Girls hoops preview

The Xxxxxxday, Xxxxxx XX, 2009 Local X 2015-16 Girls hoops preview Whitley County, Ind. November 2015

2 Girls Hoops Preview Guard play key for Lady Eagles COLUMBIA CITY By MARK PARKER The COLUMBIA CITY Columbia City s Lady Eagle basketball team will have some big gaps to fill on the offensive end of the court with the departure of its two leading scorers and ball handlers to graduation. Columbia City Head Basketball Coach Amy Shearer weighs in: 1. Who are your biggest losses to graduation? What will be most missed by their absence? Our biggest losses are Macie Hinen and Aubrey Wright for their backcourt leadership and scoring, with each scoring 12 points a game. We will also miss Baily Rentchler, who provided a physical presence in the post and for her rebounding. 2. Who are your key returning players? What roles do you expect they will play this year? Columbia City returns Chelsea Pettigrew who averaged 10 points and six rebounds per game and provides leadership. We also return Elise Cormany who scored six points and four rebounds per game, and provided a defensive presence. We also have Regan Decker, who averaged four points, while providing leadership and defense; Bella Krieg, who scored City, Page A3 2015-16 Varsity Roster NO. NAME HT. POS. GR. 10 Darian Farber 5 5 G 11 20 Chelsea Pettigrew 5 10 F 11 22 Elise Cormany 5 9 G 11 24 Holly Martinez 5 8 G 11 30 Regan Decker 5 6 G 12 32 Morgan Bales 5 7 G/F 11 42 Natalia Johnson 6 0 C 12 44 Bella Krieg 5 10 F 11 FARMERS MUTUAL INSURANCE ASSOCIATION OF WHITLEY CO. 510 Branch court columbia city, in 46725 260-244-5571 l.adkins@fmwhitley.com

Girls Hoops Preview The 3 2015-16 Varsity Schedule Month Date Opponent Site Time November 10 West Noble T 6 p.m. 13 Whitko T 6:15 p.m. 17 Snider H 6 p.m. 20 Marion T 6 p.m. 27 Carroll H 6:15 p.m. 24 Goshen T 6 p.m. December 1 Bishop Dwenger H 6:15 p.m. 5 Leo T 6 p.m. 11 Norwell H 6:15 p.m. 15 Warsaw H 6:15 p.m. 19 East Noble H 1 p.m. 29 Northridge Tny T TBA 30 Northridge Tny T TBA January 2 Concordia H 6:15 p.m. 5 Churubusco T 6 p.m. 8 Bellmont T 6 p.m. 12 Wawasee H 6:15 p.m. 16 Huntington North T 6:15 p.m. 22 DeKalb H 6:15 p.m. 26 Northrop H 6:15 p.m. 29 New Haven T 6:15 p.m. City, from Page 2 Elise Cormany four points per contest and gave us a physical presence in the post; and Natalia Johnson, who will give us leadership, rebounding and a physical presence in the post. 3. Who are newcomers that will have an impact on your program? Darian Farber, who we look to fill the point guard position, Holly Martinez for shooting and scoring and Morgan Bales for help on defense and rebounding. 4. What position poses the biggest need for you this year? Our guard play. We have several guards, but unfortunately we don t have many with significant varsity experience. 5. What will be your program s emphasis this season? We will emphasize defense, rebounding, free throws, doing the basic fundamental things correctly and out-working and out-hustling our opponents. 6. What will be the biggest challenge to your team s success? I am not sure of our challenges, but we will face them as they come. photo / Mark Parker Columbia City s Darian Farber takes a shot over Morgan Bales in practice.

