2005-2006 Girls Basketball  Top-10 Poll, Week-2 A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith (11-16-2005)

EAST CHICAGO, IN - (11-16-2005) The girls basketball season begins in the shadow of the state football playoffs and that shadow looms large this year with three Northwest Indiana football teams in the state semifinals. Lowell is re-doing their schedule due to extra football Fridays, but Griffith and Merrillville seemed to have danced around it.  With so little pre-season practice allowed, a lot of teams play some games that aren't indicative of anything except to tell you who's playing and who isn't.  Highland (0-2) wont have sophomore point guard Lizzie Stapke this season after she suffered a late fall ACL injury, but Andrean does have guard Courtney Pishkur, who was hurt last spring and thought to be out for some time.

East Chicago, Gary West Side and Valparaiso looked strong while Crown Point, Boone Grove and Morgan Township all won a couple of warm-up games, but the truth has yet to be told about those three.  As an aside, sometimes early season games aren't even reported to the newspapers like last Saturday's Chesterton-Munster contest.  A new year means new scorekeepers and team aides and sometimes they haven't gotten into the routine yet.  Lots of early season girls basketball game reports are sketchy at best and occasionally nonexistent.

The first big confrontation of the season matches Valpo and Merrillville Friday night (Nov. 18) at Merrillville. Don't get all excited. The rankings don't matter until teams get to play a half dozen games.  A point of order.  Everyone after the top-10 here is not being ranked. The first "On the outside" team below is NOT necessarily the 11th best team.  They're just teams I had something to say about.

1.) East Chicago (2-0)

21-4 (2005), 17-5 (2004), 21-1 (2003)

EAST CHICAGO -   The Cardinals went to 2-0 with a 56-36 win over Hammond and a 49-43 win over South Bend Clay Saturday (Nov. 12) as Dee Dee Jernigan scored 17. The Cardinals exhibited their trademark poor foul shooting (26-46, 56.5%) for the weekend, but they will be able to overcome that in most games.  The Cardinals are waiting for the Nov. 25 game against Merrillville (2-0) to indicate where they stand.

2.) Valparaiso (1-1)  

21-2 (2005), 23-3 (2004), 16-8 (2003)

VALPARAISO -  Valpo rolled over Munster 53-37 and lost to 4A No. 6 Carmel 48-41, a game where the Vikings made 23 turnovers. For Valpo to be within 10 of a top-10 team with three new starters indicates they'll be very good, especially with 5-10 guards Erica Humes (16.5 ppg.) and Lauren Prow (9.0 ppg.).  Future note:  Did anybody notice that Valpo's JV defeated both Munster and Carmel?  That's kinda like buying out Donald Trump's casino.  Valpo gets an early shot at Merrillville (2-0) Friday (Nov. 18) night.

3.) Gary West Side (1-0)

23-5 (2005), 22-3 (2004), 20-4 (2003)

GARY -   As usual, Gary West Side's pre-season protests that they 'have nothing this year' blew up when they stopped Highland 50-37 to start the year.  6-foot senior Erica Simpson scored 22 as the Cougars pulled away with a 17-7 fourth quarter.  West Side steps up to the challenge this weekend at 2A No. 4 Heritage Christian (2-0) on Friday night and at 4A No. 7 Kokomo (2-0) in a 2005 semistate rematch on Saturday night, so the Cougars won't be undefeated for long.

4.) Munster (0-2)

17-6 (2005), 6-15 (2004), 6-18 (2003)

MUNSTER -   Be patient here.  The Fillies have 6-2 soph Natalie Emro and 5-9 forward Jackie Yerga (13.4 ppg, 7.9 rpg.) up front and lead guard Lauren Meneghetti (9.5 ppg.) to handle the rock.  The Lady Ponies have more depth than anybody except West Side and they play tough teams outside the Lake Athletic Conference in Merrillville, Penn, Valpo, Chesterton and East Chicago.  I don't think there's any question the DAC is better than the LAC again this year but I still think Munster is and will be a bit better than Chesterton, even though a 13-6 run in the final period gave the Trojans the win late Saturday (Nov. 12).  Munster has lost 53-37 to Valparaiso and 58-55 to Chesterton but that's good in the long run.  Bishop Noll, Gavit, Hobart and Lake Central before the end of the month should get them started.

