Schilli reaches several career marks, Lady Warriors win senior night

By JASON VIOX\Daily Journal Sports Writer

STE. GENEVIEVE - Solid senior leadership and experience are a couple of ingredients that some high school teams have. The Valle Lady Warriors basketball squad have plenty of both.

Four senior girls stepped on to their home court for the last time this basketball season. The Lady Warriors played their last home game and defended their home floor with a 49-33 win over the St. Vincent Squaws on Wednesday.

Valle senior Kara Schilli had an amazing night as she reached several career marks. Schilli scored her 1500th point, grabbed her 1000th rebound, and reached the 500th assist mark.

The Lady Warriors pulled down many more rebounds than the Squaws. St. Vincent also made a few mishandled passes which gave Valle possession of the ball several times.

A lay-up by Valle's senior Angie Herzog and a jump shot by Lauren Schumer of St. Vincent kicked off the final home contest. The Lady Warriors proved they were ready to go with a 14-2 run that lasted throughout the rest of the first quarter.

Schilli scored seven of those points which was all she needed for 1500 career points. Valle's other two seniors were also involved in the run. Sara Hermann made five points while Crystal Tucker chipped in the remaining two. The Lady Warriors led 16-4 at the end of the first quarter.

Herzog drained a jump shot at the 6:36 mark to start the second quarter. Almost two minutes passed by until a lay-up by Theresa Mattingly gave the Squaws their first two points of the second quarter. Sierra Paulus also knocked down a jump shot for St. Vincent.

The Lady Warriors scored six more points while the Squaws made four before the end of the half. Valle doubled St. Vincent's points with a 24-12 lead at half-time.

Mattingly and Hermann traded a lay-up at the start of the second half. Mattingly sank one free throw before Valle took control of the rest of the quarter. The Lady Warriors went on a 7-2 scoring drive before the third quarter came to a close. Valle led 33-17 as the two teams headed for the final quarter.

A lay-up from Hermann and a triple from Herzog gave the Lady Warriors a little more breathing room at the start of the fourth quarter. Brooke Hayden narrowed the deficit with a three-pointer, but Valle outscored St. Vincent 6-2 for a 44-22 lead.

The Squaws retaliated with an 8-2 run which also included a three-pointer by Joy Donze. Both teams matched three more points before the end of the contest.

"We did good at times," stated Valle's head coach Judd Naeger. "We worked against the zone real well, which is good to see because we haven't been playing very well against the zone."

St. Vincent was 5-10 on free throws. The Lady Warriors had a very frustrating time at the charity stripe. They made only five out of 18 attempts.

Ever since Valle's four seniors played on the varsity level, they have lost only 15 games. The Lady Warriors, now 22-3, will travel to Chaffee on Wednesday for their next challenge.

Valle - 16 8 9 16 - 49

St. Vincent - 4 8 5 16 - 33

SCORING:

Valle - K Schilli 17, S Hermann 16, A Herzog 8, C Tucker 4, K Shuh 2, K Bergtholdt 2

3-Pointers - K Schilli 1, A Herzog 1

St. Vincent - T Mattingly 7, A Lundy 6, J Donze 4, S Paulus 4, B Hayden 4, K Kutz 2, L Schumer 2, S Brown 2, H Schremp 2

3-Pointers - J Donze 1, B Hayden 1