#1StudentNWI: 2016 Starts with Hoops, Poms and a Blood Drive at Kouts High School

Girls Basketball
The JV Girls basketball team lost to Boone Grove January 4th in the first round of the PCC tournament. McKenna Magura had 6 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 steals, followed by Annika Ehrlich and Lexi DeMarco who both added 4 points each. Claire Cochran had 10 rebounds and 2 points, followed by Faith Robertson with 2 points.

The JV girls also traveled to Knox and lost 36-23. McKenna Magura led the team with 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 steals. Faith Robertson trailed behind with 4 points and 2 rebounds. Lexi DeMarco grabbed 5 rebounds and 2 steals. The team then had a record of 5 and 11. The Fillies JV girls beat Lacrosse January 12th in PCC action. Annika Ehrlich led the team with 7 points and 5 rebounds, followed by Olivia Cowsert who added 5 points and 3 rebounds, Claire Cochran had 3 points and 5 rebounds. Lexi DeMarco added 2 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, and 4 steals. Bri Harper had 3 steals, 2 assists, and 2 blocks. Fillies are 2 and 4 in league play.

The JV team then traveled to Boone Grove January 27th and unfortunately fell short. The Fillies began fiercely in the first half, down only by 1. Claire Cochran led the team with 13 points and grabbed 17 rebounds! Annika Ehrlich followed with 7 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals. Bri Harper had 4 points and 2 rebounds. Lexi DeMarco had 5 rebounds. The JV girls ended their season with an unfortunate loss to River Forest. Claire Cochran guided the team with 8 points and 6 rebounds, Annika Ehrlich had 7 points and 8 rebounds, Lexi DeMarco had 1 point and 6 rebounds.

The Varsity Fillies Varsity lost to South Central 50-36 falling to 10-6 on the season. Bella Wireman led the team with 12 points and 5 rebounds, followed by Emma and Sadie Leatherman scored 8 points each. Chloe Koedyker and Lauren Yager added 4 points each. The Fillies improve to 11-6 on the season after defeating Lacrosse 48-11. Chloe Koedyker led the team with 13 points and 3 rebounds, followed by Bella Wireman who scored 10 points, had 4 assists, and 3 steals. Sadie Leatherman added 8 points and 4 rebounds. Emma Leatherman scored 7 points, Lauren Yager 4, and Kay Christy 4. Olivia Cowsert scored a bucket and grabbed 3 rebounds. The Fillies gained a win over Westville in the opening round of the PCC tournament 50-38. The Fillies were led by Emma Leatherman with 16 points, and grabbed 6 rebounds, Bella Wireman and Lauren Yager each scored 11 points, and Bella Wireman added 4 assists.

The Fillies advanced to the title game of the PCC tourney after defeating Lacrosse January 22nd. On Saturday, the Fillies fell short to South Central and let the title slip through their fingers. The Varsity girls improved 14-8 with a win over Boone Grove. Emma Leatherman led with 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists, followed by Bella Wireman who added 10 points and 3 rebounds. Then came Sadie Leatherman who added 9 points and 7 rebounds. Lauren Yager scored 6 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals. Kay Christy added 5 points and Chloe Koedyker had 3. Great job, Fillies!

Boys Basketball
The JV boys lost to Boone Grove 32-33. Tyler Heimberg led the team with 21 points and 7 rebounds followed by Zac Nomanson with 4 points and 5 rebounds. The C team lost to Boone January 7th. Alex Lippelt led the team with 7 points, Peyton Clinkenbeard with 6, Brock Kniefel with 5 points, Riley Cavinder with 5, Zac Nomanson with 3, Triston Bolton with 2, and Hunter Yager with 2.

The JV Boys gained two victories, defeating North Judson and Oregon Davis. Hunter Schultz scored 27 points, followed by Tyler Heimberg who added 16 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, and Jake Stewart scored 15 and had 13 rebounds. The JV boys gained a win over 21st Century 48-42 on January 26th. Dillan Matthes led the team with 19 points on 5-5 shooting from down the three point line, followed by Tyler Heimberg had a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Jake Stewart grabbed 8 rebounds and added 4 points.

