March 1, 2019 at 5:54 a.m.
Champs clamp Tribe
Defending state champion Minster squeezes Fort Recovery for 43-26 win in district semifinal
Champs clamp Tribe
Copyright 2019, The Commercial Review
All Rights Reserved
WAPAKONETA, Ohio — It wasn't a big ordeal the Indians were behind on the scoreboard at halftime.
They trailed the second-ranked Wildcats15-10, but were satisfied at how the game was going.
Offensively they were moving the ball well but exercising max effort in doing so. Defensively they were making things difficult for the Midwest Athletic Conference player of the year by limiting her chances.
The returning champs were just a bit too much in the final 16 minutes.
Minster, which is defending state champions, pulled away from the Fort Recovery High School girls basketball team with a 12-4 run to start the second half and continued its defensive pressure to hand the Tribe a 43-26 loss inthe Division IV Wapakoneta district semifinal on Thursday.
“They're just tough to play against,” said FRHS coach Brian Patch, whose senior-less team ended the year 12-12. “They make everything difficult. They make every pass difficult on you. Every shot is going to be contested. There is nothing easy that you can get from them.
“They are a great team, defending state champs, and I thought our kids did a lot of good things in response to that and they battled 'til the end.”
Minster (24-1) meets MACfoe New Knoxville in the district final at 7 p.m. Saturday after the Rangers knocked off Marion Local 46-42 in the first semifinal Thursday.
“I'm sure they were pretty pleasedat halftime,” Minster coach Mike Wiss said. “The team that comes out with the most energy in the third quarter is going to have a little advantage. We did that.”
Fort Recovery's Val Muhlenkamp opened the second-half scoring with a jumper inside the foul line to cut the margin to 15-12, but at the other end Courtney Prenger, a future Xavier Musketeer, scored two to push the lead back to five.
Janae Hoying, who didn't have a point through the first two quarters, put back a Demaris Wolf miss for two points ahead of another Prenger basket on a fast break.
Paige Fortkamp had a putback bucket of her own, and Ivy Wolf, the MAC player of the year as a sophomore, took the ball at the right wing, stepped back behind the 3-point line and swished a shot to give Minster a double-digit lead, 24-14.
Hoying, who finished with 11 points, scored five in a row and the Wildcats were suddenly out front 29-14 with 2:05 remaining in the third.
“We went on a little run, Janae was a big part of that,” Wiss said.
Minster led 31-16 heading to the fourth quarter and Prenger began the period with a turnaround jumper over Olivia Patch on a Demaris Wolf assist. An Ivy Wolf coast-to-coast layup followed and the Wildcats had their biggest lead of the game, 35-16.
“I thought defensively we were good with face-guarding Ivy (Wolf),” Patch said. Wolf was held to seven points. “I thought our kids did a good job with that trying to slow them down a bit.
“Courtney (Prenger) obviously kind of took the game over, hit some shots, did some things that we knew she would be their next option for them.
“She just stepped up and made some (Division I) plays on us.”
Wiss commended Prenger and Hoying for stepping up as the Indians worked to suppress Wolf.
“When you try to take Ivy away a little bit, on the other side of the coin that also means there's one less help-side defender (for the others),” he said.
Fort Recovery scored 10 of the next 12 points to cut the deficit to 11 with 1:44 remaining but didn't get any closer. All of those points were hard-earned, though, as Minster's defense often double-teamed Muhlenkamp no matter where she got the ball. The Wildcats also limited the space with which the Tribe ball-handlers had to move, forcing them to pick up the dribble and fight for an opening to pass.
Alli Vaughn and Paige Fortkamp both scored six points to lead the Indians, while Muhlenkamp chipped in five points.
The Indians don't lose anyone to graduation, so with a young squad with everyone in line to return next year, Patch is hopeful for the future.
“I think that is big for us,” he said. “It took some time trying to gel, especially early on. … By the end of theyear I thought our kids were doing some good things on both sides of the ball.
“We just have to continue to work and get better.”
All Rights Reserved
WAPAKONETA, Ohio — It wasn't a big ordeal the Indians were behind on the scoreboard at halftime.
They trailed the second-ranked Wildcats
Offensively they were moving the ball well but exercising max effort in doing so. Defensively they were making things difficult for the Midwest Athletic Conference player of the year by limiting her chances.
The returning champs were just a bit too much in the final 16 minutes.
Minster, which is defending state champions, pulled away from the Fort Recovery High School girls basketball team with a 12-4 run to start the second half and continued its defensive pressure to hand the Tribe a 43-26 loss in
“They're just tough to play against,” said FRHS coach Brian Patch, whose senior-less team ended the year 12-12. “They make everything difficult. They make every pass difficult on you. Every shot is going to be contested. There is nothing easy that you can get from them.
“They are a great team, defending state champs, and I thought our kids did a lot of good things in response to that and they battled 'til the end.”
Minster (24-1) meets MAC
“I'm sure they were pretty pleased
Fort Recovery's Val Muhlenkamp opened the second-half scoring with a jumper inside the foul line to cut the margin to 15-12, but at the other end Courtney Prenger, a future Xavier Musketeer, scored two to push the lead back to five.
Janae Hoying, who didn't have a point through the first two quarters, put back a Demaris Wolf miss for two points ahead of another Prenger basket on a fast break.
Paige Fortkamp had a putback bucket of her own, and Ivy Wolf, the MAC player of the year as a sophomore, took the ball at the right wing, stepped back behind the 3-point line and swished a shot to give Minster a double-digit lead, 24-14.
Hoying, who finished with 11 points, scored five in a row and the Wildcats were suddenly out front 29-14 with 2:05 remaining in the third.
“We went on a little run, Janae was a big part of that,” Wiss said.
Minster led 31-16 heading to the fourth quarter and Prenger began the period with a turnaround jumper over Olivia Patch on a Demaris Wolf assist. An Ivy Wolf coast-to-coast layup followed and the Wildcats had their biggest lead of the game, 35-16.
“I thought defensively we were good with face-guarding Ivy (Wolf),” Patch said. Wolf was held to seven points. “I thought our kids did a good job with that trying to slow them down a bit.
“Courtney (Prenger) obviously kind of took the game over, hit some shots, did some things that we knew she would be their next option for them.
“She just stepped up and made some (Division I) plays on us.”
Wiss commended Prenger and Hoying for stepping up as the Indians worked to suppress Wolf.
“When you try to take Ivy away a little bit, on the other side of the coin that also means there's one less help-side defender (for the others),” he said.
Fort Recovery scored 10 of the next 12 points to cut the deficit to 11 with 1:44 remaining but didn't get any closer. All of those points were hard-earned, though, as Minster's defense often double-teamed Muhlenkamp no matter where she got the ball. The Wildcats also limited the space with which the Tribe ball-handlers had to move, forcing them to pick up the dribble and fight for an opening to pass.
Alli Vaughn and Paige Fortkamp both scored six points to lead the Indians, while Muhlenkamp chipped in five points.
The Indians don't lose anyone to graduation, so with a young squad with everyone in line to return next year, Patch is hopeful for the future.
“I think that is big for us,” he said. “It took some time trying to gel, especially early on. … By the end of the
“We just have to continue to work and get better.”
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