First Posted: 1/26/2015
LIMA – It was a statistical anomaly so strange that even Lima Central Catholic coach Katie Krieg was left shaking her head in disbelief.
The Thunderbirds (10-6) knocked off visiting Celina at Monsignor E. C. Herr Gymnasium by a final score of 49-48 despite getting out-rebounded by a final margin of 40-10 on Monday night.
LCC senior Kayla Verhoff hit 7-of-12 on three-point shots good for a game-high 21 points to help offset that huge rebounding disparity.
“She is just an awesome shooter,” Krieg said of Verhoff. “Thank God she made those threes.”
The T-Birds also committed only nine turnovers in the contest while their defense was forcing the Bulldogs into 21 miscues.
Celina (3-12) was very successful in finding 6-foot center Kelly Stahl in the paint and Stahl responded with an 18-point effort to pace the Bulldogs. LCC’s tallest starter is 5-8 Madison Stolly.
After a less than rapid first half of play that saw Celina grab a 21-18 lead at the break, LCC upped the defensive pressure in the second half and the pace of play was much more to the T-Birds’ favor.
Despite Verhoff connecting on three treys in the third quarter, and Sydney Santaguida chipping in with seven points, LCC only led 40-38 going to the fourth quarter.
Santaguida scored her points over a minute and a half thanks to a steal and lay-up, a 3-pointer, and a driving bucket but LCC couldn’t shake the Bulldogs.
“Sydney is really good at creating plays and making things happen,” Krieg said. “She always works hard.”
Celina took the lead at 48-46 before LCC made 3-of-4 free throws in the final minute to secure the victory. Samantha Koenig hit two from the charity stripe to tie the game at 48 before Stolly made 1-of-2 with 3.2 seconds left to play. Stolly finished the night with a 13-point effort for the T-Birds.
“Our rebounding was good the last couple of games, maybe we were intimidated by their size.” Krieg said. “We picked up our defense in the second half and our defense helped to cause turnovers.”
Celina had 11 more 2-point baskets than LCC but the T-Birds countered that by making six more 3-pointers and five more free throws than the Bulldogs.