The Mustangs C-team gained a win over Hanover Central on January 28th. Peyton Clinkenbeard led the team with 14 points, Alex Lippelt with 11, Triston Bolton with 9, Zac Nomanson with 7, and Riley Cavinder with 5.The Varsity Boys defeated North Judson 66-38 and losing in double overtime to Oregon Davis 56-54 over the January 9th weekend. Trevor McCormick picked up 29 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, followed by Dylan Bruce who added 31 points and 13 rebounds, Alex Garavalia scored 27 points, 8 assists, and 9 rebounds. Ethan Ketchmark had 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 steals. Brent Wireman added 6 assists.

The Varsity Mustangs lost to Washington Township in the first round of the PCC tournament. Trevor McCormick and Dylan Bruce led the team with 11 points each, followed by Alex Garavalia who added 7 points while Jared Birky, Ethan Ketchmark, and Trevor McCormick grabbed 5 rebounds each. The Varsity held the state leading scorer to below his 33 point average. Trevor McCormick scored 17 points and Dylan Bruce added 13. Great job, Mustangs!

Poms PCC Dance Competition
The Poms team performed on January 21st in the PCC dance competition and were awarded a 1st place plaque the following Saturday Night after the championship games. Captain Lauren Keough says, “I’ve made the most unforgettable memories with the most incredible group of girls. Winning the Dance Team award was the perfect way to end my last PCC!” Other members of the Poms include Elizabeth Palmer, Victoria Cross, Paige Gurley, Holly Kuebler, Haley Gulley, Sarah Cieslak, Gabby Rogers, and Madison Andrews.

Blood Drive
The National Honor Society hosted their annual Blood Drive this January. As a thank you, Trish Cochran updated the group on how well the outcome was. Not only did Kouts set a new all-time with 80 pints, but those 80 pints will also go to save up to 243 lives! Thank you to all the volunteers who participated and who ran the Blood Drive! Because of your effort, someone receives a life. Another Blood Drive will happen later in the Spring!

Girls Sectional Recognition
BREAKING RECORDS: The 2014-2015 season was one for the record books! Olivia Birky, Megan Heinold, Jayla Crump, McKenzie Ehrlich, Lauren Yager, Bella Wireman, Kay Christy, Kaylee Heimberg, Sadie Leatherman, Chloe Koedyker, Olivia Cowsert, and Torrey Bennett committed themselves to the basketball program at a very young age. Every off-season, these girls dedicated time to making themselves better whether it be at their house in the driveway, summer scrimmages, and AYBT tournaments.

These Fillies won the 2015 sectional by defeating Morgan Township and Covenant Christian and were also Regional runner-ups. During this whirlwind of memories, games, and intense practices, these Fillies set several team records and individual records. Team Records: The team first had 22 wins which tied the record for the most school wins in a single season.

This team also made 130 three pointers in a single season which destroyed the previous record of 112. Next, this team made 334 free throws in a single season which broke the previous record of 317 free throws. Lastly, the team averaged the fewest turnovers as a team for an entire season. Individual records: Two girls broke the record for minutes played in a single season. The old record was a total of 720 minutes held by Erica Martin. Megan Heinold stomped that record with a total of 744 minutes breaking the old record, but then Bella Wireman played 4 additional minutes and became the new record holder in a single season at 748 minutes. As talked about in a previous article, Jayla Crump also made astounding bounds during the 2014-2015 season. Jayla scored 1190 points for her career which placed her as 5th on the career scoring list for points.

This team of incredible girls had only three make the all-conference team: Jayla Crump #2, Megan Heinold #6, and Bella Wireman #10. One girl, however, showed the coaches that she represented Sportsmanship, Athletic Ability, and Grade Point Average. Megan Heinold earned the Mental Attitude award showing incredible leadership and dedication. Great job, girls! What a great season of winning and record-breaking moments!