Lady Bulldogs tame Ponies 57-31 in Girls Basketball

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith
12-25-2011

CP's Courtney Kvachkoff (20) tries to get by Munster's Anika Gasich (32) in Friday's game at Crown Point. (All photos by Mark Smith)

CP's Alexis Joseph (40) is happy with the way things are going during a time of Friday. Joseph scored 18 points with 11 rebounds in CP's 57-31 win.

CP's Michaela Prough (24) tries to hold her ground against Munster's Aleks Obradovic in the Friday night holiday eve game against Munster. The Lady Bulldogs won 57-31.

CP coach Anne Equihua is happy after the Lady Bulldogs improve to 8-4 with eight games to play.

MUNSTER (31) Lauren Grunwald 2-0-4, Jordan Cole 2-0-4, Aleks Obradovic 1-0-3, Bernadette Grabowski 0-4-4, Anika Gasich 1-0-3, Jolie Watson 5-0-13, Alyssa Sheets 0-0-0, Lexi DeLuna 0-0-0, Serena Lopez 0-0-0, Hannah Bulavah 0-0-0. TOTALS: 11 (5-7) 31.

CROWN POINT (57) Michaela Prough 3-1-7, Beth Ingram 2-2-6, Alexis Joseph 8-2-18, Courtney Kvachkoff 5-2-12, Kendall Brown 1-5-7, Morgan Frame 2-1-5, Abby Kvachkoff 1-0-2, Taylor Equihua 0-0-0, Katija Tarailo 0-0-0-, Lauren O'Keefe 0-0-0. TOTALS: 22 (13-22) 57.

FREE THROWS: MUNSTER (5-7, 71.4%) Bernadette Grabowski 4-4-, Jordan Cole 0-2, Aleks Obradovic 1-1; CROWN POINT (13-23, 56.5%) Brown 5-9, Kvachkoff 2-6, Ingram 2-2, Joseph 2-4, Frame 1-1, Prough 1-1.

REBOUNDS: MUNSTER (20) Grabowski 6, Obradovic 6,Grunewald 4, Cole, Buvala, DeLuna, Gasich; CROWN POINT (30) Joseph 11, Frame 5, Ingram 4, Equihua 3, Kvachkoff 2, Prough 2, Tarailo 2, Brown.

ASSISTS: MUNSTER ( 5) Grunewald 2, Grabowski, Gasich, Obradovic; CROWN POINT (14) Ingram 5, Brown 4, Courtney Kvachkoff 2, Abby Kvachkoff, Joseph 2.

STEALS: MUNSTER (11) Grunewald 4. Gasich 3, Obradovic 3, Watson; CROWN POINT (10) Courtney Kvachkoff 4, Joseph 3. Ingram 2, Brown.

3-GOALS: MUNSTER (4) Jolie Watson 3, Anika Gasich.

CROWN POINT Lady Bulldogs (8-4)
2011 (14-8)
All night games begin with JV game at 6 p.m. unless indicated

Nov. 12 (W) 63-37 at Kankakee Valley {7-4}
Nov. 15 (W) 75-27 Andrean {0-10}
Nov. 18 (W) 51-40 PORTAGE {2-8}
Nov. 25 (W) 72-46 at CHESTERTON {3-5}
Nov. 29 (L) 62-75 at Lowell {9-1}
Dec. 2 (L) 45-60 LaPORTE {7-4}
Dec. 3 (L) 54-68 at Carmel {5-6}
Dec. 9 (W) 61-48 at LAKE CENTRAL {4-3}
Dec. 13 (W) 49-33 at VALPARAISO {3-9}
Dec. 16 (L) 42-58 MICHIGAN CITY {9-1}
Dec. 20 (W) 51-36 at PORTAGE {2-8}
Dec. 23 (W) 57-31 Munster {4-8}
Dec. 27 (Tu) at MERRILLVILLE {10-0} 6:30 p.m.(girl/boy double-header)
Dec. 30 (Fri.) at Hobart {6-4}

Jan. 6 (Fri.) CHESTERTON {3-5}
Jan. 14 (Sat) LAKE CENTRAL {4-3}
Jan. 20 (Fri.) at MICHIGAN CITY {9-1}
Jan. 24 (Tues) at LaPORTE {7-4}
Jan. 27 (Fri.) VALPARAISO {3-9}
Feb. 2 (Thurs) MERRILLVILLE {10-0)

Portage (4A) Sectional
with Hobart, Merrillville, Chesterton, Portage, LC, MC and Valpo.
Feb. 7 (Tues) quarterfinals - 6 p.m.
Feb. 8 (Wed.) quarterfinals - 6 p.m.
Feb. 10 (Fri) semifinals - 6 p.m.
Feb. 11 (Sat) championship

"Merrillville is the best team I've seen," said Munster coach Matt Backs, after his team finished a stretch of games where they played Lowell (10-1), Gary West Side (6-1), Griffith (9-1), Merrillville (10-0) and CP (8-4) last Friday.

