Lady Knights regular season recap
The Lady Knights close out the regular season schedule with a few losses but they end with a competitive game that will drive them into the tournament on a bit of a high note. The final FAVC contests caused a snag in the record but still each game is feedback in what needs to be improved upon.
Losses to Glen Este and Loveland still had their highlights as Logan Warye turned in 2 more double doubles on the season. As well Lauren Collier contributed 13 points and Maggie Donnellan 11 in the effort against Loveland. The heartbreaking loss to Little Miami didn’t deny the Lady Knights a second place finish in the FAVC Cardinal Division. Logan Warye was solid again with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Lauren Collier also contributed 8 points on the usual 50% shooting from the field.
The final home game of the season brought Walnut Hills to the gym for the second show down of the season. A sound effort by the team playing with control and defensive pressure proved a good road to keeping the game within reach for the Lady Knights. Falling just one 3 point bucket short of tying up the game with 4 seconds left is how the FAVC season ended. Walnut Hills, ranked 4th in the city held on to win the FAVC Cardinal Division for 2010 by a final of 41-44. The Lady Knights were led by yet another senior, Maggie Donnellan who led all scorers in the game with 21 points.
The Lady Knights improved upon last season’s league record by finishing 7-3 in the Cardinal division. Overall the record stands at 12-8 until we hit the tournament games next week. The first contest of the 2010 State Tournament for the Lady Knights brings the Bobcats of Mother of Mercy to the court on Thursday February 18th at Lakota East High School at 6pm.
Kings Women’s Basketball
Jan. 25, 2010
A week of firsts and records.
The firsts for the season for the Lady Knights as they dropped two games this week to very challenging opponents.
Two losses this week equalled the total losses on the season. With the seasons record now at 12-4 the Lady Knights have made a statement. Competing and winning are to be expected.
The team played at Indian Hill early in the week, the number one team in Division II, and was handed quite a challenge. A record setting performance by Logan Warye lead the way for the Lady Knights as she set a single game scoring record posting 42 points on the night. Congratulations Logan! Along with the scoring Logan was the team’s leading rebounder on the night with 18 and Lauren Collier pulled down 10 rebounds also. Maggie Donnellan turned in a solid performance with a game high 6 assists. The success was overshadowed by the loss of point guard Katie Stevens. The second Lady Knight to end her season early with a knee injury. However the team hung tight and had the opportunity to tie the game in the last seconds with a shot that just bounced off the rim. The first loss of the week.
With just one day to plan an attack for Walnut Hills, and regroup after loosing a point guard the Lady Knights took their fight onto the court again. It was a tall order to get the job done in this showdown of the top two teams in the FAVC Cardinal Division. This rough and tumble game proved too much for the Lady Knights as they fell to Walnut Hills 37-54. They will have one more chance to beat Walnut Hills in the last regular season game of the year, two weeks from now.
On Saturday the team got back to their winning ways at Wilmington with a commanding 52-41 win keeping the potential for a co-championship in the league alive. The senior leadership is making a statement as Maggie Donnellan handled the point guard position with confidence while contributing 8 points and two blocked shots. Leading all scorers was Lauren Collier with 15 points, most notably she was 5 for 5 from the floor. Logan Warye also scored in double figures chipping in 13 points as the Lady Knights bring their league record up to 7-1.
Jan. 23, 2010
Lady Knights 46 Turpin 37
Keeping their FAVC Cardinal Division record perfect, the Lady Knights once again put away Turpin with a solid team performance and an outstanding control of the boards. The team grabbed 50 rebounds. Leading the team again was Lauren Collier both on the boards with 14 rebounds and in scoring with a game high 20 points, as she shows the stamina and maturity of a senior leader. Katie Stevens played a solid game against the full court pressure of Turpin as she handed out 6 assists to her teammates and kept the ball moving. And also contributing a balance of rebounds and points was Maggie Donnellan and Abby Bush both with 8 boards and 8 points.
We have to give a huge shout out and thanks to the Jr. High teams who came out to mingle with the varsity players, take the court before warm ups, stand for introductions at half time and support us with cheers throughout the game. A thank you to their coaches also for all the work they do with them and for coming out to the game Saturday. Then there was the KBA program and all the girls teams, coaches and their families who filled the stands to help us beat back Turpin when we needed a bit of loud support. We also appreciate very much those supporters who we consider VIPs, too many to mention, and parents and school personnel who show their support in red and blue Knights attire.
