Lowell, HC eye Friday tests
By Mark Smith msmith@post-trib.com February 7, 2012 2:44PM
Crown Point Seniors, from left, Morgan Frame, Kendall Brown, Courtney Kvachkoff, Beth Ingram, Michaela Prough, and Alexis Joseph, pose for a photo during Senior night on Thursday, February 2, 2012. | Mark Smith~Sun-Times Media
3A KANKAKEE VALLEY Sectional
All tickets - $6 per night -
Saturday times subject to change
2-7 (late Tues.) ANDREAN [3-19] vs. Knox [10-11] 6 p.m.
2-7 (late Tues). Rensselaer [9-11] vs. KV [11-9]
2-10 (F) Calumet [6-14] vs. ANDREAN/Knox - 6 p.m.
2-10 (Fri.). HANOVER CENTRAL [12-7] vs.
KV/Rensselaer - 7:30 p.m.
2-11 (Sat.) Championship - 7:30 p.m.
CLASS 3A @ GRIFFITH
2-7 (late Tues) Hammond [6-12] vs. Lew Wallace [4-7]
2-7 (late Tues) Griffith [13-6] vs. Gavit [9-10]
2-10 (F) Clark [1-16] vs. Winner Game 1 - 6 p.,m.
2-10 (F) Gary Roosevelt [11-5] vs.
Winner Game 2 (probably Griffith)
2-11 (S) Griffith (3A) Sectional championship - 7:30 p.m.
CLASS 3A Rensselaer Regional
2-18 (Sat.) Winner at Kankakee Valley (HC or KV) vs.
Winner at West Lafayette (probably Benton Central) 11 a.m.
2-18 (Sat) Winner at Griffith (Griffith or Roosevelt) vs.
Wawasee (probably Northwood) 1 P.m.
4A MUNSTER SECTIONAL
All tickets - $6 per night - Note early start Saturday night
2-7 (late Tues.) Morton [7-13] vs. Gary West Side [16-4]
2-8 (late Wed.) Highland [8-12] vs. LOWELL [17-3]
2-8 (late Wed.) Lake Central [11-9] vs. Munster [10-10]
2-10 (Fri.) East Chicago [15-6] vs. West Side - 6 p.m.
2-10 (Fri.) Highland/LOWELL vs. LC/Munster - 7:30 p.m.
2-11 (Sat) Championship - 7 p.m.
4A @ PORTAGE Sectional
2-7 (Tu) Crown Point [12-8] vs. Portage [5-16] 6 p.m.
2-7 (Tu) Chesterton [9-10] vs. LaPorte [12-7] 7:30 p.m.
2-8 (W) Hobart [11-11] vs. Michigan City [14-6] 6 p.m.
2-8 (W) Valparaiso [5-14] vs. Merrillville [20-0]7:30 p.m.
2-10 (F) CP or Portage vs. Chesterton or LaPorte - 6 p.m.
2-10 (F) Hobart or Michigan City vs. Valpo or Merrillville - 7:30 p.m.
2-11 (Sat) Championship - 7:30 P.m,.
VALPARAISO REGIONAL
2-18 (Sat) Goshen winner (Northridge or Warsaw)
vs. Munster winner (Lowell, Gary West Side, LC or EC)
2-18 (Sat) Mishawaka winner (Penn or Memorial)
vs. Portage winner (CP or Merrillville) 1 p.m.
