in the zone.”

After seven seasons covering basketball, I’ve covered maybe half of the more than 500 games Comer has coached in his career.

And in such a short period of time, Comer’s sentiment on Muhlenkamp’s exceptional effort echoes mine.

I’ve never seen a shooting performance like hers.