Jan 20, 2010
Lady Knights 60-54 victory over Milford
It’s always a battle when you face another FAVC opponent. This game at Milford was just as expected. A tight competition that gave the Lady Knights the chance to show again how team wins out when everyone contributes. Highlights of the game include a very well rounded contribution from Maggie Donnellan as she seemed to be doing it all. Scoring and rebounding are usual but Maggie handed out 4 assists, and defensively had a great effort with 5 steals and 3 blocked shots. Also off the bench there was great production from Sammy Jones who contributed 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Our scoring attack was lead by both Logan Warye and Lauren Collier with 22 and 20 points respectively. They aren’t doing this on their own as evidenced by the number of assists mentioned already and Katie Stevens handing out 5 also. The game still comes down to the Lady Knights out rebounding their opponents and taking advantage of free throw opportunities.
Jan. 14 Knights at Ursuline Academy
There was just a little bit of focus on the game at Ursuline to say the least. Ursuline took over the number one ranking in the city just two days prior and there were many who wanted to see what that would do for them. Let’s play ball. The first 3 quarters however were to be about the Knights who lead the game most of the way. Facing a very athletic and talented team the Lady Knights proved up to the challenge. Defense quickly became the key to the game as our ladies battled with every ounce of effort they had. Lauren Collier and Logan Warye led the Knights on the board with 15 and 17 rebounds respectively, while as a team the Lady Knights out muscled their opponent with 52 rebounds to 33 boards. Leading the scoring for the Knights was Maggie Donnellan with 15 huge points. Maggie produced one of the best performances of her career which also included 4 steals, 5 rebounds and a 40% shooting average from the field. But be sure this was not a game to do alone as there was key contributions by Stevens, Warye and Miller. And not least, Megan Fultz who proves herself each game by quickly contributing when she hits the floor in each game. Granted this one was the same as she entered the game, was quickly fouled and hit 2 free throws right off the bench. Even though the Lady Knights lead through 3 solid quarters of play the quick athletic talent of Desirea Ball took over and Urusline prevailed by 10 in the end, 51-41.
At home again this weekend, the Lady Knights kept their league record clean with a win over Amelia, 58-49. With all 9 Knights seeing action the success was inevitable. Our hustle again gave the edge to the rebounding wars with 47 total for the team to the Barons 37. Logan Warye led the way with 10 but each player collected at least a couple. The scoring was pretty balance after the effort by Warye contributed 23 points. Donnellan made it back to back double games as she chipped in 11 and Bush next with 9 points. It is always a good indicator of how the team is clicking when for the game they racked up 18 assists. There is a very familiar feel to running the floor and hitting your teammate for an easy score.
With a 9-2 record the Lady Knights are very close to locking up atleast a second place finish in the FAVC but that is not the focus, the lone winner at the top is where they aim.
Jan. 10, 2010
Kings Lady Knights Varsity Basketball
8-1 Record
Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy and Little Miami, just two more teams to go down in defeat to the Lady Knights. Team, team, team is the focus of the wins. Both games played at home, provided close, sometimes nail biting plays that requirered focus and team work to pull out wins number 7 and 8 for us. The Lady Knights are being led by the seniors as first displayed late in the game by Lauren Collier’s three point play that secured the lead over CHCA and helped the team hold on for a 7 point win (43-36). Collier was one of two players scoring in double figures with 12 points, while Logan Warye added 14 points.
In the FAVC match up with Little Miami the Lady Knights set a tone of confidence early by starting all four seniors, Collier, Fultz, Phelps and Donnellan. Phelps put in the first two buckets for the Lady Knights as the play on the court grew intense. The lead changed hands and even rested with Little Miami for much of the second half. There was not giving up on a win as the battle continued down to the end. With just 14 seconds on the game clock the Lady Knights took possesion of the ball and a one point defecit. After 3 players battled for rebounds and put backs, Lauren Collier drew the foul on her shot attempt. She stepped to the free throw line with 2.2 seconds remaining in the game and the opportunity to tie and then seal the win. The first shot hit the bottom of the net prompting Little Miami to take a time out with the score now tied. The senior confiedence could not have been better… the next throw went down the same as the first and the following defesive pressure did not allow the Panthers to get off a shot as the buzzer went off giving the Kings girls their 8th win of the season. How sweet is that?
