Valley Girls Won More Than Championships
AKRON – The Tippecanoe Valley girls basketball team won 25 games this season.
They won a Three Rivers Conference championship.
They won a sectional championship.
They won a regional championship
They won a semi state championship
But most of all, they won the hearts of a community.
That was evident Tuesday night as a community celebration was held to honor the Class 3-A state runner-ups.
Several hundred fans of the Vikings turned out in the Tippecanoe Valley High School gym to honor their hometown heroes.
The program included cheers, tears and even laughs.
But most of all it included a lot of love for the classy team that made Valley girls basketball history with a season to remember.
Valley capped off the best year in program history Saturday night with a 72-44 loss to Princeton in the Class 3-A state title game in Indianapolis.
That final score meant nothing to their adoring fans, who relished one last chance to wrap their arms around an amazing group of young ladies.
Taylor Trippiedi, one of just two seniors for the Vikings, was moved to tears when her turn came to take the microphone and address the crowd.
“I’m going to miss basketball, but I’m going to miss this team more,” said Trippiedi.
Valley coach Chris Kindig, a 1980 Valley graduate, praised his senior tandem of Trippiedi and Caylie Teel.
“Our seniors just did a great job leading this team,” said Kindig. “And they played like seniors for us.”
Kindig said it was what this team did last offseason that got them to the state’s biggest stage this past weekend.
“Our girls were at everything in the offseason and every one of them improved a bunch and that’s what it takes,” Kindig remarked. “Our sophomore grew up and we got big play from our two seniors in the tournament.
“The love of the game that these girls have can’t be overrated. They gelled as a team and that’s a credit to them. For me, it was a thrill to lead this team there. But, these girls are the ones that made it happen.”
Valley, which finished 13-7 and lost to NorthWood 84-61 in the sectional a year ago, started its championship run by going 7-0 to claim the TRC title. The team then upended three-time defending sectional champion NorthWood 64-60 in double overtime en route to winning the Wawasee Sectional title. NorthWood handed the Vikings one of their regular-season losses. Valley then beat Muncie Central 50-41 and Norwell 47-45 both in overtime to win the program’s first-ever regional championship at Bellmont. The team then topped TRC foe Rochester 60-45 to claim the semi state championship at Warsaw.
The outstanding squad included seniors Taylor Trippiedi and Teel, along with juniors Karis Tucker, Brynda Krueger and Morgan Brazo, sophomores Anne Secrest, Meredith Brouyette and Hannah Dunn and freshmen Olivia Trippiedi, Addy Miller and Asia O’Connor. Team managers were Jordan Fraser, Micah Bradley, Aerin Shewman and Mia Gunnels. Assistant coaches for head coach Kindig were Alissa Trippiedi, Brittani Garbers and Julia Hayes.
Trippiedi capped the season by earning the prestigious Patricia L. Roy Mental Attitude Award Saturday night. The senior guard carries a 3.9 GPA to rank fourth in her class and is very active in her church. She also got to share the remarkable journey this year with mother Alissa, an assistant coach, and freshman sister Olivia.
“I’m not sure it’s sunk in yet,” said Trippiedi as she posed for photos with young fans following the celebration. “The love we had for each other got us so far. That and the support system and the love we had from this community. It all just came together.
“The biggest reward for me is to be a role model for these little girls who look up to us. That really makes me feel good inside. I remember what it was like to be a little girl and to look up to the players.
“To be able to share this moment with my Mom and my sister is just such a huge blessing.”
A huge blessing to an entire community.