Nicole Konieczny, just a freshman, hits another free-throw for the Slicers. Konieczny led the team with a whopping 25 points, and the Slicers hit 18 of 20 from the charity stripe.
PHOTOS AND STORY BY MIKE KELLEMS
(CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE)
In what was billed as a barn burner, the LaPorte Slicer girls did not disappoint Friday night, Jan. 10. In front of a raucous crowd of about 2,700, they defeated Lake Central, 61-57, in a thriller.
It wasn’t an easy win. The Slicers’ usual success with 3-pointers was shut down early on by a stifling Lake Central defense.
Lake Central, which had also been undefeated in the DAC until Friday, took an early lead and stole a page from the Slicers by shooting and hitting three-pointers early and often. Lake Central led by 7 at the end of the first quarter and by 8 at the half.
But LaPorte Coach Skeeter Heath made halftime adjustments that did the trick in the second half. The Slicers stayed tough, chipped away at the Indian lead and trailed by only three at the end of the third quarter. The girls, encouraged by the orange crowd and its near-deafening roar, continued their attack.
Down the stretch LaPorte was able to tie and then take the lead on the strength of free-throw shooting, particularly from freshman Nicole Konieczny. LaPorte was 18-of-20 from the charity stripe.
Konieczny was the top scorer for LaPorte with a whopping 25 points, Kelsey Gushrowski had 12 and Jaclyn Heath rounded out the top scorers with with 10.
As the clock wore down to zero, the crowd worked itself into a frenzy. By game’s end, with the final free throw through the net, the girls’ season remained perfect with a 4-point win. They’re now ranked 6th in the state in Class 4A.
The LaPorte girls have two more conference games left on the schedule: at Chesterton on Jan. 17 and hosting City on Jan. 24. Those two victories would make the Slicers Duneland Conference Champs.
Coach Skeeter Heath shouts direction from the sideline.
Taylor Thompson goes up for 2.
Senior Jaclyn Heath looks to pass the ball.
A battle for the ball.
Coach Heath instructs his team during a timeout in the final minute of the game.
Final score