The ball eluded the baskets much of the night Dec. 27 in the Wolvearena during a contest between the rebuilding Kenston and West Geauga girls basketball teams.
Game photos click here.
The ball eluded the baskets much of the night Dec. 27 in the Wolvearena during a contest between the rebuilding Kenston and West Geauga girls basketball teams.
The Bombers changed how they played defense late in the first quarter, though, and the results put the clamps on the Wolverines’ only real offensive threat — senior post Maggie Furst — as they rallied for a thrilling 39-36 victory.
West Geauga had some success early in getting the ball inside to Furst. Seven first-period points had her team on top at the first buzzer, 12-6. Kenston outscored the Wolverines by a 12-4 count in the second period to take a halftime lead it never would give up, though the final couple minutes did get hectic.
Keeping the passes from outside away from Furst was the key. Over the middle two quarters, Kenston forced 26 of the total 37 West Geauga (3-6) miscues. Furst only got her hands on the ball for one shot in the second half as Kenston (2-7) built a double-digit lead midway through the fourth period, then held on for dear life in the closing seconds.
“It wasn’t so much us making adjustments in our defense,” Kenston Head Coach Kevin Hinkle said. “Maggie is just such a great inside player, you have to be ready to deal with her at all times, and we weren’t in the start.
“It came down to us just executing better and playing with a sense of urgency. We have to play aggressively, and the girls just did it on their own in the middle periods. I’m really happy with our defense tonight. We’ve played a tough schedule to this point, coming into this gym is always a battle, and we responded well.”
Kenston finally tied the game with about three minutes left in the first half; Aurora Young snared a rebound and went coast to coast for a layup that tied it at 16-16.
Turnovers became the rule of the day for the next couple minutes until Kenston freshman Emily Grubich put home a short jumper from the paint for an 18-16 lead.
Morgan Cicek opened the second half with a basket, Young added another, and then Young found Cicek alone for a three-pointer that opened a 25-16 lead.
The Bombers weathered a 6-2 West Geauga run over the last two minutes of the game for the win.
“We’re still a very young team,” West Geauga Head Coach Brandan Stewart said. “It’s a matter of the girls learning to value each possession, to value each time they have the ball, and I’m really proud of their efforts to make it a three point game at the end like they did. There was no quit at any moment.
“Maggie is our only true offensive threat this season to this point. Everybody knows it, so we need to keep working through her to score, but at the same time, others need to step up and play. Faelynn (Beckrest) did a good job tonight, so I see improvement.”
Aurora Young paced the balanced Kenston attack with 12 points, six rebounds and three assists. Another taller player for Coach Hinkle came off the bench and made her presence known: Amy Jarmocowicz, who added eight points and snared eight rebounds.
Beckrest led West Geauga with 14 points and nine rebounds, as the efforts of the Kenston defense to limit touches for Furst succeeded all night. Furst added 10 points and 13 rebounds in a regular double-double effort, but turnovers kept her from getting shots she’d normally get.
Numbers don’t always tell the true story of a game. This one was a thriller, just maybe not an artistic success.
