Boone Grove, Hanover Central girls advance to meet in PCC Tourney

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith
1-18-2006

Monday, 1-16-2006 - Porter County Conference Quarterfinal at Morgan Township

BOONE GROVE (62)  Jessica Dowdy 5-0-14, Jessica Fauser 4-0-9, Kristyn Kessler 2-1-5, Cortney Flanigan 6-10-22, Kara Kessler 4-2-10, Brittney Roach 1-0-2, Kelly Shurr 0-0-0, Amanda Spears 0-0-0.  TOTALS: 22 (13-22) 62.

MORGAN TOWNSHIP (60)  Erin Parks 4-1-13, Julie Wittmer 3-2-8, Liz Clark 2-1-5, N icole Jessen 1-2-4, Angie Bush 5-13-24, Alyssa Sheets 0-4-4, Beth Gerber 1-0-2,  Cari Spaulding 0-0-0.  TOTALS: 16 (23-25) 60.

FREE THROWS:  BOONE (13-22, 59.0%) Kara Kessler 2-3, Kristyn Kessler 1-4,  Fauser 0-4, Flanigan 10-11.

MORGAN (23-25, 92%) Parks 1-2, Jessen 2-2, Bush 13-14,  Wittmer 2-2,  Clark 1-1, Sheets 4-4.

ASSISTS:  BOONE (15) Flanigan 8, Fauser 4, Krystn Kessler 2, Dowdy;  MORGAN (9) Jessen 4,  Parks 3, Clark, Wittmer.

REBOUNDS:  BOONE (22) Flanigan 8, Kara Kessler 4, Kristyn Kessler 7, Dowdy 2, Fauser;  MORGAN (28)  Clark 8, Wittmer 5, Bush 5, Jessen 5, Parks 3, Sheets 2.

3-GOALS:  BOONE (5) Jessica Dowdy 4, Jessica Fauser;   MORGAN (5) Erin Parks 4, Angie Bush.

FOULED OUT:  Morgan (1) Liz Clark (4th Q) :23 left.

Monday, 1-16-2006 - Porter County Conference Quarterfinal at Morgan Township

LaCROSSE (33)  Crystal Pfledderer 6-4-16, Caitlin Dommermuth 5-2-12, Angie Sornson 1-1-3, Suzanne Malecki 0-1-1, Wittlee Bechinski 0-1-1, Christina Wanwoerden 0-0-0, Linzy Keehn 0-0-0.  TOTALS: 12 (9-18) 33.

HANOVER CENTRAL (66)  Krysta Rickey 8-0-18, Anna Turturillo 5-5-15, Jordan Kramer 4-1-10, Andria Trock 2-0-4, Christy Bader 2-0-4, Chrissy Holmoka 1-0-3, Megan Parks 3-0-6, Beth Flores 1-2-4, Brandy Flores 0-0-0, Brittany Griner 1-0-2.  TOTALS:  27 (8-16) 66.

FREE THROWS:  LaCROSSE (9-18, 50%) Pfledderer  4-6, Dommermuth 2-2, Keehn 0-3, Bechinski 1-2,  Malecki 1-2, Sornson 1-2, Wanwoerden 0-1.
HANOVER (8-14, 57.1%) Turturillo 5-8, Kramer 1-1, Holmoka 0-2, Beth Flores 2-2,  Griner 0-1.

ASSISTS:  LaCROSSE (3) Pfledderer 3,  HANOVER (14) Kramer 3, Bader 3, Brandy Flores 2, Turturillo 3, Rickey 2, Trock.

3-GOALS:  LaCROSSE (0) HANOVER (4) Krysta Rickey 2, Jordan Kramer, Chrissy Holmoka.

FOULED OUT:  None.

MORGAN TOWNSHIP  (1-16-2006)  One close game that reversed an earlier decision and one not-so-close game that didn't started the 34th Porter County Conference (PCC) girls championship tournament Monday night.  Hanover Central won 66-33, beating LaCrosse for the second time this year after Boone Grove led host Morgan Township by 21 points in the second half, lost every bit of that lead and pulled away from a 52-52 tie to win 62-60.

Hanover faces Boone Grove in Friday night's first PCC tournament semifinal at 6 p.m.

I don't know if Hanover is glad to face Boone Grove.  Or if they know what they're facing.

Boone had a 41-20 lead on Morgan Township with 7:10 left in the third quarter of Monday night's first game.  But with 2:56 to go in the game, Morgan had tied it 52-52.

"How can you lose a 17-point halftime lead?" asked Boone coach Candy Wilson about her own team.  "We tried to take some time off the clock and it didn't work. And Angie Bush didn't lie down there at the end.  She came on strong."

Bush, the PCC's top player, scored 19 second half points, including 10-of-10 from the foul line as the Cherokees closed the gap in front of a opening night crowd of about 300 fans.  With the score tied at 52, Boone's Cortney Flanigan, who finished with 22 points, fired a pass through a double team to sophomore guard Jessica Dowdy, who sank a three-point shot out of the left corner for a 55-52 lead with 2:23 left.  Morgan closed to within 58-57 on a Bush jump shot with 1:53 to play, Flanigan sank four consecutive free throws for a 62-57 edge.  Boone made a mistake and fouled the 5-foot-9 senior Bush on a three-point attempt with 10 seconds to go, giving her three free throws.  The Morgan star made all three shots to create the 62-60 score.  After Boone's Jessica Fauser missed two foul shots with five seconds left, the Cherokees (11-5) could not get the ball to Bush and Erin Parks' potential game-winning three point shot from 25 feet away fell short.

"I think we didn't take it seriously going into the second half," said Flanigan after the win.  "They (Morgan) really wanted it and they got the score down. I knew they'd trap us and we knew the corner would be open."

