The guards for Valley Christian were under immense pressure right from the opening possession on Tuesday night.
The St. Mary’s Springs girls basketball team once again turned up the heat on its opponent on its way to a 73-36 nonconference win from Hutter Gymnasium.
Grace Coon practically lived in the Warriors' (2-1) backcourt, pestering whichever player was asked to bring the ball up the floor.
Behind her, the rest of the Ledgers defense, such as Gracie Konkol, Jasline Loynes, Anna Willis and Olivia Kremer were there to intercept or swat away passes.
“The deflections are important for us, ball pressure is more important,” coach Mitch Redig said. “Making those passes difficult allows our girls to jump those passing lanes. It starts with our on-ball pressure.”
The pressure didn’t stop when Redig went to his bench. Lauren Baker, Scarlett Gaertig, Sophia Loehr and Maggy Dalzell all came in and continued to force turnovers and transition baskets.
Redig said the Howards Grove loss last week forced the team into the realization that everyone who plays needs to contribute.
“We need everyone to perform for us every single night,” Redig said. “We’ve got to be able to use our depth of nine to help us.
“I’m really proud of them as they continue to develop. We’re early in the season; I hope they continue to develop because they’re going to be super important to our success.”
Konkol led Springs (2-1) offensively, scoring 19 points. She made three 3-pointers.
It was a nice bounce-back game for Konkol, who made just three shots and scored 10 points in the loss to Howards Grove.
“A lot of times I feel like I’ve got to do everything,” Konkol said. “[I’ve got to] know that I have girls around me that can step up and make plays. I’ve just got to settle down sometimes and the more I do that, the more comfortable I am.”
Konkol is still averaging more than 18 points per game to start the season.
Willis and Coon had 13 and 9 points, respectively. Willis scored most of her points in transition after picking off passes and beating everyone down the floor.
“We have to use our athleticism because there’s going to be nights where we’re not going to shoot well, but we’re going to play extremely hard,” Redig said. “That starts for us on the defensive end.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Valley Christian at Springs girls basketball - 11/26/2024
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