Lowell Red Devils (17-3) Coach: Catherine Antcliff, 30-11 - 2nd season
Nov. 11(W) 65-16 North Newton (5-14)
Nov. 15 (W) 76-28 Hammond (6-14)
Nov. 18 (W) 67-28 Morton (7-13)
Nov. 23 (L) 43-49 at Hanover Central (12-7)
Nov. 26 (W) 61-49 at East Chicago (15-6)
Nov. 29 (W) 75-62 Crown Point (12-8)
Dec. 2 (W) 50-39 at Kankakee Valley (11-9)
Dec. 9 (W) 63-26 Munster (10-10)
Dec. 15 (W) 46-42 Highland (8-12)
Carroll County Classic
Dec. 17 (W) 54-11 University (4-14)
Dec. 17 (W) 54-32 at Carroll (11-9)
Jan. 6 (W) 44-19 at Andrean (3-19)
Jan. 10 (L) 42-63 Merrillville (20-0)
Jan. 14 (W) 53-42 Hobart (11-11)
Jan. 17 (L) 53-55 at Lake Central (11-9)
Jan. 21 (W) 46-27 at Griffith (15-6)
Jan. 24 (W) 56-38 Boone Grove (19-2)
Jan. 27 (W) 69-37 at Calumet (6-14)
Jan. 31 (W) 57-46 at Wheeler (15-6)
Feb. 2 (W) 73-33 at Hebron (8-11)
Class 4A Munster Sectinal
Feb. 8 (Wed) Highland (8-12)
Feb 10 (Fri) vs. LC or Munster - 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 11 (Sat) championship game
2012 HANOVER CENTRAL (12-7)
Coach: Doug Nelson (67-60) 6 years
Nov. 8 (W) 65-18 at River Forest {4-16}
Nov. 15 (W) 54-47 at Highland {8-12}
Nov. 23 (W) 49-43 Lowell {17-3}
Nov. 30 (W) 63-26 Calumet {6-14}
Dec. 2 (W) 58-25 at Hebron {8-11)
Dec. 6 (L) 53-57 at Kankakee Valley {11-9}
Dec. 9 (W) 57-51 Washington Twp. {7-12)
Dec. 15 (L) 61-67 Gary Roosevelt {11-6}
Dec. 21 (W) 48-26 Andrean {3-19}
Hanover ‘Winter Classic’
Dec. 28 (W) 65-25 Bishop Noll {10-9} quarterfinal
Dec. 28 (L) 47-73 Oregon-Davis {17-4} semifinal
Dec. 29 (W) 50-44 Griffith {15-6} 3rd place
Jan. 10 (W) 55-39 Morgan Twp. {10-10}
Jan. 14 (W) 57-28 at South Central (8-12) PCC Tournament
Jan. 17 (L) 46-53 Boone Grove {19-2} quarterfinal
Jan. 26 (L) 48-52 Boone Grove {19-2}
Jan. 28 (L) 38-42 at Kouts {13-8}
Jan. 31 (L) 30-62 at East Chicago (15-6)
Feb. 3 (W) 44-32 at LaCrosse {4-15}
Article Extras
Updated: February 7, 2012 2:44PM
HANOVER CENTRAL (12-7)
at Kankakee Valley (12-9)
Friday - 7:30 p.m.
There wouldn’t be any tears in Cedar Lake if Rensselaer upset Kankakee Valley in the Class 3A Sectioonal 18 quarterfinals early this week.
It’s not that Hanover cannot defeat KV in the matchup that would be Friday night at 7:30 in Jasper County. It’s just that they’d find a much better matchup in the Bombers.
Kankakee Valley, which won its final three games of the regular season, has the size to cause HC big problems with 6-foot sisters Hailey and Danielle Ruesken up front where Hanover can get no taller than 5-foot-7 center Kristen Roper and sisters 5-foot-9 Emily and 5-foot-10 Hannah Blue.
Let the record show, however, that Hanover has defeated Lowell (17-3) and Griffith (15-6), the top two teams in the NCC, both teams that have defeated KV.
In the head-to-head meeting between Hanover and Kankake Valley, the Kougars won a narrow 57-53 victory on Dec. 6.
The Lady Cats are not playing well right now. Back-to-back narrow losses to 2A No. 7 Boone Grove (19-2), the PCC champ, seems to have left a hangover with Hanover. The Lady Cats lost four in a row until winning the regular season finale 44-32 at LaCrosse (4-15) last Friday.
KV guards Beth Jansma (11.5 ppg) and Lauren Stokes (10.2 ppg), both 5-foot-6 sophomores, are the Kougars’ leading scorers and they know that soph Danielle Ruesken (5.5 ppg) and senior Hailey Ruesken (9.0 ppg.) can get the rebounds if they miss.