"Lowell's good," said Munster coach Matt Backs, "Crown Point's good. But Merrillville is the best by far. We did okay against Gary West Side (a 56-50 loss) and Griffith (a 33-29 loss). But then we got blown out against Merrillville (59-24) and that could have been worse. She (Pirate coach Amy Govert) went easy on us. Then we come in here and we knew Crown Point was good. The girls understand these are all good team, but they start to wonder, when are we going to win one?"

Crown Point is at a crossroads. After 12 of the 20 regular season games, the Lady Bulldogs begin a stretch where they face Merrillville twice, Michigan City (9-1), LaPorte (7-4) and Hobart (6-4).

"We were 3-0 going to Lowell," said CP center Alexis Joseph, "and I guess you have to lose sometime. Last year (CP started 9-0 and finished at 14-8), it was a little heavy on your shoulders. When we lost, it was just getting ready for the sectional from that point. But it's Merrillville now. They're undefeated."

The victory over Munster (4-8) wasn't a thriller, but Joseph, a 6-foot senior, scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while Munster's 6-foot-1 Aleks Obradovic had three points and six rebounds.

"We knew we just had to come in here and get it done," said Joseph of the quiet holiday eve match. "So we got the win"

CP coach Anne Equihua says a lot of that was on Joseph, who has gone from someone who might have given up the sport after riding the bench last season, to a small college prospect with the change of coaches from up-tempo perimeter oriented Mike Cronkhite to the post based offense that Equihua has been teaching.

"I think it was just a matter of her regaining her confidence," said Equihua who wants the ball to go to Joseph and 6-foot-1 Michaela Prough. "She's been lacking confidence and it's back. I think you start doubting yourself no matter why it is you're not playing. You get back out there and you realize, 'I can still play this game.'"

"She's excelling now and I just hope that if college coaches are watching, they're interested in her. Her physical presence inside. Even defensively. Her post defense was great."

"We talked. She admitted that she didn't have a lot of confidence. First of all, we weren't getting the ball inside. We were retraining everybody that we weren't going to be jacking up 3s. We had to get the ball inside. We have two 6-foot-1 girls. We'd be stupid if we don't."

"And she's rebounding like a machine. I'm so happy for her and she deserves everything (the attention) she's getting now."

Munster got a boost from junior shooter Jolie Watson, who hit four field goals, three of them from three-point range. Munster's size was neutralized by CP's size, but the Mustangs, like many teams, are in need of a true lead guard, They committed 26 turnovers at Crown Point.

"We have one," said Backs, "But she's a freshman, Jordan Cole. That's why we start her. She's doing OK but she a 15-year-old playing against 18-year-olds. And against our schedule. She will get better.

Crown Point's guard situation has improved with the improvement of former bench warmer Beth Ingram, a 5-foot-5 senior rookie, who played 30 minutes against Munster, with six points, five assists, four rebounds and just three turnovers.

Equihua, who lost junior guards Haley Bordui and Sarah Rivich to knee surgery, continues to smile when asked about Ingram.

"It's amazing what confidence can do for you," she said. "You know what, you put her in a situation where she knows you have confidence in her. She's running our offense. When I first started playing her, I tried not to put her on the point, but that's her position. She's improving every time out. It's just confidence."

CPLB NOTES: Crown Point's Kendall Brown returned to the lineup after three games off following a concussion. The CP senior played 26 minutes collecting seven points and four assists.
How does anyone know it's okay to return after a concussion? There are several factors, but two are crucial.

"They take a CT scan of your brain at the start of the year," said CP coach Anne Equihua. "And then when you get hurt, they take another and match it against the first one. It has to match or you can't play. Then you ask the player if she thinks she's okay and you hope she tells you the truth. Because they all want to play. You hope she'll be honest."

CP's Alexis Joseph has played against Merrillville freshman Victoria Gaines, who has excelled in Merrillville's 10-0 start.

"I played against her at the field house. She shoots and she posts. A lot like the girl from Michigan City."

Joseph played very little last season under coach Mike Cronkhite, who stressed up-tempo play and three-point shooting. With a returned focus to post play this season, Joseph has become a major performer, averaging 9.5 points and 9.6 rebounds after 12 games.

"I don't even know how to describe it," she said last Friday after her third consecutive game of 10 points or more and her fourth consecutive game of 10 rebounds or more.

"I knew I could play. I thought I should have been playing. We want to get the ball inside and that gets the outside people shots, too. They (defenses) double down on us and we kick the ball out."

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Revised: December 25, 2011 .