The day after Thanksgiving is notoriously called "Black Friday". The visiting Whitko Lady Wildcats left the Tiger Den both black & blue after the Lady Tigers scored at will. Coach Harter's team played near flawless basketball as they breezed to an 82-33 victory Friday night to open their home schedule.

Led by senior Kelci Freds, the Lady Tigers would rotate 14 players into the contest with 12 of the girls scoring points. Freds knocked down four three-point field goals on her way to 16 points. Senior Kaelee Sands scored early and often as well for Warsaw. Sands ran the floor very well on her way to 16 points including four free throws.

As good as the Tiger backcourt played, the inside combo of senior Sarah Shilling and junior Kayla Stout was equally as impressive. Both Shilling and Stout scored 10 points inside the paint while controlling the glass with superior rebounding technique. Stout made an impressive 6 free throw attempts to lead the Lady Tigers from the charity stripe. Warsaw scored 16 of their 82 points from the free throw line Friday night proving the importance of practicing the free attempts daily.

Whitko kept the game close through the first quarter. Warsaw led 18-12 after one.

Early in the second the Lady Tigers would apply full court pressure to the young Wildcats. The combined effect of the pressure and exceptional Lady Tiger shooting would break the game wide open. Warsaw outscored Whitko by an overwhelming 28-6 margin in the 2nd Quarter.

Ryesha Jackson, Creigh Ogle, and Lindsay Baker played key roles off of the bench to key the 2nd half outburst. The Lady Tiger depth wore down the Wildcats as both teams headed to the locker room at intermission. Warsaw led 46-18 at the half.

The second half was an overall display of team basketball. Coach Michelle Harter used her entire team during the third and fourth quarters showing the Tiger faithful just how special this group is. With senior point guard Cendall Ogle running the offense, the Lady Tigers distributed the ball evenly on their way to a whopping 82 points. There are NBA teams that do not reach 82 points on any given evening and they play an additional 12 minutes more than the Lady Tigers play. This team is good. And Deep.

The win was the third consecutive victory for Warsaw. They had previously beaten both Huntington North and Tippecanoe Valley on the road to open the season. Winning is back in the Lady Tiger program!

Complete scoring for Warsaw: Kelci Freds - 16, Kaelee Sands - 16, Sarah Shilling - 10, Kayla Stout - 10, Ryesha Jackson - 8, Lindsay Baker - 6, Amber Plummer - 4, Kaitlin Reichard - 3, Danielle Tat - 3, Creigh Ogle - 2, Tiffany Tat - 2, Sarah Heagy – 2

The Warsaw Lady Tigers are now an impressive 3-0 on the season as they look to continue their winning streak against a good Fort Wayne squad this week.

Warsaw will host FW Northrop Wednesday night 12/2 at the Tiger Den. JV starts @ 6:15pm.

Photo's provided by Your Average Joe Photographer

Posted In: Girl's Sports > Basketball