VERSAILLES – Versailles used a 25-4 outburst, covering 11 minutes of the second half, to take control of a close game and defeat the Celina Lady Bulldogs 61-40 in a non- conference game Saturday afternoon.
Ten of those points came from sophomore guard Kami McEldowney, and junior Camille Watren added two 3-pointers during the run.
“Our shots fell tonight,” Versailles girls basketball coach Jacki Stonebraker said. “Camille hit two or three threes tonight, and Kami hit a couple just nice little shots from the outside, but we were getting it in. We got it into the post, and the post found an outside shooter when they were guarded inside. Thought we moved the ball well.”
Obviously the offense was functioning in high gear during this stretch, but the defensive effort was very stout. The Lady Tigers were using a new player rotation method to keep the players well rested and fresh throughout the game and strong until its conclusion. This definitely proved beneficial as the Versailles defensive effort was strong all game long.
“We really needed to work on the rotation outside,” Coach Stonebraker said. “We were taking breaks. We were just standing outside and taking breaks. Now, we’re trying to get subs earlier in the game. Two minutes you sit on the bench, and then you’re back in the game.
“It allowed us to keep running, keep fresh, and we didn’t get as tired as in the past.”
The game’s scoring opened right away as the teams exchanged baskets. Six-foot senior Kelly Stahl scored all of her seven points in the early portion of the first period to get Celina underway while Lauren Monnin and Danielle Winner combined for 11 of the 13 Lady Tigers’ points in the opening quarter. The Lady Bulldogs came out shooting the ball well and took a 14-13 lead after eight minutes.
When Stahl picked up her second personal foul late in the first quarter it allowed Versailles to go to work in the paint. Monnin would score seven of her game-high 18 in the second period. Celina refused to fade away as the Bulldogs battled to only trail at the half 27-26.
“She’s on a mission,” Coach Stonebraker said while discussing Monnin’s role. “She’s a great leader for us right now. She’s not the vocal leader I’m looking for right now, but scoring-wise she’s leading us. She’s our main threat inside.”
Summing up her team’s performance Stonebraker said, “We were able to run some sets, to get some good looks from the outside, hit some threes and limited our turnovers. Offensively we looked much better … shot the ball well tonight. That gets us going a little bit and gets us hyped up! Really think looking inside, outside helps us become a better ball club.”
Versailles placed three scorers in double figures. Monnin led with 18, McEldowney had 14 and Winner contributed 11 while Heather Heiby netted 13 for Celina.
The victory elevates the Lady Tigers record to 11-6 overall and 2-4 in the Midwestern Athletic Conference. The Lady Bulldogs fell to 7-6 on the season with a 3-2 record in the Western Buckeye League.
Versailles won the junior varsity contest 53-18.
Box score:
Celina – 40
Heiby 13, Berry 2, Reineke 5, Dennis 8, McGillvary 5, Stahl 7.
Versailles – 61
McEldowney 14, Watren 9, Blakeley 2, Ording 2, Winner 11, Monnin 18, Marshal 5.
3-pointers: C: 4 (Heiby 2, Reineke, McGillvary); Vers: 5 (Watren 3, McEldowney 2).
Free throws: C: 14-19: Vers: 14-18.
