Former Wawasee Stars Face Off
MARION – On Saturday night a special occasion took place for Lady Warrior fans as two of Wawasee’s most decorated players went head-to-head on the collegiate hardwood. Taylor Goshert and the Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats handed KiLee Knafel and the Indiana University-South Bend Titans a 66-42 loss in an early season contest at Wesleyan’s Luckey Arena.
Goshert, a 2009 graduate of Wawasee, and the No. 1 ranked Wildcats played in their first game since winning last season’s NAIA Division II National Championship. Returning all but two players from last year’s championship squad, the Wildcats did not disappoint the fans in attendance for the season opener. An exciting first half was capped off by a buzzer-beating layup from Goshert to give her team a 34-22 lead. The fifth-year senior finished the night with seven points, two steals, and even took out a light on the scorers table while diving for a loose ball.
Knafel, a 2013 Wawasee graduate, and the the Titans started strong in the second half but lost momentum following a run by Wesleyan. Knafel, still getting a feel for the college game, made her presence felt on defense in the game pulling down three rebounds.
While the two Wawasee products did not have a big impact on the stat sheet Saturday, both players have made an impact on their respective teams.
Wesleyan head coach Steve Brooks, who has been at the helm of the Wildcat program for 15 years, spoke about what Goshert has done for his program in her time at Wesleyan.
“You know Taylor is going to play hard,” began Brooks. “She is a kid that will go down in history, in this program, as one of the most competitive players that we have ever had. You know what you’re going to get out her every game, you know she is going to play hard.
“The exciting thing for me right now is that I think she is going to get even better, and when she does I think our team will be better as well. She is a hard-nosed kid , she understands competition and I have total confidence in her in making sure that locker room is what it needs to be when I’m not in there.”
Knafel has just two games under her belt for the Titans after sitting out the first two exhibition contest with a concussion, but head coach Steve Bruce is already confident in what the true freshman brings to his program.
“There is already a lot to say about KiLee,” Bruce said. “She was setback with that concussion, but this past week she has already progressed back to where we wanted to see her at. She is a terrific player, she will help us out a lot this season and she will play a lot this season.
“I’m thrilled that she’s with us. She’s really going to help us because she can shoot it from outside or take it to the rim. She can do all of that and she is a tough little player when she needs to be. We really look to have her starting for us in the next few games. Again, we are justĀ thrilled she is with us.”
Wesleyan (1-0) will host its own tournament starting on Friday while IU-South Bend (2-1) will host IU-Northwest on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.