4 Girls Hoops Preview Lady Cats seek to return success WHITKO By MARK PARKER The SOUTH WHITLEY Whitko s Lady Wildcats produced 16 wins last year, a mark that tied them for the second most in program history. With the Wildcats returning virtually all of their statistical production, Head Coach Brandon Bradley says he is optimistic about prospects for the Three Rivers Conference and post-season play for the team. 1. Who are your biggest losses to graduation? What will be most missed by their absence? Maddie Gawthrop (3.4 points per game, 5.2 rebounds per game), Maddie did a nice job defensively on the interior and on the boards for us. Reghan Craig (1.9 points per game, 2.0 rebounds per game, 1.2 assists per game) Reghan was a three-year letter-winner and someone who, as a coach, you could trust to play hard, defend the ball and not make many mistakes. Aly Nicodemus (1.4 points per game, 1.0 rebounds per game) Aly might have been a much bigger contributor if not for her injuries. When healthy, she was a physical presence on the interior. 2. Who are your key returning players? What roles do you expect they will play this year? Aly Reiff ( 17.6 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, 4.7 assists per game, 3.6 steals per game) Reiff has had firm offers from several Division One programs, was first-team all-conference for the second time, as well as garnering several other awards. Obviously I see Aly as being a key contributor, said Bradley. Her motive, versatility and competitive fire are hard to match. I would expect her to do more things for us this season, as her defense, rebounding and physicality have all improved. Brianna Cumberland (14.6 points per game, 3.1 rebounds per game, 2.8 assists per game, 2.1 steals per game) Cumberland led the TRC in both free throw percentage and 3-point shooting percentage. I think the thing most overlooked with Brianna is her ability to defend, said Bradley. She almost always defends the other team s best player. Offensively she s a big threat on the perimeter. Jennifer Reiff (5.6 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, 1.9 assists per game) Jen missed the first 13 games of the season last year and struggled to find a rhythm when she returned in January, said Bradley. I look for her to have a nice bounce-back season that mirrors her sophomore year when she was an All-Conference Honorable Mention. Hanna Yohe (5.3 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game, 0.9 assists per game, 1.0 steals per game) Hanna is one of our toughest kids and she really started to figure things out mid-season last year. She was great defensively for us, and her numbers improved as the season went on and she moved into the starting lineup. Unfortunately she missed the final nine games due to a broken finger. Kennedy Krull Kennedy would likely have started a few games a season ago, but she tore her ACL in Sept. 2014. She was able to play limited minutes in late-january, but she should be full-strength and a key contributor this season. 2015-16 Varsity Roster 1 JENNIFER REIFF 5 10 F 12 2 SUZANNE SICKAFOOSE 5 5 G/F 11 3 EMALEE DUGGINS 5 1 G 9 4 HALEY YOHE 5 4 G 11 5 BRIANNA CUMBERLAND 5 8 G 11 10 AVAREE FREEL 5 9 F 12 11 EMILY DAY 5 9 F 12 12 HANNA YOHE 5 3 G 11 13 ANNA OUSLEY 5 2 G 10 15 ALY REIFF 5 11 G 11 20 SARAH HEWITT 5 6 G/F 9 21 CASSIDY STOUT 5 1 G 9 22 KAYLA SCHIPPER 5 7 F 9 23 ELLIE SNEP 5 9 F 9 31 SUSAN LEE 5 6 F 9 33 LILLY OWSLEY 5 5 F/C 9 42 KENNEDY KRULL 5 10 F 11 44 BROOKE CHRISTOFFEL 5 9 F 11 Emily Day (1.6 points per game, 2.6 rebounds per game, 0.2 assists per game) Emily came on late in the year and was key defensively and on the boards for us after playing sparingly early last season. I think she ll be one of our better interior defenders and rebounders again this season. Haley Yohe (1.8 points per game, 1.2 rebounds per game, 0.6 assists per game) Haley also came on late last year as her confidence grew and her minutes increased. She had an excellent performance against Wawasee in the sectional, and she ll be key defensively for us this season. Avaree Freel (0.9 points per game, 1.2 rebounds per game, 0.3 assists per game) Avaree is entering her third year of varsity play, and she has consistently provided a veteran presence off the bench for us and will likely do the same again this coming season. 3. Who are newcomers that will have an impact on your program? Ellie Snep Ellie is a skilled freshman who can play a variety of positions. She could earn an opportunity to play some early this season, but will have to con- Whitko, Page A5

