BATESVILLE — The weather might have been cold outside, but the Columbus East girls basketball team were hot on the court as they traveled to Batesville and scorched the host Bulldogs for a 75-34 victory.
Although it was Koryn Greiwe leading the way for East with 32 points, it was the defense that was the most impressive.
The Olympians shut out Batesville in the second quarter, outscoring the Bulldogs 20-0 to nearly put the game out of reach by halftime as they headed into the locker room with a commanding 34-10 advantage.
East coach Danny Brown was very happy with his team on the defensive end of the court.
“That is probably the best period of defense that we have played since I’ve been coaching here,” Brown stated. “When you have the inside presence that we have in the back, we can be effective.”
East efficiently used a three-quarter court trap to disrupt Batesville most of the night. If they did break the press, they then had to deal with the length of Olympian defenders Gabby Dean and Leah Bachmann. Over the second and third quarters, East outscored Batesville 47-9, and by the time the fourth quarter began, the game was well in hand as the Olympians held a 61-19 lead.
The game did not start off looking like a lopsided blowout, however. East only lead 14-10 at the end of the first quarter, as they struggled to make shots.
“Once our defense got going in the second quarter, it really helped our offense get going. Our defense led to offensive opportunities. It also allowed Koryn and Kaitlyn (Dougherty) to get going,” Brown stated.
Dougherty added 10 points on the night, nailing three triples, all in the first half. As for Greiwe, she scored 16 first half points, but that was just a preview of things to come from her. She was nearly unstoppable in the third quarter, scoring 14 points before she was taken out of the game for a rest with three minutes still remaining in the quarter.
“My shots weren’t falling early, but my coaches and teammates were encouraging me to keep shooting. As my shot started falling, I gained more confidence throughout the night,” Greiwe said. “I also thought our defense led to some great offensive opportunities. Gabby (Dean) does a great job of rebounding and finding us with outlet passes to get us going.”
Although the starters for East began the fourth quarter, they only played the first two minutes, allowing the bench to play the rest of the game.
