By RICHIE HALL
WESTFIELD – Whether a player is a freshman or a senior, the first game of a new basketball season is oftentimes a learning experience.
The Westfield girls basketball team got a tough assignment for its first game, which took place Tuesday at The Rock. The Shamrocks, ranked No. 9 in the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association’s pre-season poll, hosted No. 3-ranked North Central.
For the majority of the first half and most of the third quarter, Westfield held a lead on the Panthers. But North Central switched its defenses in the second half, then switched on the afterburners in the fourth quarter, which resulted in the Panthers running away from the ‘Rocks and beating them 65-49.
Despite the loss, Westfield coach Ginny Smith emphasized learning when speaking after the game, and also mentioned that is the beginning of the season – a student shouldn’t think about final exams on the first day of class.
“This is Game 1 of a long season,” said Smith. “We’ll go back to the drawing board, we’ll break down the film. We’ll watch all of the little things that we did incorrectly and those are the things that we’ll focus on in practice, and we’ll make sure that we reel it back in.”
North Central’s Tanyuel Welch got the first points of the game, scoring back-to-back baskets to put the Panthers up 4-0. The Shamrocks’ first points came from junior Emmrey Collinsworth, who made a pair of free throws at the 6:27 mark. Seconds later, senior Olivia Robey put Westfield ahead by making a three-point play.
North Central jumped back up 8-5, but then Alyssa Crockett got going. The senior Michigan recruit nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to put Westfield up 11-8, giving the ‘Rocks the lead. Crockett also scored a basket after making multiple rebounds later in the quarter.
Westfield led 13-12 at the end of the first period. NC’s Ava Couch tied it with a free throw a few seconds into the second quarter, but the Shamrocks went off on a 7-0 run to lead 20-13. Hailey Remaks and Chesney Tebbe both made baskets, and Crockett hit another 3. The Panthers’ made a push towards the end of the half, but Westfield still led 25-22 at the break.
The ‘Rocks held the advantage until the 3:12 mark of the third quarter, when Trinity Archey made a three-point play to tie the game at 34-34. Robey put Westfield back in front with a floater, but Couch’s jumper tied the game again. Couch then hit two free throws to give NC a 38-36 lead before Tebbe knotted the game up with a layin. Now the score was 38-38.
But the Panthers’ Destinee Hooks took over, putting her team in front with a layin, then hitting a 3 at the end of the third to give North Central a 43-38 lead. As the fourth quarter began, the Panthers’ push became a run, as freshman Gabrielle Burrus made a 3 to put NC ahead 46-38. Westfield was still within 48-45 with 5:37 left, but the Panthers blasted through those final minutes, finishing the game on a 17-4 run.
“They switched their defenses at the half,” said Smith. “They made some adjustments and we struggled to adjust to the adjustments. They picked the pressure up a little bit. They extended their defense and we got careless with the basketball. A lot of those turnovers resulted in made baskets for them.”
Crockett finished the game with 16 points and seven rebounds, while Robey had 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. Tebbe handed out four assists.
“Everybody wants to win, right?” said Smith. “But at the end of the day, we’re going to learn. And we’re going to get better. You’ll see a different team as this year progresses. We will turn around and we’ll play again on Saturday and we’ll be better on Saturday.”
Crockett, Tebbe, Robey, Remaks and Mikayla Rudolph are the five seniors on this year’s Westfield team, giving the ‘Rocks plenty of experience. Collinsworth had some solid minutes as a junior, and sophomore Ellie Kelleher and Kiki Loveless also got some varsity time last year. In addition, two freshmen played a few minutes for Westfield: Aubrey Crockett and Lindsey Van Dyke.
“Those are great, great moments for those kids,” said Smith. “Experiences that will make them the players that they’re ultimately going to become. They need those kind of minutes and they just got to figure out how to push through them and they will.”
Westfield’s next game is Saturday at Pendleton Heights.
VARSITY ROSTER
Seniors: Alyssa Crockett, Hailey Remaks, Olivia Robey, Mikayla Rudolph, Chesney Tebbe.
Juniors: Emmrey Collinsworth, Maren Dee, Vivien Rector.
Sophomores: Ellie Kelleher, Reagan Lorenzen, Kiki Loveless.
Freshmen: Aubrey Crockett, Lindsey Van Dyke.
JUNIOR VARSITY ROSTER
Juniors: Maren Dee, Vivien Rector.
Sophomores: Reagan Lorenzen, Alex Peltonen, Taelyn Russell.
Freshmen: Mia Crask, Kiristian Dinkins, Meg Hamilton, Madeline Linville, Sam Price, Lindsey Van Dyke.
NORTH CENTRAL 65, WESTFIELD 49
Westfield FG FT TP PF
Emmrey Collinsworth 2-2 2-2 6 5
Alyssa Crockett 6-17 1-2 16 5
Chesney Tebbe 3-6 0-0 6 2
Olivia Robey 2-6 6-9 10 4
Hailey Remaks 1-2 6-8 8 4
Aubrey Crockett 0-0 0-0 0 0
Ellie Kelleher 1-5 0-0 3 1
Kiki Loveless 0-1 0-0 0 0
Mikayla Rudolph 0-1 0-0 0 2
Lindsey Van Dyke 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 15-40 15-21 49 23
Score by Quarters
North Central 12 10 21 22 – 65
Westfield 13 12 13 11 – 49
Westfield 3-point shooting (4-13) Al. Crockett 3-6, Kelleher 1-4, Tebbe 0-1, Rudolph 0-1, Robey 0-1.
Westfield rebounds (35) Al. Crockett 7, Robey 7, Tebbe 4, Remaks 4, Collinsworth 2, Kelleher 1, Rudolph 1, Loveless 1, team 8.