Indiana High
School Athletic Association
Phone: 317-846-6601 Fax: 317-575-4244 Website: www.ihsaa.org
Blake Ress, Commissioner
____________________________________________________________________
March 5, 2005
Tri-Central wins Third Straight
Class A Championship
Tri-Central
became the first school to win three consecutive Class A titles with a 47-46
triumph over Northeast Dubois on Saturday morning at Conseco Fieldhouse in
Indianapolis. Tri-Central (19-7) joins
Fort Wayne Bishop Luers (1999-2002) as the only schools to win at least three
straight titles, with Luers winning four in a row (3-2A, 1-3A) during its
championship reign.
Tri-Central
took the lead for good early in the fourth quarter and then held on to earn
their third crown in a row. The Trojans
led 47-42 in the final minute, but Northeast Dubois mounted a furious rally
with Leigh-Ann Kluesner hitting a three-pointer to narrow the gap to 47-45 with
11 seconds remaining. Following a
turnover, the Jeeps’ Tia Wineinger made 1-of-2 free throws with six seconds
left to trim the lead to 47-46. After
another turnover, Northeast Dubois got a final opportunity. Wineinger’s shot was blocked by Kaci Allen
with two seconds on the clock, but the Jeeps’ Lauren Stemle got the rebound and
got off a shot in the paint that just missed at the final buzzer.
Tri-Central’s
Kaci Allen led all players with 20 points along with team highs of seven
rebounds and three assists. Junior guard
Meranda Burnett joined Allen in double digits with 12 points, dishing out a
game-high seven assists and adding three steals.
Kluesner
led three Northeast Dubois players in double figures with 18 points, along with
eight rebounds. Wineinger finished with
13 points and seven boards, Allison Matheis chipped in 10 points, and Stemle
led all players with 11 rebounds.
Northeast
Dubois, coached by Alan Matheis, raced to an 8-2 lead on its way to a 10-9 edge
after the first quarter. Tri-Central
used an 11-3 run in the second quarter to move ahead, holding a 29-20 advantage
at halftime. Tri-Central led 34-28 in
the third quarter before Northeast Dubois finished the period with a 7-0 surge
to take a 35-34 edge into the final eight minutes. The Jeeps finished 20-6.
The
one-point victory is the tightest margin in Class A history, eclipsing
Tri-Central’s two-point triumph (57-55) over North Vermillion in 2002-03.
Tri-Central was coached by Kathie Layden.
Team Posters And Individual Action
Photographs Available
Visit 20-20 Photographic, the IHSAA’s
photographer and the Midwest’s Leader in Sports Action Photography, for images
captured during this weekend’s state championship games! Action photos as well
as 20-20’s Ultimate Sports Poster will be available for purchase later in the
week following the state finals.
IHSAA State Championship Merchandise
For
t-shirts and other merchandise commemorating this year’s tournament or for any
of our events, visit our friends at Morris, Inc.
State Finals Programs Available
Couldn’t be
in Indy for the state finals? You can still purchase a copy of the official
souvenir program while supplies last! Programs are $3.00 if you purchase in
person at the IHSAA Office (9150 N. Meridian Street in Indianapolis) or $5.00
by mail (postage included). To order by credit card, have your Visa or
MasterCard ready and call us at 317-846-6601 Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4
p.m. EST. Or send a check for $5.00 made payable to the IHSAA, a note with your
return address and brief description of your request and mail to: IHSAA
Programs, PO Box 40650, Indianapolis, IN 46240-0650.
Class A Game Quotes
Coach Kathie Layden
Tri-Central
Head Coach Kathie Layden
“Was it
exciting enough for you? I thought in
the third quarter, when we got our 10-point lead we were playing with a lot of
confidence. We were taking good shots
and taking care of the ball like we have all season. But when we got into foul trouble it kind of
changed our game plan. We were lucky to
pull it out at the end.”
On
defending the last play
“We wanted
to protect the basket by playing a tight man-to-man inside. They had good movement, which kind of broke
us down, and they were able to get a couple of shots off. And me, I had my eyes closed.”
Overall
play in the second half and the last few possessions
“I thought
we had the momentum going into the locker room at halftime. Things were going our way and I thought we
were in control until the very end. We
got the ball to the right people at the right time to score. They made it tough on us to get the ball
inbounds, something that we haven’t had a problem with all year. I give a lot of credit to the Northeast
Dubois defense. I think we all had the
jitters and we were very fortunate to pull it out at the end.
Rebounding
as a key to the game
“They
(Northeast Dubois) were very aggressive on the boards. We watched a lot of film on them and I knew
that they weren’t going to fast break on us.
So, I told the girls to go ahead and crash the boards and that worked to
our advantage and at the same time kept them from trying to fast break.”
#24 Meranda
Burnett
“I felt
like I was going to be easier to get the ball to others rather than get my own
shots. I knew if I could get the ball
inside to Kaci (Allen) she would draw the foul or make the shot.”
On her
third consecutive state finals appearance
“It helps
to know what’s going on and what to expect once you get here. I think we are a tourney team. We always set our minds on winning the game.”
On the last
possession (2.4 seconds)
“I saw my
life flash before my eyes on that final possession.”
Coach Alan Matheis
“It took us
awhile, that first half, to adjust to their intense pressure. The second half we talked about how to handle
the pressure and be a stronger offensive team.”
“In the
first quarter we took the lead but made a mistake at the end—we should’ve had
more of a lead. They hurt us in that
second quarter. Tri-Central took control
of the game in the second quarter and I knew we needed to make some adjustments
at halftime.”
“In the
third quarter, we ran the offense better and were able to handle their
pressure. We were able to get our shots
and play more under control. By adjusting
in the third quarter, we were able to get the lead back. But, when they got the lead back in the
fourth quarter, we had to change our attack.”
“Our kids
are in good shape and athletic. I
thought we played well enough in the fourth quarter to win the basketball
game. We have come back all year in the
fourth by putting on full-court pressure.
We then made some big plays and got the game closer. We had a couple of chances to win it at the
end.”
“It looked
like we got fouled maybe twice in the last two seconds and they didn’t call
either one. But, I don’t want to take
anything away from Tri-Central or our team.
We played a good game and Tri-Central played a tremendous game. It’s a shame it had to come down to a
situation like that.”
“Leigh-Ann (Kluesner)
played well, especially in the second half.
But, it was a team effort. We
brought a huge amount of fans along and that was a big support to us,
especially in the fourth quarter.”