Girls Hoops Preview The 5 2015-16 Varsity Schedule Date Opponent Site Time Nov. 10 Central Noble High School A 6:15 p.m. Nov. 13 Columbia City High School H 6:15 p.m. Nov. 14 Churubusco High School N A 6 p.m. Nov. 17 Peru High School/Junior High A 6:15 p.m. Nov. 20 Huntington North High School H 6 p.m. Nov. 27 Warsaw Community High School A 6:15 p.m. Dec. 2 Northrop High School A 6 p.m. Dec. 5 North Miami A 6:15 p.m. Dec. 11 Manchester H 6:15 p.m. Dec. 15 West Noble High School H 6 p.m. Dec. 19 Tippecanoe Valley High School A 6:15 p.m. Dec. 29 Greenfield-Central High School A TBA Dec. 30 Greenfield-Central High School A TBA Jan. 9 Rochester HS/MS H 6:15 p.m. Jan. 14 Norwell High School A 6:15 p.m. Jan. 16 Southwood High School H 6:15 p.m. Jan. 19 Wawasee High School H 6:15 p.m. Jan. 23 Northfield High School - Wabash H 6:30 p.m. Jan. 26 Lakeland High School H 6 p.m. Jan. 29 Wabash HS/MS A 6:15 p.m. Jan. 30 Maconaquah High School H 3 p.m. Kennedy Krull Whitko, from Page 4 tinue adjusting to the speed and size of the varsity game. Emalee Duggins Emy is another skilled freshman who plays with a lot of passion and feistiness. She is a good ball-handler and decision-maker. Unfortunately, she had surgery on her hand and will miss our first seven to nine games this season. Suzanne Sickafoose Suzi is a fast and athletic kid who plays extremely hard. She was formerly homeschooled, so this is her first season in our program. Brooke Christoffel Brooke played JV the last two years, but she adds experienced depth to our varsity frontline. 4. What position poses the biggest need for you this year? I don t really think there is a position of need for us, said Bradley, because our offensive and defensive systems can adapt to our personnel very well. Would we like to have more size? Absolutely. But we have as much depth as we ve had since I ve been here, so I don t know that we have a need. 5. What will be your program s area of emphasis this season? We definitely need to rebound better as a team, and we need to use the freethrow line to our advantage. I feel like we have a very good free-throw-shooting team, as last year we nearly beat the school record for free-throw percentage, but we just don t get to the line enough. 6. What will be the biggest challenge to your team s success? I think the biggest challenge for us is to not accept our improved success the last couple of years complacently. We still need to come to work every day and not be satisfied with the past. We need to want more for ourselves, but more importantly, be willing to work for more for ourselves.

6 Girls Hoops Preview Lady Eagles look to fill voids CHURUBUSCO By MARK PARKER The CHURUBUSCO Churubusco s Lady Eagle basketball Head Coach Dustin Beucler finds himself in the unenviable position of having to replace the Lady Eagles go-to scoring threat, Montana Martin, who graduated. Fortunately, the Lady Eagles return a nucleus of players that have seen varsity action, and who will be expected to fill the scoring void left by Martin s graduation. 1. Who are your biggest losses to graduation? What will be most missed by their absence? We will miss Montana Martin, one of the best overall players in the history of our program. Martin is now playing for Trine University. Her leadership, on and off the court, will be what we miss the most. 2. Who are your key returning players? What roles do you expect that they will play this year? Returning players include senior Jazlyn Needler, who is our point guard and best on-the-ball defender. She will take on more of a scoring role. We also return Alyssa Anderson, an overall vocal lead- Busco, Page A7 NO. 2015-16 Varsity Roster NAME GRADE HT. POS. 1 MALLORY PEARSON 11 5 8 G/F 3 STACIA FESTER 11 5 5 PG/G 10 JAZLYN NEEDLER 12 5 4 PG/G 12 VALENCIA REISTER 11 5 4 F 22 ALYSSA ANDERSON 12 5 10 G/F 30 MARIAH NONDORF 12 5 5 G 32 SHELBY BROCKMAN 12 6 0 C/F 33 PAIGE STAUFFER 11 5 8 C/F 40 CASSIDY YANT 11 5 11 PG/G WHEELER MECHANICAL SERVICES, LLC 45 Years Experience Good Luck to all area athletes! WE INSTALL, SERVICE & REPAIR ALL MAKES & MODELS Best wishes for a winning season! RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL INDUSTRIAL Heating Plumbing Cooling Commercial Refrigeration - 24 Hr. Service - (260) 244-6328 309 Diamond Ave. Columbia City, IN 46725 www.wheelermechanical.com CO#50900283 Bins Air Systems Unload Augers Dryers Grain Legs Complete Millwright Service Concrete Construction Sales Installation Service Email: yagel@yagelgrainsystems.com Web: www.yagelgrainsystems.com 550 W. Business 30 Columbia City, IN Ph (260) 248-2311 Fx (260) 248-4711

