MAC Girls Basketball Game of the Week - Coldwater at Delphos St. John's

As the local teams shake off the holiday lethargy, it is back to the hardwood in Midwest Athletic Conference action as this week Nick Fisher's Coldwater Cavaliers will head north to invade the Vatican at Delphos St. John's against Dan Grothouse's Blue Jays.  Both teams enter this week with one loss in the conference, understanding that another would seriously crimp any hopes for a league championship.  "Every game in the league is a must if you want to have a chance at the title and especially at home," Grothouse explained.  "We try to take one game at a time and build on that. Every Thursday night is big and we must be ready to compete at our highest level against a quality opponent and program like Coldwater."

The Cavaliers are 5-4 overall and with a youthful team on the floor have suffered a couple of hard luck losses to Western Buckeye League foes, Elida and Celina in recent outings.  Sarah Kanney and Hannah Bruns have powered the Coldwater offense with around 12 points per game, while Bruns and Brooke Welsch have added close to eight rebounds each time on the floor.  "We are playing well for a young team - with only one senior we knew this would be a learning experience," Fisher remarked.  "We need to become more consistent and less streaky.  St. Johns is always a tough battle, they are fundamentally sound on defense and have nice leadership from their seniors, Vorst and Recker.  We travel up to Delphos which also makes it a tough game in that they always play well at home."

The Blue Jays are currently 5-3, and like Coldwater, they are 1-1 in the young MAC season.  Katie Vorst has been St. John's main threat with her 12.6 and 7.4 points and rebounds per game respectively, while Jessica Recker has chipped in 9.4 points and four assists each time out.  "Our team is improving offensively by knowing where we need to get the ball and realizing our roles each time we hit the floor," Grothouse commented.  "We are getting good minutes from our bench and Katie Vorst has been solid all year for us in the middle. We need to improve on rebounding and confidence shooting the ball. Coldwater is so athletic - they bring a lot of energy to the court and are well-coached.  We must match their energy and be able to handle the constant defensive pressure for 32 minutes, if we want to come out on top."

by Robb Hemmelgarn