Title showdown with Princeville looming
By Gary Steward
and Victor Lampe
ONEIDA – After stumbling in its regular season finale, the Stark County girls basketball team came out strong in its postseason opener.
Stark County (22-9) downed Galva, 57-28, on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the Class 1A ROWVA Regional.
The Lady Rebels ran to an 11-5 lead after one quarter and steadily built their advantage throughout the game. Olivia Hopp led a balanced Lady Rebels attack with 15 points. Also in double figures were Kelsey Berchtold with 13 points, McKenzie Stahl with 11 and Riley Menssen with 10.
Lexi Stone had 10 points for Galva and Tessa Rogers added 9.
Stark County was to play Abingdon-Avon Wednesday while No. 5 ranked Princeville faced ROWVA. Winners meet Friday at 7 p.m. in the title game, which could feature a third clash between the Lady Rebels and Lady Princes.
On Feb. 5, the Lady Rebels welcomed the West Central Lady Heat to Wyoming for the last game of the regular season. The Lady Rebels struggled in the first quarter but rallied for a halftime lead of 28-22 . Then the wheels came off as West Central outscored the Lady Rebels 32-14 in the second half for a 54-42 win.
Hopp had 16 and Berchtold threw in 12 for SC. West Central had Carley LaFary with 20 and Mady Reed a game high 23. SC finished 6-3 in the LTC for a tie for third place with West Central.
Princeville swept the conference slate at 9-0. Annawan was second at 7-2 .
Princeville racked up another impressive victory last week to finish tuning up for the start of postseason play.
The Lady Princes topped Knoxville, 43-37, on Feb. 6
“We struggled early on (against Knoxville), but Brinlee Bauman took over in the fourth to help us win,” Coach John Gross said.
Bauman is Princeville’s top scorer, averaging roughly 17 points per game.
Princeville (28-3) was outscored in the first half, 22-18. A 10-3 run in the fourth however turned the tide in Princeville’s favor against Knoxville (27-4), which had been ranked as high as No. 3 in Class 2A before dropping to No. 6.
Prior to that win, the Lady Princes soundly beat Mercer County on Feb. 5, 64-36, as Bauman scored 20 and Emma Lane added 19. That capped the LTC title for Princeville, its second under Gross.
