November 23, 2001
Crown Point at Warsaw

Crown Point 55, Warsaw 66

The Bulldogs were definitely not their sharpest in a win over Munster earlier in the week, and although there was no lack of effort, that trend continued on the day after Thanksgiving for the annual matchup with long-time rival Warsaw.  Last season the Bulldogs ambushed the Tigers at home in a 78-54 win, but the Tigers got their revenge on their own home court this time around with some stellar free throw shooting (14 for 17) in the last quarter to do in the 'Dogs.
   
Crown Point looked like they would take command of this game early, going on a 8-2 run behind four points from senior Janel Heneghan before the Tigers responded.  And respond they did.  The Tigers lit it up from outside with four consecutive three-pointers to tie up the game at 14 after seniors Ashley Plumley and Alex Webster buried a trey apiece as well.  Two free throws by Steph Swanson and a Keri Cuculich bucket off a Cassie Pruzin assist at the two second mark of the quarter to put the Bulldogs up 18-14 at the break.
   
Warsaw responded early in the second with three quick points off a bucket and free throw, and it would be the free throws in this quarter that stifled the Bulldogs.  Within the span of one minute halfway into the quarter, the Bulldogs were called for five fouls, putting Warsaw on the line for eight free throw attempts.  The Tigers converted on seven of them to take a 27-22 lead at the 4:10 mark.  Triplett and Heneghan combined for eight points to close the gap to two points with 50 seconds to go, but a defensive breakdown allowed a Warsaw bucket at the buzzer to give Warsaw a four-point lead heading into the second half.

The Bulldogs asserted themselves in the third quarter, putting the Tigers back on their heels by attacking defensively and offensively, picking off three steals and drawing six Warsaw fouls during a 7-2 run to tie the game at 36 all with five minutes to go in the quarter.  After Warsaw scored on the following possession, the Bulldogs could do nothing right in the eyes of the officials, logging six consecutive fouls over the next three minutes.  Those fouls put the Tigers in bonus with 10 minutes left in the game, which was key to the game.  Four points from frosh Jill Weiand late in the quarter kept the Bulldogs in it to stand just two points behind heading into the final frame.

In the fourth, soph Blayre Reeves caught on fire, scoring six points in the first three minutes of the quarter, followed by two freebies by Webster.  But the Tigers scored a few buckets and went to the line seven times to expand their lead to 52-48 with three minutes to go.  Although Reeves continued to find her shot for four more points, and Pruzin buried a three, the Tigers found themselves at the free throw line 12 times in the last two minutes of the game, and converted on all 12 of them for the 66-55 win.

Leading scorer for Crown Point was sophomore Blayre Reeves, who scored a varsity career high of 12 points to go with six rebounds and three steals.  She was followed by Alex Webster and Janel Heneghan, who popped in 9 points apiece.  Carissa Triplett had 8, and Cassie Pruzin had a good floor game with five assists and three rebounds to go with three points in 15 minutes of play.

This was a very tough loss for the Bulldogs, who tried their best to keep the game alive with some hard play in the second half.  However, they could not overcome the fouls called and accurate free throw shooting of the Tigers, who scored 20 of their last 26 points from the line. What also hurt the Dogs was a nagging statistic that has seen little improvement since the start of the season.  The Bulldogs were only 11 for 19 from the free throw line for 58%.  If they had hit a reasonable 75% of their free throws, an extra three points could have put CP in a position to tie the game with a single bucket when it was a 5-point game with 40 seconds to go.  Warsaw is a team that is to be respected, however, as they had beaten some good teams coming into the game with CP, including a tough 3A Tippecanoe Valley team, Homestead and Marion. 
   
Stats for CP:  Reeves 12 (6r 3s), Webster 9 (2a 2s 3r), Heneghan 9 (5r), Triplett 8 (3r 1b), Plumley 6, Weiand 4, Pruzin 3 (5a 3r), Swanson 2, Cuculich 2
 

JUNIOR VARSITY

Crown Point 34, Warsaw 33 – Teresa Kaminski’s layup with one minute remaining in the fourth quarter represented the tenth lead change of the game, but more importantly, it was the final lead change as Crown Point’s Junior Varsity defeated the Lady Tigers of Warsaw over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Kaminski and Kaitlyn Sertich finished the game with 9 points apiece, and Jill Weiand added 7 as the Lady Bulldogs moved their season record to 3-1 in this closely fought battle.

Warsaw held the largest lead of the game at 21-15 early in the third quarter, but Crown Point battled back mid-way through the period. The game seesawed back and forth until the teams tied for the seventh and final time at 30-30 with 3:21 remaining.

Kaminski then connected on a jump shot to give Crown Point the lead, but Warsaw grabbed control just over a minute later on a basket by Rebekah Reichard. Kaminiski’s provided the late game heroics by sweeping in from the left of the lane over a Warsaw defender. The CP defense held in the final minute and the Bulldogs were able to get control of the ball out of bounds with :01 remaining to thwart a Warsaw challenge.

Photos (by Bob Strempka):

(above) Teresa Kaminski hits the game winner with one second left on the clock.

(left) Mallory Michaels is fouled on a breakaway play.