BUCYRUS — It was senior night for the Bucyrus Lady Redmen. But the entire team contributed to the festivities honoring the three that played their final game in Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium.
Bucyrus scored 35 points in the middle two quarters to run past Elgin, 51-27, in a non-league game.
Maddie Kimmel, Addy Rister, and Leah Sheets were recognized before the game in an emotional ceremony, which contributed to the Lady Red’s slow start.
“Once we got them settled down — they were a little amped up with senior night — after that, we settled down and moved the ball,” Bucyrus coach Brian Seybert said. “I thought the ball died a little bit in the second quarter, but in the second half we moved it a lot better. That was a point of emphasis at halftime.”
Both teams had trouble finding the basket in the first quarter. Elgin (9-12) was two for eight from the field while Bucyrus (8-13) was three of 17. The Lady Redmen held a slim 7-6 edge after one.
The second quarter was decidedly different for Bucyrus. Junior Kendra blizzard scored all eight of her points — including two 3-point shots — in the frame to ignite a 19-point period. The Comets only mustered seven points on three-of-10 shooting and trailed 26-13 at halftime.
“Her last few games here for us, we’re finally getting Kendra in, and Kendra’s energy really lifts us,” Seybert said. “It gives us another perimeter look and she’s shooting with more confidence and I hope it continues for whatever games we have left.”
“We knew from the previous game (a 52-29 Bucyrus win at Elgin), they hit some 3s on us,” Comets coach Bob Douds said. “We didn’t match up very well with them man-to-man, so we had to stick with the zone, as much as I didn’t want to, hoping to hit some shots and keep us close into the fourth quarter, which obviously didn’t work out that way.”
The Redmen pressed most of the first three quarters, wrinkle that was not at Seybert’s disposal the first time they faced Elgin.
“We’re such a young team,” Douds, who has only one senior on the roster, said. “We get pressure on us, and we panic. We told the girls we have to learn from these nights and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
Bucyrus forced 19 Comets’ turnovers in the first three quarters and 22 for the game.
“First time we played them, we didn’t have our press in, and I thought the press caused some problems for them, and we wanted to use that to our advantage” Seybert said. “We wanted to get some steals, tips, runouts, try to get some quick layups if we could and we did. We caused them to throw the ball around and make some quick decisions.”
The Redmen outscored the Comets 16-10 in the third quarter to expand their lead to 42-23. Bucyrus was aided by a 14-9 edge on the offensive boards — 9-1 in the first half.
“Madison Hall is averaging 13.8 rebounds a game as a freshman,” Douds said. “But give Bucyrus credit. They did a nice job keeping us off the boards and putting the pressure on us. They deserved this win.”
Sammi Girton led Elgin with 13 points and Taylor Schoen added six. Hall grabbed 11 rebounds.
Brook Dennison and Rister shared scoring honors for Bucyrus with 10 points each. Addison Kemery and Blizzard had eight apiece and Kimmel scored six points and pulled down seven rebounds. Rister added seven boards.
The coach praised another junior, Addison Ricker — who scored four points — for her play.
“I thought Addie Ricker did well too,” Seybert said. “She chipped in, hitting her shot, which she can hit, and she was looking for it and really shot it tonight.”
“We’re trying to keep everything in perspective with our youth,” Douds said. “But we’re 20 games in (on the season). Like I told the freshmen, ‘You’re not freshmen anymore. You can’t use that as an excuse.’ There are things we’ve got to improve on.”
“Scoring-wise, rebounding-wise, steals-wise, it was a balanced effort by everybody who got on the floor,” Seybert said. “I’m happy for the seniors. I’m proud of the dedication and the effort they’ve given to the program over the last four years.
“I’m just proud for the seniors, getting out of here with a win the last time on the home court,” Seybert added. “That was the main thing.”
The junior varsity set the stage for the stage for the varsity game with a comeback of epic proportions.
Bucyrus trailed 30-12 after three quarters, but outscored Elgin, 21-3 in the fourth period to tie the game. The Redmen then won in overtime, 38-35.
Kimmy Burling led the Lady Red with 13 points. Emilie Bishop had 10 for the Comets.
Box score
Elgin 6 7 10 4 — 27
Bucyrus 7 19 16 9 — 51
Elgin (9-12): Shots 12-45; 3-pt. 1-41 (Sammi Girton); Free throws 2-5; Rebounds 34 (Madison Hill 11); Turnovers 22. Scoring: Kyra Wilcox 0 1 1, Sammi Girton 6 0 13, Addison Holland 1 1 3, Gracie Isler 1 0 2, Halie Leonard 1 0 2, Taylor Schoen 3 0 6.
Bucyrus (8-13): Shots 21-58; 3-pt. shots 6-124 (Kendra Blizzard 2, Brook Dennison 2, Addison Kemery, Marissa Middleton); Free throws 3-8; Rebounds 39 (Maddie Kimmel 7, Addy Rister 7); Turnovers 11. Scoring: Addison Ricker 2 0 4, Maddie Kimmel 3 0 6, Kendra Blizzard 3 0 8, Brook Dennison 4 0 10, Addy Rister 4 2 10, Addison Kemery 3 1 8, Marissa Middleton 2 0 5.
JV: Bucyrus 38-35 (OT).