Valley Basketball: Regional Presents Familiar Foes For Vikings
COLUMBIA CITY — For girls basketball teams around the state, the next step to immortality presents itself this weekend. Eight regional tournaments will tip off Saturday morning, including the stacked 3-A field that will slug it out in Columbia City. No. 8 Tippecanoe Valley is looking to redeem itself from last year’s defeat in the title game and rekindle some of the magic from its 2015 run to the state finals.
The Vikings start their day with a rematch against No. 6 Fort Wayne Concordia. Valley defeated the Cadets 56-53 in last year’s regional semifinals.
This year the Vikings return with much of their supporting cast from 2016’s regional runner-up squad. Valley is led by one of the state’s most polarizing players in Anne Secrest.
The senior leads Valley in every major statistical category with 15 points per game to go along with 7.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.6 steals and 1.7 blocks. Simply put, Secrest is a machine. She can create serious problems for any opposing defenses, but has also found herself in foul trouble this season. Thankfully, Valley is far from being a one-trick pony.
The Vikings have a strong supporting cast around Secrest and when you can give a dominant player strong support, it is a recipe for success. Valley has complied a 22-4 record this season thanks to its balanced team and quality depth. Addy Miller, Meredith Brouyette and Sophie Bussard all average more than eight points per game for the Vikings. While Miller and Brouyette each have a deep threat pedigree, they can slice through the lane as well. Brouyette also averages just under three assists per game.
Bussard, however, does not have a specific trait that she’s known for. The sophomore is a star in the making and is, by all accounts, a “jack of all trades” player for one of the best teams in the state. Bussard has a tenacious defensive pedigree that earns her more than two steals per contest as well as a strong work ethic that helps to make her the team’s rebound leader behind Secrest at 3.6 boards per game.
But Valley’s depth get, well, deeper. Emily Peterson, Hannah Dunn, Kilee Sloan, Olivia Trippiedi and Asia O’Connor all provide big minutes for the Vikings but, more importantly, quality minutes. Peterson averages over seven points per game as a nice boost off the bench. Dunn scores over five per game and pulls down more than three rebounds as well as being a strong senior presence. The Vikings can win in a multitude of ways and that has helped to make them a dangerous team over the past three seasons.
But there is no doubt that Valley will have its hands full with a Concordia team that nearly toppled the Vikes last year.
The Cadets bring back Shania Kelly and Carissa Garcia, a duo that combined for 33 points against Valley in 2016. Both come into the regional averaging over 11.5 points per game. Concordia, however, is led by sophomore stud Sylare Starks and her 16.1 points per game average. Starks scored eight on the Vikings last season.
Concordia will be looking for its fifth regional title in school history and first since 2012. The Cadets boast a 20-4 record this season.
The other side of the bracket will feature another rematch from 2016 as No. 4 Heritage Christian (19-6), the defending state champion, takes on Norwell (16-9).
The Knights will be making their 13th regional appearance, and seventh straight, but will only be after their second title since 1977. The last regional crown came for Norwell in 2014. Heritage, meanwhile, will be looking for its fifth-straight regional crown to continue its journey for a fourth-straight state title. Heritage defeated Valley in the 2016 regional title game.
The winner of the regional at Columbia City will meet the winner from Rensselaer Central. That tournament features Lighthouse College Prep, Northwestern, Andrean and South Bend St. Joseph. The semi-state game will be played at either Crown Point or Logansport.