The Girls Hoops Preview 7 2015-16 Varsity Schedule Date Opponent Site Time Nov. 10 Lakewood Park Christian H 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14 Whitko High School H 7:30 p.m. Nov. 17 Lakeland Christian Academy A 7:30 p.m. Nov. 19 Fairfield High School A 7:30 p.m. Nov. 21 Leo High School H 7:30 p.m. Nov. 24 Woodlan High School A 7:30 p.m. Dec. 1 Adams Central High School H 7:30 p.m. Dec. 3 F.W. Blackhawk Christian H 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5 Westview High School H 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9 Eastside Jr/Sr HS H 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11 West Noble High School A 7:30 p.m. Dec. 16 Garrett High School A 7:30 p.m. Dec. 18 Prairie Heights High School A 6 p.m. Jan. 5 Columbia City High School H 7:30 p.m. Jan. 8 Fremont High School A 6 p.m. Jan. 9 Hamilton High School H 7:30 p.m. Jan. 12 West Noble High School A 6 p.m. Jan. 13 NECC Tourney TBA 6 p.m. Jan. 14 NECC Tourney TBA 6 p.m. Jan. 15 NECC Tourney TBA 6 p.m. Jan. 16 NECC Tourney TBA 6 p.m. Jan. 19 Lakeland High School A 7:30 p.m. Jan. 22 Angola High School A 6 p.m. Jan. 27 South Adams High School H 7:30 p.m. Jan. 29 Central Noble High School H 6 p.m. Busco, from Page 6 er. Her rebounding and defense should improve. Another returnee is junior Cassidy Yant. She is looking to take on more of an offensive role, and her defense and communication must improve. 3. Who are newcomers that will have an impact on your program? Newcomers include junior Stacia Fester, who played JV last year. When she is mentally engaged and not being so hard on herself, she is one of our best outside shooters and defenders. Junior Mallory Pearson had double knee surgery last year and missed the majority of the season. Mallory is extremely athletic and she can defend and rebound. 4. What position poses the biggest need for you this year? Our depth in the post positions. We will need to defend the post as well as become a better overall rebounding team. 5. What will be the emphasis to your program? Areas that we will be addressing include: communication on defense, team rebounding and team defense. Our strengths include: leadership, quickness, our work ethic and ability to put pressure on the ball. 6. What will be the biggest challenge to your team s success? The biggest challenge will be building on last Jazlyn Needler year s success. 7. Any other comments? The senior class is 13 wins away from becoming the most successful class in program history, said Beucler, and that is with only winning three games their freshman year. Jazlyn Needler needs only 61 steals to break the all-time career steals record of 188 held by Crystal Mort (1985). Stacia Fester Cassidy Yant

Girls Hoops Preview The 8 Haley Yohe - Whitko Alyssa Anderson - Churubusco Elise Cormany - Columbia City A work of art! This high quality poster is rolled, tubed & available for purchase at The. It contains more than 350 photos from 1909-2014! Columbia City High School Legacy Basketball Poster Just $ 19 99 PLUS TAX 927 W. Connexion Way Columbia City 260-244-5153 BIG 25"X38" FULL COLOR POSTER SUITABLE FOR FRAMING Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8:00 A.M. to 5:30 P.M.