All around the Lady Knights see contributions by many different players. Maggie Donnellan leads the team in free throw percentage during games with 85.7% accuracy. Lauren Collier leads her teammates in field goal percentage at 49.1%. Abby Bush shoots the team best from the 3 point arc with 37.5% in games. Logan Warye leads all players for the Knights in total rebounds on the season with 112 boards. Courtney Miller supports her team with 11 blocked shots on the season. Katie Stevens continues to run the point in place of Katelyn Haralamos, injured in the Turpin game, and is showing a balance of scoring and assisting that will help keep the team on top of the FAVC standings.
Women’s Varsity Basketball
Dec. 9th
Kings 56 Fairfield 42
Dec. 12th
Kings 64 Turpin 53
What a week of basketball for the Lady Knights. Keeping their record perfect at 5-0 was no easy task. Visiting the Fairfield Indians on Wed. the team was expecting a very physical game against an athletic team. The Lady Knights again stepped up on the defensive end of the court to hold their opponent to 20% shooting from the field. That takes a team effort from everyone to pressure an opponent. There was solid rebounding by Logan Warye and Katelyn Haralamos, and again blocked shots by both Maggie Donnellan and Courtney Miller who both swatted away two of the Indians shots. Sammy Jones applied some terrific ball pressure on defense along with Abby Bush who usually frustrates the opponents ball handler. Against the quick defensive players of Fairfield Katelyn Haralamos and Katie Stevens both handled the ball and controlled the tempo for us, while Katelyn also lead all scorers for the game with 15 points and Katie and Logan both added 9 points.
The next game found us on the road at Turpin which traditionally is a tough opponent to beat, especially on their home court. The Knights are playing with pride in their team and school and showing there is no easy way for an opponent to beat them. The game went down as a typical hard fought battle, physical and aggressive but with all ten Lady Knights contributing significantly they once again prevailed with another win. The full court pressure from the Turpin team was handled with cool passing and open lay-ups. We saw several players taking control of the boards starting with Logan Warye who worked steadily on both ends of the court. She was supported by Lauren Collier and Megan Fultz who made the most of her time on the court with a quick rebound and score as well as pulling in defensive rebounds to keep Turpin from getting easy put backs. Down the stretch the game did get tough but with solid play by everyone on the floor we were able to create open shots and draw plenty of fouls which sent us to the free throw line. In the closing minutes with the Turpin team hitting 3’s and making a run at the game we saw Maggie Donnellan and Sammy Jones step to the free throw line and drain their shots to stretch the lead for the Lady Knights. This win was another display of teamwork lead by the scoring of Logan Warye who contributed a hard fought 28 points as she battled inside for the ball all night and was contested on every shot.
Lady Knights Varsity Basketball
Home opener vs Monroe 80-21
At Amelia 54-44
Keeping the slate clean! This week the varsity team played the first home game of the season easily getting past Monroe for an 80-21 victory inwhich every Lady Knight scored. We were able to see how various combinations work together and it resulted in 4 players leading the way in double figure scoring, Lauren Collier, Megan Fultz, Logan Warye and Katelyn Haralamos. The rebounding numbers were also dominate, Warye grabbed 14 boards, while Fultz was next with 7 and Phelps with 6. Most impressive was the defense which kept Monroe from gettng good looks at the basket and offering a great start to the fast break. It was great to see the usual support of the home crowd!
Our first FAVC match up of the season was an away game at Amelia. With new coach and some solid returning players we were handed a challenge early. The game started quickly and had us a bit on our heals as we were down 0-7 and not getting our defense in sync with the plan we wanted. After a short timeout to refocus we started playing the defense that is expected with leads to those fast break baskets. Even though we had a 3 point lead at the half we were shooting under 50% from the free throw line and still working hard to control the boards for rebounds. Second half stats proved we turned around both of those stats, especially the free throws, 93.3% in second half! Again all 10 players contributed to the win in a signifcant way. Katelyn Haralamos and Logan Warye were scoring leaders for the game with 14 and 18 points respectively.