The Kougars largely go with seven players including 5-foot-5 Tori Van Vuren (3.3 pg.) and 5-foot-10 Ashley Norberg (3.6 ppg.) and sophomroe guard Gabby Marton (2.4 ppg.).
Down the KV bench are seniors Stacey Hereema (2.8) and Shelby Hickman (1.8 ppg). All nine of those girls have appeared in 17 of KV’s 20 games.
Hailey Ruesken scored 15 against HC in December and Van Vuren added 10, but seven players contributed four or more. Hanover got 15 from Blayr Poston, 13 from Rylie Singleton and 11 from Kristin Roper.
I do not know if Singleton, a 5-foot-7 sophomore guard ,will be able to play. She has had multiple leg injuries during the second half of the season and did not play in the final two games of the season.
Without her, HC needs a big shooting game from 5-foot junior Tiphani Ward and 5-foot-7 senior guard Katie Dominguez, who scored 11 in the season finale at LaCrosse.
Hanover has to have a couple of other scoring options beyond junior leading scorer Blayr Poston (15.6 ppg).
Kankakee Valley, on its home floor, is the sectional favorite, but if HC can upset them, you would have to like the Lady Cats in Saturday’s sectional final against Knox, Calumet or Andrean.
LOWELL (18-3) vs.
Lake Central (12-9)
at Munster, Friday, 7:30 p.m.
The encouraging thing about Lowell’s chances in the Munster Sectional is that the Devils have played everyone in the field except Gary West Side.
The uneasy fact is that Lowell, which posted a program-best 17-3 regular season, hasn’t defeated everyone except West Side.
There is a significant possibility that Lowell, if they top Highland in the quarterfinals Wednesday, will face Lake Central in the sectional semifinals at 6 p.m. Friday.
LC rallied from 14 points behind to beat Lowell 55-53 last month, one of two Lowell games (Hanover is the other) that the Devils would like to do over.
But be careful what you wish for here. LC has played one of the toughest schedules in Northwest Indiana.
The Indians have lost twice each to Merrillville (20-0), Michigan City (15-6) and Crown Point (12-8) and once to 4A No.1 Hamilton Southeastern (20-0). But LC has defeated LaPorte (12-8) twice plaus Griffith (15-6) and, of course, Lowell (17-3)..
Lowell, which could be at full strength if senior forward Savannah Summers, who missed the final two games of the season, is back from a leg injury, is led in scoring by 5-foot-10 Katie Bobos (15.5 ppg) who scored 20 in the 73-33 Lowell win at Hebron in the regular season finale last week.
Junior guard Carley Austgen scored 17 in a 57-46 win at Greater South Shore Conference champion Wheeler (15-6) earlier in the final week.
The backup for Summers is 5-foot-10 freshman Sydney Barta, who scored 10 at Hebron. Barta looks like she can be a top defensive player and there’s no way she doesn’t get on the floor this week if Lowell has to (as they hope to) play three playoff games in four days.
Lowell’s big advantage is 5-foot-3 lead guard Kalyne Godbolt, the natural floor leader that nobody else in the sectional has. Godbolt will be the target of every defense here and she’ll see taller defenders in an effort to short circuit the Red Devil attack.
Lowell can bring 5-foot-3 spark-plug Sarah Wieser off the bench with Barta or Summers and freshman Nicole Sharkey.
Lowells’ 5-foot-10 junior frowards Bobos and MacKenzie Kreutz will be matched up against 6-foot LC senior Nikki Adams and 5-foot-10 junior Jessica Bell.
LC sophomore Lizzie Seymour (14 ppg) is a top offensive player and she’ll probaby face Lowell junior guard Sarah Wietbrock. Lowell has allowed just 38 points a game and that’s crucial in the playoffs, where the game slows down.
The biggest key here is Lowell’s composure. The Red Devils would need a court order to stop Merrillville, but Lowell should be 19-1 and they are aware of it. They have won only one close game (46-42 at Highland) all season. The Devils fumbled away double digit leads against Lake Central and Hanover Central and that’s it. Lowell has won 16 other games by 10 points or more.
I can guarantee you that if Lowell wins three times this week all of them won’t be by 10 points or more.
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