Jackets prepare for 1-2 weekend punch
MOUNT VERNON — Dropping three of its last four games isn’t a thing any team wants to do, but that’s the predicament the Mount Vernon High School girls basketball team finds itself in as 2007 begins.
Playing a tough stretch of games, the Yellow Jackets closed the year with losses at Marion Harding and Pickerington Central before returning home to beat Hilliard Davidson. The Jackets then dropped a home decision to Lancaster on Dec. 28 in their final game of 2006.
Despite its recent stretch of bad luck, Mount Vernon begins the new year with much enthusiasm. The Jackets have an opportunity to finish 4-1 in the first round of the Ohio Capital Conference Cardinal Division play when they host Olentangy on Friday night.
“We ran into a tough part of our schedule beginning with Marion Harding,” said Mount Vernon coach Doug Savage. “They were a solid team and that started our stretch. Then we went down to Pickerington Central and played against their two big posts. We played pretty well and beat Hilliard Davidson. Despite their record not being very good, I thought they were a solid team. Then we got beat by Lancaster, who is also off to a solid start.
“The last four games have been a tough part of our schedule. In addition to that, we have had Christmas break to deal with and we’ve had some sickness to deal with. ... We are hanging in there. I think we are still playing very competitively. ... We’re back in league play Friday and it is the fifth and final game of the first round. It is an important game for us.”
It is also a double weekend for Mount Vernon. Following Friday’s game, the Jackets will host former league rival Delaware in a nonconference contest.
“This is a big weekend for us,” Savage said. “Friday night we have the OCC game with Olentangy and then Saturday night we come back at home with a longtime foe in Delaware Hayes. ... This weekend, with two games at home, is big. They are both very large post teams so we have two tough games in the interior. We are going to have to battle on the boards and be physical, trying to match their physical presence on the interior. It is going to be a good test for us.”
The Braves enter Friday’s game with a three-game winning streak. Olentangy defeated Northland and Whitehall to win the inaugural Olentangy Invitational, held last Friday and Saturday. The Braves made it three in a row by defeating Marysville, ??-??, on Wednesday night.
“Olentangy has a lot of momentum,” said Savage. “They have a big post game, their guards are adequate and they do a nice job of scrapping and competing. They play a lot of different people. The two times I have seen them, they have pressed a lot — diamond press back to man. They do a pretty nice job of moving the basketball around. They won their own tournament and are definitely riding a high coming in here. ... They are a team that is improving. We are certainly not going to look past them and toward Delaware none to soon. This being a league game, it is the more important game of the weekend.”
To get a win, the Jackets must put together a complete game. The Braves have a relatively inexperience squad, starting a freshman, a sophomore, two juniors and a senior, so a strong defensive front will be important.
“Getting good pressure on their guards is something we are really going to have to concentrate on,” Savage said. “If we allow them too many looks inside to their 6-foot-2 and 6-foot-1 post players, they are going to be a handful for us. They have a freshman guard who may be their best all-around player. She can score from the outside, she can drive to the basket and she is an excellent shooter. She plays in the post some. I would say she might be their best player, although some of the other girls might disagree. ... They really have eight or nine girls that can contribute. It is not just one person we have to guard. It is the whole team.”
Entering the new year, the Jackets must continue to get a great effort from the junior class, which has proven to be the difference in many games thus far. As strong as the senior leadership has been for this squad, the underclassmen have helped make the success possible.
“We have always felt like Rachel Buirley and Emily Cassell had potential,” said Savage. “As they continue to develop and get a little bit older, they are going to be a force. These last two games have proven to them and to me that there is potential there. Emily had 10 points and 10 rebounds — a double-double — against Lancaster, and Rachel had 17 points. They have emerged as inside presence that can get some points on the board for us. ... Caroline Denzer continues to make some nice passes and some nice assists to our other girls. She plays solid defense, but is a little reluctant to shoot. She contributes each game and gives us some nice support on the perimeter. ... Kris Maiorino had a good start to the season before she got sick. Since then, she has had some trouble getting her strength back. She is a very sound defensive player for us so we hoping she can get her game back and start playing solid basketball like she was at the beginning of the season.”
Tip-off for both of the weekend games is set for 6 p.m.
