By Cort Reynolds
The spunky Ada High School girls basketball team battled 11th-ranked Crestview toe to toe in the first half, but eventually got fatigued and fell 53-26 in a home Northwest Conference contest Thursday night, January 26.
The Bulldogs trailed just 26-17 late in the first half before Crestview put on a 12-0 run bridging the second and third quarters to put the game out of reach.
Ada dropped to 9-9 overall and 0-6 in the NWC after having their three-game win streak snapped. Meanwhile, Crestview improved to 13-4 and 5-2 in the NWC with the win.
"Our first half was good except for one negative, defensive rebounding," said Ada head coach Zach Ricker. "We gave up too many second-chance points."
Crestview outscored Ada 35-15 over the middle two quarters.
"I thought Ada came out and played really hard and played good defensively," said Knight head coach Mark Gregory. "Ada played with more energy than us in the first half."
The Bulldogs played some of their best defense of the season in the first half, hanging close most of the way as senior standout Courtney Sumner guarded Knight ace Cali Gregory tightly.
The Bulldogs took a 7-6 lead when Sumner swished a pull-up 16-footer from the circle. Gregory sank a putback to give the Knights the lead back.
Josi Kulwicki canned a 14-footer to propel the visitors to a 10-7 lead after a hard-fought first period.
Lexi Poling converted a fast break three-point layup to tie it up 41 seconds into the second quarter. Laci McCoy untied it by draining a left wing trey.
Ada junior Mariah King sank a basket, and Kennedy Crider made a follow shot inside. Gregory made a short left side banker for a seven-point lead.
A nice up and under move in the lane by McCOy advanced the lead to 21-12. King canned a short bank shot to end the 11-2 Knight run.
Gregory then sank a layin and triple to put the visitors ahead, 26-14. Autumn Andreasen made a layup off a nice Sumner feed, and King hit a foul shot to bring Ada within 26-17.
Crider sank a short putback and then Gregory nailed a right side triple to give Crestview a 31-17 halftime bulge.
"Their offensive rebounding showed in the second quarter when Katie Sizemore was on the bench," Ricker pointed out. "The three Gregory hit at the end of the half deflated us a bit."
Knight sophomore guard Josi Kulwicki scored off a loose ball inside to open half two. McCoy converted a conventional three-point play to extend the lead to 36-17.
Macy Kulwicki knocked down an 18-footer from the left wing at the five-minute mark. Sumner then banked in a short left side shot to halt the 12-0 Knight flurry.
Sumner swished a right wing triple, followed by an Ellie Kline basket. Gregory scored off a backcourt steal and assist from McCoy.
Haley Owsley drained a left wing 19-footer at the third period buzzer to put the Knights ahead 45-22 heading to the final quarter.
"I challenged the girls at halftime," said Gregory. "I saw growth in the second half and more energy."
Gregory made a three-point play inside from another fine McCoy dish. McCoy powered in a right side layin for a 50-22 margin.
Andreasen banked in a short right side shot with 3:11 remaining. Owsley drilled a right side 18-footer. Conley made a strong move into the lane and canned a six-footer.
Gregory paced Crestview with 21 points, 16 of which came in the first half. McCoy netted 13 markers.
"I thought Laci had a great night, she did everything well," said Gregory. "Ada played hard and did as good a job as anyone has this season guarding Cali. But she still got 21 points."
Sumner led Ada with 10 points, while King added five.
"We expended a lot of energy on defense," Ricker said, agreeing that Ada seemed to tire in the second half.
Ada canned nine deuces and two triples for their 11 baskets. The Bulldog girls converted two of just five free throws (40 percent).
Crestview drained 19 two-point field goals and hit three triples. The Knights converted six of 11 foul shots (56 percent).
The Knights won the two-quarter JV game, 26-15. Anna Conley led the Bulldogs with nine points. Peyton Hoffman topped the Knight reserves with eight markers.
Crestview 53 (13-4, 5-2 NWC)
Hoffman 0 0-0 0, M. Kulwicki 1 1-2 3, Kline 2 0-0 4, Gregory 9 1-2 21, J. Kulwicki 2 0-0 4, L. McCoy 4 4-5 13, Owsley 2 0-0 4, Crider 2 0-2 4, H. McCoy 0 0-0 0, Reinhart 0 0-0 0, Ross 0 0-0 0.
Totals: 19-3/6-11/53. 3-pointers: Gregory 2, McCoy 1.
Ada 26 (9-9, 0-6 NWC)
King 2 1-2 5, Sumner 4 0-0 10, Burkhart 1 0-0 2, Poling 1 1-1 3, Andreasen 2 0-0 4, Sizemore 0 0-0 0, Conley 1 0-2 2, Rockhill 0 0-0 0.
Totals: 9-2/2-5/26. 3-pointers: Sumner 2.
1 2 3 4 F
Ada 7 10 5 4 26
Cvw 10 21 14 8 53
2-quarter JV: Crestview 26, Ada 15.
Ada hosts North Baltimore (2-17) Saturday at 6 p.m. in the opener of a girls/boys varsity-only doubleheader. NB lost 77-13 Thursday at 10th-ranked Liberty-Benton.
Drawing for the 11-team Shawnee/Spencerville Div. IV sectional feeding into the Wapakoneta district will be held this Sunday. Ada is currently seeded fifth, with USV hovering around the nine or ten spot.
