Bella Abernathy Keys Wheeling Park Win Over John Marshall
Junior center nets 25, collects 10 rebounds
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WHEELING -- Big things are expected from the Wheeling Park girls' basketball team this season.
The Patriots didn't disappoint in their season opener Thursday night, disposing of rival John Marshall, 77-55, at "The Palace on the Hill." Coach Ryan Young's relentless charges exhibited offensive potency, solid rebounding and quality depth in debuting in impressive fashion.
"It was your typical first game of the season," Young said. "We got off to a nice start but went through the motions defensively in spots.
"We left them wide open at times and they made those shots. We must do a better job defensively. But it is always nice to win your opener, especially since we will have a tough test Saturday at Parkersburg South."
The Patriots, coming off three straight state tournament appearances, wasted no time in setting the tone for the night.
The hosts scored nine of the game's first 11 points en route to building a 22-6 advantage after one quarter. Park's fullcourt pressure played a major factor in the strong start, forcing seven Monarch turnovers in the first eight minutes.
Sweet-shooting Shanley Woods and talented post Bella Abernathy fueled the Patriots first-quarter scoring with seven and six points, respectively.
The second quarter played out much like the first. Five more JM turnovers, combined with 11 points from Lindsey Garrison and six from Abernathy, propelled Park to a 44-23 halftime advantage.
JM showed signs of life in the third quarter. Sophomore Catherine Hunnell dropped in eight points in the period for the Monarchs, helping the visitors pare the deficit to 54-40 after three periods.
The Monarch rally, however, would not continue in the fourth quarter. Abernathy helped the Patriots win going away by delivering 10 points before Young cleared the bench with several minutes to play. The hard-working 5-10 junior enjoyed a sparkling effort with 25 points and 10 rebounds.
"Offense is not going to be our problem. When Bella plays like she did (Thursday), it really opens things up for our shooters, and we have several good shooters," Young, who has done a magnificent job of bringing Park back to prominence on the state landscape, said. "We had good offensive balance tonight. We must clean up things on the defensive end."
Abernathy was backed with solid scoring support from Garrison (17) and Woods (15). Young also received a sparkling effort from Abby Snedeker. The athletic senior came off the bench to tally seven points to go with some impressive defensive work.
All told, eight Patriots found the scoring column.
JM did a nice job of shooting behind the arc, draining eight treys. Sophomore Landyn Helms was sharp off the bench, netting a team-high 13 points. Junior Lakyn Groves added 10 points while Anna Blake chipped in with nine markers.
"Our defense lost the game. We know we have to play good defense to be a good team," John Marshall head coach Brock Melko offered. "This was a tough test right off the bat. But that is a good thing as now we know what we need to work on.
"Wheeling Park is a tough team to defend. They have multiple weapons. They will be as tough a team to defend as any we will play this year. I cannot fault our team's effort. We played hard. Sometimes you just have to give credit to the other team."
JM finished with 23 turnovers. Park, meanwhile, committed just eight miscues.
JM travels to Beaver Local Saturday afternoon.