5.) Merrillville (2-0)

12-10 (2005), 18-3 (2004), 15-8 (2003)

MERRILLVILLE -  The Pirates edged out Highland 43-42 and Andrean 76-60 to start well. The Pirates didn't shoot well from the foul line, sinking just 12 of 22 against Andrean, but new point guard Britney Cruse was 6-of-6. Center Britney Moore grabbed 16 rebounds against Highland and the Pirates had 21 offensive rebounds against Andrean.  Right now Merrillville is a bit more potential than reality, but when the younger players get 10 games under their belt and 6-2 senior Lew Wallace transfer Sharon Houston at their side, the sky is the limit.

6.) Chesterton (1-0)

11-11 (2005), 14-8 (2004), 13-10 (2003)

CHESTERTON -   The Trojans were very strong in the pre-season scrimmage against Lowell with 5-10 senior guard-forward Kelly Peller, 5-9 forward Molly Rau (8.0 ppg.) and 5-9 forward Maddie Wilk (9.0 ppg.).  Peller is the offensive focus and she scored 27 in the 58-55 season-opening win over Munster for a team that doesn't need many points to win. Molly Rau had 13 points, nine rebounds and eight steals against Munster.  The Trojans were 13 of 17 from the line against Munster as well.  If Merrillville, Valparaiso and Crown Point all split, Chesterton would win the DAC outright.  I would be surprised if all games were not close. Chesterton is now in the Lawrence North tournament in Indianapolis on Dec. 28.

7.) Crown Point (2-0)

17-6 (2005), 14-8 (2004), 12-9 (2003)

CROWN POINT -  CP is off to an acceptable start, but the offense is clearly a work-in-progress as the post players haven't started scoring yet.  As is the case with Valpo, reports of this team's demise may be a little overstated.  New point guard Hannah Plumley had 12 rebounds in the 47-35 win over Hebron (0-3) and 18 points in a 48-28 victory over Kankakee Valley Saturday (Nov. 12).

The Lady Bulldogs host Portage (1-1) and travel to Warsaw (0-1) this weekend (the Warsaw game has been moved up to a 3:30pm, CST / 4:30pm, EST Junior Varsity start Saturday) in a double-header that will be more telling.  But it's the six pack, home and home games with Chesterton, Valparaiso and Merrillville, that are the hill that CP must climb.  The Bulldogs could be 0-6 in those games or they could be 6-0.  But the Lady Bulldogs must break a habit of starting slowly as that won't be survivable from this point on.

8.) North Judson (2-0)

22-4 (2005), 12-9 (2004), 13-8 (2003)

NORTH JUDSON -   Judson beat a slowdown game in a 31-28 home win over Triton.  I'm not sure whether the Jays had trouble picking up the pace or lack of depth encourages them to be patient.  5-5 point guard Kristen Bolen (10 ppg, 4 apg.) off a state finals team and 5-10 big girls Miranda (8 ppg, 8 rpg.) and Chelsea (6 ppg, 4 rpg.) Howard are back up front.  They combined for 22 against Triton.  This should be very good team with a significant home court advantage, but the time has come to do it because everyone is pointing to them on the schedule.  Judson won 57-45 over Bremen (2-1) at home Tuesday, Nov. 15 in a telling matchup.

9.) Andrean (1-1)   

9-13 (2005), 7-14 (2004), 15-9 (2003)

MERRILLVILLE  -  Better than expected and 5-8 junior Courtney Pishkur has played the first two games after it was thought she'd be out until December.  Junior Val Tyburski has scored 42 points in the first two games, wins over Hebron 65-53 and losses to Merrillville 76-60.  Who is Michelle Hynes (13.0 ppg.) and how does she have seven three-point baskets after two games?  The 59ers are 26 of 41 (63.4%) from the line and that indicates this is a good shooting team, a girls basketball rarity.  The 76 points allowed to Merrillville is a reason for concern. The 59ers will need to be tougher on the boards.

10.) Lake Central (0-1)

7-14 (2005), 11-10 (2004), 13-8 (2003)

ST. JOHN -  Okay, so they got smoked out 65-39 by 4A No. 4 Carmel (2-0) Saturday but it was only 21-16 at the half and Carmel has already beaten Valpo. You mean to tell me that Carmel drove up from Indianapolis?  Beat Valpo Friday night, stayed over and beat LC Saturday.  Regular season.  Nonconference?  No tournament?  And they could afford to do that?  We need to have tag days for some of our teams up here.  Hold off on the evaluation until they play someone who is not in the top-10.



