Kewanee bests Bureau Valley

MANLIUS – The Bureau Valley girls basketball team is struggling to find that one go-to girl to provide some offensive spark with senior Kyra Stoller still working her way back to full strength from a broken leg suffered during summer volleyball.

On Thursday, the Storm managed only nine baskets, going down in defeat to the Kewanee Boiler Girls, 39-31, at the Storm Cellar.

“Offensively, we’ve got to have somebody step up and make shots. We don’t have anybody really looking for shots off the dribble, off the pass,” BV coach Matt Wasilewski said. “We have a couple girls who can. Kyra’s working her way back to 100%. She’s not quite there yet.

“Right now we’re just not doing it. And we’ve talked about it and worked on it in practice. In games, we’re just not getting the shots off. You can’t win if you can’t put the ball in the basket.”

Wasilewski and Stoller had a conversation outside the locker room after the team broke up inside. He knows she’s frustrated.

“It’s frustrating as a coach. I can’t begin to imagine the frustration as a player,” Wasilewski said of not being 100%. “I’ve been injured and wanting to play my best. Kyra’s got that mindset. She’s a competitor. She will be able to compete at 100% here soon. Right now, I don’t think she’s quite there yet. And she’s just got to relax and allow that to come.

“Now the bigger part of that, while she’s getting back into full go, somebody else has to step up. Every championship team and all the teams chasing championships has that one person. That man. I don’t care if it’s Jordan, Kobe, I don’t care who it is. They have that one person. Right now, we have to find that one person, who’s going to say, ‘Give me the ball, I’m going to score.’”

Sophomore Kate Salisbury led BV (3-5, 1-1) with eight points, making 5 of 6 free throws. The Stoller sisters, Kyra (7) and sophomore Kate (6) combined for 13 points.

Larissa Meyer led Kewanee (4-4, 3-0) with 16 points and Neponset’s Emma Crofton added 10.

The Storm went on a 7-0 run to close out the first quarter to take the lead at quarter’s end. Senior Ashley Nordstrom knocked down a jumper, junior Nicole Kerber hit a turnaround from the elbow, and Kate Stoller converted a three-point play off a steal with a left-handed layup and free throw with 44.4 left for a 14-12 lead at the end of the quarter.

Salisbury made a free throw to start the second quarter and added a 3-pointer for an 18-16 Storm lead at the 5:00 mark. Kyra Stoller cashed in another Storm three-point play with a post-up and free throw to tie the score and came back with another free pitch to put the Storm back on top at 22-21.

Kewanee added four throws to take a 25-22 halftime lead and never gave it up. The Boiler Girls led 32-27 after three quarters and scored the game’s final five points.

Wasilewski said the Storm also had their struggles defensively, committing too many fouls. They had 21 fouls, and Kewanee cashed in 17 of 20 free throw attempts. Stevens scored 14 of her 16 points from the charity stripe.

“It’s hard to win a game when you foul them. We’re not moving our feet and we’re reaching. We’re giving teams free (points),” Wasilewski said.

After an 0-4 start, which first-year head coach Nicholas Christakos said they were blown out in every game, the Boiler Girls are suddenly 4-4. They were coming off a big 50-45 win over previously undefeated Princeton, and Christakos feared they might come out a little flat Thursday.

“I kind of figured after having the big win Monday, and being a road game, I thought it might be a little bit tough. And it was exactly what it was,” he said. “I said, ‘Girls, this game is going to be in the 30s.’ We were in the 50s the last three games. I was like, ‘This (scoring 50 points) isn’t going to happen again,” and it did not. We always have bad ones every time we come over.”

* Kewanee won the sophomore game, 44-40, in overtime. BV freshman Taylor Neuhalfen led all scorers with 21 points. Kewanee got 15 points from Mya Dearing and 10 from Avery Yepsen.