Flanigan could be seen talking as much as Wilson in the huddle during time outs as Morgan rallied.

"She's put herself in the leadership role now which is what we need from her," said Wilson.  "The others feel more comfortable when she takes control of the game.  She has the capability of breaking things open like that.  We knew she had it in her.  Ever since the South Central game."

"When we pulled out the stat sheets and told her she was shooting 56% from the three-point line and 51% from two-point range, it got to her that she ought to be shooting the ball more.  And her teammates have been on her to shoot the ball more."

Boone, which lost at home to Morgan 46-39 on Dec. 15, dominated the first half of the first PCC playoff game, scoring 10 points in a row to take a 24-11 lead on a three-point shot by 5-foot- sophomore wing shooter Jessica Dowdy.  When Bush went to the bench with three fouls with 4:14 left in the half, the score was 21-11 and the Wolves outscored Morgan 17-9 to the break.

Wilson took her team out of a box-and-one defense designed to stop Bush and went to a half court trap designed to speed up the game.

"We wanted to score as fast as we could," said Wilson, who watched her team score the first two baskets of the third quarter for the 21-point lead.

But Bush, who averages 22 points a game, hit a three-point shot to begin an 18-7 run to end the third quarter. The Wolves tried to hold the ball but Morgan mounted a 9-0 run to pull within 48-43 with 6:45 to go.

But with the game tied at 52, Flanigan fed Dowdy for the go-ahead basket and Boone resumed playing competitively.  The defending PCC champion Wolves, who went through a seven game losing streak this season after graduating three starters including all NW Indiana star Karissa Walter (16 ppg.) won for the third time in seven days.

"Since Karissa left, someone's got tot fill her spot," said Flanigan.  "If it takes two people or three people, we have to do it," said Flanigan.  "That game (South Central) definitely got my confidence up.  After we beat Wheeler, that definitely got our confidence up.  Hopefully this is the second half of our season."

Hanover Central (8-7) coasted against LaCrosse behind 18 points from Krysta Rickey.  The goal was largely not to show much to the Boone Grove girls who watched from the stands in the bright, shiny Morgan Township gym on a Monday night.

Junior Anna Turturillo scored 15 points with seven rebounds and three blocked shots while freshman Jordan Kramer recorded 10 points.

"We got done what we needed to get done," said Hanover coach Chris York. "We didn't have to prove anything after losing to South Central last Thursday.  We just wanted to win and go out and play our next opponent on Friday.  It was a chance to get everybody in."

"We have goals when we play a game like this and we didn't hit a lot of them.  We played man-to-man the whole way and we never do that.  We did what we had to do to win the game.  A lot of girls who hadn't had a lot of time got some time tonight."

Hanover will probably be the least experienced member of the semifinal cast Friday, but the same thing was true in 2004 when Hanover upset Boone 42-40 and beat Morgan and Kouts 63-62 in two overtimes for the PCC title.

"I just told them we're a game over .500," said York. "Coming into this season, I don't know what anybody expected of us.  We're at a point right now where we could win all our remaining games or we could lose them all.  We've got tough teams coming.  I've seen Boone play a lot and I saw Boone play tonight and that was definitely two games.  They are quick and they've got shooters.  We've got to step it up because we don't play good interior defense.  I expect them to key on Krysta.  Every time we play them that's what they've done."

York knows a turning point of the season when he sees one.  He says he doesn't have a pre-game speech for Friday's semifinals.  At least not yet.

"I may have to come up with something," he smiled.  "I think the girls know now is the time.  Two years ago, nobody expected us to win this tournament."

PCC NOTES:  Boone coach Candy Wilson now starts sophomore Kristyn Kessler along side her senior sister Kara Kessler. 

"She did a good job on (Morgan's Angie) Bush last time we played them," said Wilson. "And she did a good job against (Becca) Bruszewski when we played Wheeler last week. When she goes against a bigger girl, she can give us a fight. She's hard nosed."

Hanover Central tried to get Brandy Flores a basket at the end of the game.  Flores, who started her first game for HC, was the only Lady Cat who did not score.  Her three-point attempt missed in the final five seconds.

HC has had four consecutive seasons of .500 or below.  A victory over Boone Grove Friday would almost guarantee a .500 season with Morgan Township (11-5), South Central (15-0) and Boone Grove (7-8) still to play.

Undefeated South Central, which was to meet Hebron in a Tuesday (1-17-2006) quarterfinal, has not won a game in the PCC tournament in their two years they have participated.  Boone Grove (8) and Kouts (7) have won the most PCC girls championships.  South Central (6-0) has already clinched the regular season PCC championship, but the tournament winner has traditionally been recognized as the real PCC champ.

The PCC championship games will not be televised this season.  Com Cast cable will not be able to tape delay any local games this season due to technical problems.      WHLP (89.9) FM will air the final two games to be played at Boone Grove Saturday.  The PCC boys semifinal double-header begins at 11 a.m. Saturday and the girls PCC final game starts at 6 p.m. Saturday night.  The boys championship game is set for 8 p.m.

Hanover guard Samantha Plant, already out for the season with a Jan. 8 knee injury, will not be able to have surgery until early February because she must do a rehab on the healthy knee.

"They take a tendon from one knee to put it in the other," she explained.  "So, I've got to build up one knee."  

The delay will almost certainly take Plant, an outfielder for softball coach Larry McMillen, out of the 2006 softball season as well.

Updated records from HC's three Illinois foes are not available, but with the win over LaCrosse, Hanover moved to 8-1 against teams with losing records, the only loss coming to a Tri-Point team that was 5-10 after the Momence Holiday tournament.  The Lady Cats are 0-6 against teams (Lowell, Crown Point, Hebron, Washington Township, South Central and Wheeler), with winning records.

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Revised: January 23, 2006 .