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Defense does the job for Waynesburg

3 min read
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Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter

McGuffey’s Lexi Ewig (10) works through a crowd for a rebound as the Highlanders battle Waynesburg.

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Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter

Closely guarded by McGuffey’s Taylor Schumacher, Waynesburg’s Kaley Rohanna drives into the lane.

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Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter

Waynesburg's Addison Blair (13) squeezes past McGuffey's Faith Ealy during the Raiders' Class 3A Section 4 win.

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Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter

Waynesburg's Kaley Rohanna (15) splits the McGuffey defenders on the way to two of her 14 points.

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Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter

McGuffey's Sarah Brownlee, left, attempts to hold off Waynesburg's Josie Horne.

CLAYSVILLE – It was a good night for anybody who had the under.

That’s a joke, of course.

There’s no betting allowed in high school girls basketball or any other prep sport.

But the under would have hit if betting lines were available for Waynesburg Central’s game at McGuffey Thursday night. Waynesburg beat McGuffey, 44-30.

The night went differently than Waynesburg coach Chris Minerd wanted, particularly offensively.

Minerd’s defense, however, came to play.

“Our goal is to keep people under 40,” Minerd said. “I think we have a good enough offense, on most nights, to score more than 40, so that’s the goal.”

Mission accomplished.

Waynesburg (2-0, 10-1) held McGuffey’s Taylor Schumacher, a sophomore averaging around 20 points per game, to seven points.

“We did lock down a little bit on Schumacher,” Minerd said, “seeing what she’s been doing all year. She’s been having a great year.

“And then everybody else was just kind of in help position. So, they did a great job with that. I get a little rowdy on the (sidelines) sometimes, but they’re a good bunch of kids, and they know how to stand up to adversity. So I’m proud of them for that.”

On the other side, McGuffey (0-2, 9-4) coach Andrew Kurzawski summed up the night well.

“We just couldn’t hit shots,” Kurzawski said. “We have Taylor Schumacher, one of our top scorers. She (averages) almost 20 a game. They did an exceptional job on her defensively. Couldn’t find a rhythm. Same with Libby Mallah (two points). Just couldn’t find a rhythm tonight.”

Waynesburg never found its rhythm offensively, either. Its best player, Kaley Rohanna, got into foul trouble early and ended with a relatively pedestrian, for her, 14 points.

Taking care of business despite not having Rohanna for stretches of the game, for Minerd, “showed a lot of guts.”

“We got handcuffed a little bit,” he said. “Had to take Rohanna out a couple of times, obviously one of my better players. So the girls kept their composure. McGuffey’s a good team. They’re on the rise. They’re a young team.”

Waynesburg led 24-16 at the half and didn’t allow a basket in the third quarter until the final minute. McGuffey’s defense held its own, which was why the game never became too lopsided.

Addison Blair added 14 points for Waynesburg.

Aside from Blair and Rohanna, no other player from either side cracked double figures.

Waynesburg looks to keep rolling Monday night at Yough. McGuffey will try to get its first section win on the same night at the same time against Brownsville at home.

Despite the loss, Kurzawski was happy with his team’s performance, mainly on defense.

“All in all, I’m pretty happy with how we played,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting them again.”

“Wasn’t the performance that I wanted,” Minerd said. “But part of that had to do with McGuffey. They have a good young team, and they’re well-coached.”

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