Wednesday, February 21, 2001
No. 2 Oak Hills puts away MND
Highlanders have one thing on their minds
By Dave Schutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Oak Hills didn't think it was getting the respect it deserved heading into the Division I sectional semifinals, but that may change after the Highlanders defeated Mount Notre Dame 73-59 at Milford Tuesday night.
“We were disappointed when the final poll was released,” junior Danielle Dietrich said. “No one respects us, but now we can prove it in the tournament.”
Dietrich was referring to The Enquirer's final Division I girls basketball poll that had the Highlanders No.2, one point behind Mason, the defending Division I state champion.
The Highlanders were disappointed because they had taken over the No.1 spot the previous week after Mason lost to Harrison. During the final week, Oak Hills beat Milford (76-65) and Princeton (54-45) but still dropped.
“Mason deserved to be No.1 because the coaches that played them voted them first,” Oak Hills coach Jan Wilking said. “Tonight we played well the first half but stopped playing defense the second half.”
Oak Hills came in allowing opponents just 41.7 points a game. But Mount Notre Dame scored 42 points in the second half after Oak Hills led 38-17 at halftime.
Vanessa Laug (six points), Michelle Holmes (five) and Amanda Sauers (six) scored all of the Highlanders' first-quarter points, enabling Oak Hills to take a 17-6 lead.
The Highlanders scored the first nine points in the second quarter to put the game away.
“We deserved to be No.1 because they (Mason) had five losses and we only had two,” said Laug, a 6-foot-2 junior center who scored a season-high 20 points. “This has made us more determined in the tournament.
The success of the Highlanders can be traced to balanced scoring (no player averages more than nine points a game), a full-court defense and depth, with 10 girls sharing playing time.
“Everyone knows their role,” Wilking said. “They may not like it, but they have accepted it.”
Dietrich, who tied her season high with 15 points, had no idea the Highlanders would come up big this season.
“We have the same group that didn't get along last year,” Dietrich said. “I was looking for a .500 season because we went 10-12 last year. We're more comfortable with the new system Coach Wilking put in last year, and everyone gets along.”
Wilking credits the girls for the turnaround, saying they worked out the differences and came together as a team.
Oak Hills meets McAuley Friday (6 p.m.) for the sectional championship and a spot in the district tournament March 3 at XU's Cintas Center.
MOUNT NOTRE DAME (59) — Rohlfs 5 0 12, Holthaus 2 0 4, Engel 1 0 2, Nahrup 2 0 4, Thomas 8 8 28, Cook 1 2 4, Douthit 1 1 3, Braun 1 0 2. Totals: 21 11 59 .
OAK HILLS (73) — Kluesener 0 1 1, Sauers 5 0 10, Gross 1 0 2, Rosenberger 4 0 8, Fehr 0 1 1, Lack 0 2 2, Dietrich 7 1 15, Hessel 0 1 1. Holme 4 5 13. Tota ls: 30 13 73.
Mount Notre Dame ....... 6 11 20 22—26
Oak Hills ....... 17 21 17 18—38
3-pointers: M--Thomas 4, Rohlfs 2. Records: OH 19-2, M 10-11.
• McAuley 38, Hamilton 26, Division I sectional semifinals at Milford — The Mohawks converted eight of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter, three by Lisa Kampschmidt, to hold on for the victory.
McAuley will play Oak Hills in the sectional final.
“We scrimmaged Oak Hills during the preseason and we didn't score the first two quarters,” McAuley coach Mike Gleason said. “Right now, Oak Hills is playing as well as anyone in the Southwest District. We have to play with more enthusiasm than tonight.”
HAMILTON (26) — DeLong 5 2 12, Brosey 0 2 2, Marshall 2 0 4, Booker 0 2 2, Fox 1 2 4, Moore 0 2 2. Totals: 8 10-18 26.
MCAULEY (38) — Sullivan 2 0 5, Rack 1 0 2, Lichtenfeld 3 1 8, Koenig 1 0 2, Kampschmidt 5 5 15, Rosing 0 4 4, Frey 0 2 2. Totals: 12 12-19 38.
Hamilton ....... 4 12 7 3—26
McAuley ....... 10 9 9 10—38
3-pointers: M--Sullivan, Lichtenfeld. Records: H 5-17, M 12-9.
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No. 2 Oak Hills puts away MND
