Hardwood Heroes
Waterford Wins Duel of Wildcats, Routing White Oak 50-16
By: Charlie Ihlenfeld
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When a team’s most substantial test is on the horizon, they are often guilty of looking past their opponent. That certainly was not the case when Waterford came into Welston to take on White Oak. Waterford had White Oak in a strangle hold from the jump as Kendall Sury got going early with physical play. Physical play has been a common theme of Waterford against White Oak.
Despite the fact that White Oak possessed much more size than Waterford’s traditional TVC opponents, Waterford looked no worse for wear against White Oak out-rebounding them 29 to 13. Out of the first quarter, Waterford was ahead 15-6.
In the second quarter, the scoring for both sides ground to a halt. Foul trouble for Sury forced her to sit for most of the quarter. White Oak and Waterford each applied on ball pressure to force the game to a stalemate. Madi Hiener managed to break through the scoring drought and hit a three. At the half, Waterford had built their lead to 23-13.
Going into the lockeroom, Coach Jerry Close wanted his team to play a better brand of basketball. “Coming into the half, I don’t know how we were up 10. We were letting them dictate on both ends of the floor, and… they’ve got more energy and they’re playing harder than us.”
Those words seemed to launch Waterford out of cannon to start the second half. The third quarter demonstrateded the greatness of Avery Wagner. She would finish with 13 points, ten rebounds, four assists, five blocks, and six steals. She also took advantage of the opportunities provided at the charity strike, finishing 5-6. Waterford went on a torrid stretch to start the second half. They finished the third quarter on a 20-3 run, giving them a 43-16 lead going into the final quarter of play.
The final quarter saw all of the Waterford bench get involved. Waterford’s dominance certainly did not erode as White Oak would fail to put another point on the board for the rest of the night. Starter’s for Waterford got to exit the game under thunderous applause from the Waterford faithful. Waterford ran down the clock on route to a 50-16 thrashing of the White Oak Wildcats.
As previously mentioned, Waterford faces their toughest test of the year on Saturday. They will have their third meeting with a South Gallia squad that they split the season series. Waterford seeks their third straight state title game appearance, and that begins with getting back to the regional final.