On the outside looking in:

1.) Highland (0-2)

19-5 (2005), 17-6 (2004), 24-3 (2003)

HIGHLAND -  Highland drops out of the top-10 not because of two defeats but because of the late pre-season loss of point guard Lizzie Stapke.  The Trojans came within a point of Merrillville, but then lost 50-37 to Gary West Side.  They are a quality team, but it won't be hard to take advantage of them at the guard position.  Highland was only 17 of 32 from the line in their first two games, indicating that shooting is still a problem.  It's a good year in NW Indiana and you will suffer without good guards.

2.) Michigan City (0-0)

6-15 (2005),  6-16 (2004),  6-14  (2003)

MICHIGAN CITY -  The Wolves are still in the forest until they face LC and South Bend Adams this weekend (Nov. 18-19).  A load of talent here, but with a record of 18-45 in the last three seasons, the Wolves have to prove they can win more often than they'll lose.  MC looks good on paper with 6-3 junior center Emma Tucker (10.2 ppg, 10.9 rpg.) and 5-6 junior guard Stefani Sanders (8.2 ppg).  The real push figures to come from freshman guard Bianca McGee, who should start immediately.  But the DAC is a tough hill to climb.  MC does not play Munster, Highland or East Chicago so they could get to the .500 mark.  Still, Michigan City was 4-10 in the DAC last year and they'll be hard pressed to do better than 6-8 this time.

3.) Rensselaer (1-0)

15-7 (2005), 10-11 (2004,   9-12  (2003)

RENSSELAER -  Rensselaer bombed Knox 61-33 and they could be 4-0 heading to the executioner against No. 1 South Bend St. Joseph's on Dec. 2. Amy Streitmatter scored 16 and four three-point goals in a game where the foe was overmatched.  The Bombers host rival Winamac (1-1) Friday night in the first real test of the young season.

4.) South Central (2-0)

18-7 (2005), 12-8 (2004), 9-13 (2003)

UNION TOWNSHIP - The Satellites won their first two games easily, 80-50 at Culver and 62-47 at home over Argos.  No question they will win big, but the schedule is built for a very small school.  On second look, here's a team that conceivably could duplicate the school-record 18 wins from 2005.  They are going to run past most of the teams on the schedule.

5.) Lowell (0-0)

13-8 (2005), 15-9 (2004), 11-12 (2003)

LOWELL - Lowell hasn't gotten started yet, but they will be able to go just seven deep.  Friday's game with Morton and the Nov. 26 game with Andrean are in doubt due to football.  Guards Ashley Cosentino and long range shooter Julie Swisher (40 3-point goals) must go almost all the way at guard.  5-10 soph Kim Bell will be a good partner and backup for 5-10 senior Rachel Thiel.  But, like a lot of teams this season, there's no depth at all here and back-to-back games will be a strain.

6.) Hammond (1-1)

15-7 (2005), 8-12 (2004), 13-8 (2003)

HAMMOND -  Hammond will rebound from the 56-36 loss to East Chicago, and had some problems with Griffith (2-1) before coming out on top of a 40-38 double overtime win Tue, Nov. 15.  Hammond's back court is shaky and this team has already turned the ball over a lot.  They cannot help but win the LAC Blue because nobody else is very good.  The early Hammond losses will serve them well later because the LAC schedule is not tough.  They have to beware of teams that can slow them down and control the pace like Griffith.

7.) Griffith (2-1)

15-8 (2005), 13-9 (2004), 14-8 (2003)

GRIFFITH - Griffith has been consistent and a 42-38 win over Wheeler was a good start.   The Panthers tried to slow down Hammond high Tuesday (Nov. 15) before losing 40-38 in double overtime.  The Panthers are consistently better than the sum of their parts and this year they have four players taller than 5-10 which will create an inside game.  It appears Griffith is getting more depth, which will enable them to be even better defensively.

8.) Boone Grove (2-0)

21-2 (2005), 17-5 (2004), 22-5 (2003)

PORTER TOWNSHIP -   Boone won two games on the road against River Forest and Calumet and they could go 3-0 at Knox (Nov. 18) before a big game with rival Hebron (0-3), who has lost to three good teams.  Point guard Cortney Flanigan (16.0) will be asked to score more this year and it doesn't look like she'll have to be asked twice.  Depth is a problem with only eight varsity players, but Flanigan and sophomore Jessica Dowdy (11.0 ppg.) can keep the Wolves in most games while sisters Kara and Kristyn Kessler plus 5-9 Britney Roach can hold their own up front on most nights.  It may be just an early hot streak but Boone is 21 of 25 from the line, a vast improvement over recent years.

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Revised: November 16, 2005 .