Yellow Jackets Sports Weekly Recap (Dec. 26- Jan. 1)

By: Brandon Unverferth

Photography: Hanna Young

Women’s Basketball: Sat. Dec. 31

Defiance 55 (6-5), Mount St. Joseph University 39 (4-6)

The Defiance College women’s basketball team hosted the Mount St. Joseph Lions (HCAC conference opponent) Saturday afternoon at the Karl H. Weaner Center for a special New Years’ Eve Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup. The starters in this contest included (senior) Nicole Sims, (senior) Lexie Sparks, (junior) McKenzie Cooper, (junior) Kylie Brinkman, and (junior) Cait Good. Senior Lexie Sparks scored the first points of the contest for the Yellow Jackets thirty-five seconds in as she was able to connect on a mid-range jumper to give Defiance an early 2-0 advantage. Twenty-one seconds later (9:25 left in the 1st), junior Kylie Brinkman stole the ball from Lions junior Ellie Oldendick, and drove all the way to the basket for a Yellow Jackets layup (4-0). With 8:12 left in the first quarter, junior Ellie Oldendick splashed home a three-pointer from the right wing for Mount St. Joseph, to help the Lions reach the scoreboard (4-3). Nearly two minutes later (6:11 left in the 1st), senior Chloe Jansen gave Mount St. Joseph their first lead of the contest, as she capitalized on an open layup (5-4). Both teams remained scoreless for the next two minutes, before freshman Karlee Mills connected on a deep shot from downtown, to stretch the Lions lead to four (8-4). With 3:24 left in the 1st, Mount St. Joseph concluded their 10-0 scoring run with another basket from Mills, this time coming from inside the paint (10-4). In the next minute and a half (1:57 left in the 1st), graduate Taylor Day went on her own 5-0 scoring run as she scored on a pair of layups and a free throw (10-9). With 1:02 left in the 1st, senior Nicole Sims connected on an open layup to tie the game at eleven. Both teams had a few open looks at the basket in the final minute of the first, but neither team was able to connect. Twenty-one seconds into the second quarter, junior Ellie Oldendick splashed home another three-pointer (this time from the left wing) to give Mount St. Joseph the lead back 14-11. Fifty-three seconds later (8:46 left in the 2nd), senior Chloe Jansen for the Lions connected on an old-fashioned three-point play, which extended the Mount St. Joseph lead to six (17-11). With 7:41 left in the 2nd, freshman Kalista Friday scored her first points of the contest via a long-range jump shot, to cut the deficit to four (17-13). The rest of the second quarter went back and forth, with the score being tied at nineteen into the half break. Just like the start of the first quarter, senior Lexie Sparks began the third quarter by scoring the first points of the second half, as she drove to the rim for an open layup to give the Yellow Jackets the lead 21-19. Spark’s layup began what would eventually lead to a 6-0 Defiance scoring run (25-19). At the midway point of the third quarter, Defiance maintained a slim advantage over the Lions 31-30. Beginning at the 6:07 mark of the third (3:53 left) and ending at the 6:57 mark, freshman Kalista Friday went on a quick 4-0 scoring run of her own, as she connected on a mid-range jump shot and an open layup, to give Defiance a five-point lead (35-30). With just two seconds left in the third quarter, senior Taylor Steinbrunner splashed home a mid-range jump shot for Defiance, to give the Yellow Jackets a four-point lead (39-35) to start the fourth quarter. Thirty-two seconds into the fourth quarter, freshman Emily Elliot found her way to the rim for a layup, as she cut the Defiance lead to two (39-37). With 7:47 left in the contest, junior McKenzie Cooper splashed home a mid-range jumper to stretch the Yellow Jackets lead back to four (41-37). Defiance outscored the Lions 15-4 in the fourth quarter, which helped give the Yellow Jackets the comfortable victory 55-39. Defiance finished with a pair of players in double-figures, including freshman Kalista Friday (14) and senior Taylor Steinbrunner (10). Junior Ellie Oldendick (14) was the lone double-digit scorer for Mount St. Joseph in this contest. The Yellow Jackets shot 39.6% (21-53), while Mount St Joseph shot 20.3% (13-64). The Lions shot 17.6% (6-34) from three-point range, while Defiance failed to make any baskets from downtown, shooting 0-10. Mount St. Joseph shot 70% (7-10) from the free-throw line, while Defiance shot 68.4% (13-19) from the charity stripe. The Yellow Jackets out-rebounded the Lions 47-42. Defiance’s bench outscored the Mount St. Joseph bench 37-7.

Men’s Basketball: Sat. Dec. 31

Mount St. Joseph University 67 (3-9), Defiance 34 (5-6)

The Yellow Jackets men’s basketball team traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio, Saturday afternoon for a special New Years’ Eve HCAC conference showdown against the Mount St. Joseph Lions. The starters in this contest included (senior) Marell Jordan, (senior) Te Jones, (senior) Dejsani Beamon, (sophomore) Landen Swanner, and (freshman) Evan Conrad. One minute and nineteen seconds into the game (18:41 left in the 1st), senior Dejsani Beamon scored the first points of the contest for the Yellow Jackets as he converted on a jump shot from mid-range to tie the game at two early. The Lions followed Beamon’s bucket with a quick 4-0 scoring run to extend their lead to four with 16:33 left in the first half. One minute and eighteen seconds later (15:15 left in the 1st), senior Marell Jordan connected on an open shot from downtown, to cut the Mount St Joseph lead to one (6-5). At the midway point of the first half, Defiance found themselves with a four-point lead (13-9). Nearly two minutes would tick off the clock before the next basket, as with 8:26 left in the first half, freshman Matthew Menninger splashed home a three-pointer of his own, to cut the deficit back to one (13-12). One minute and fourteen seconds later (7:22 left in the 1st), freshman Nate Kratzer returned the lead back to the Lions as he connected on a long-distance jumper (14-13). The Yellow Jackets and Lions swapped the lead numerous times in the remainder of the first half, but in the end, Mount St. Joseph held a 26-23 lead into the locker room. To start the second half, the Lions quickly extended their lead to 18, as they started the second half on a 15-0 scoring run. With 11:59 left in the contest, the Yellow Jackets finally scored their first points of the second half, as senior Marell Jordan converted on a fastbreak layup to finally end the Lions run (43-27). Defiance was unable to stop Mount St. Joseph in the second half, as the Lions outscored the Yellow Jackets 41-11. Defiance shot 16% from the field in the second half, while Mount St. Joseph shot an impressive 55%. In the end, the Lions took the victory 67-34. The Lions finished with a trio of players in double-digits, including sophomore Dayne Gardner (14), senior Jack Kolar (10), and sophomore Luke Collinsworth (10). Senior Marell Jordan was the lone Yellow Jacket in double-figures, as he scored 13. Mount St. Joseph shot 44.9% (22-49) from the field overall, while Defiance shot 28% (14-50). The Lions splashed home fourteen three-pointers on twenty-four attempts, while the Yellow Jackets shot 1-17 from downtown. Mount St. Joseph shot an impressive 81.3% (13-16) from the free-throw line, while Defiance shot 62.5% (5-8) from the charity stripe. The Lions out-rebounded the Yellow Jackets 38-30.

Home

Saturday, Jan. 7

Women’s Basketball (6-5) vs Transylvania University (12-0)

Location: Karl H. Weaner Center

(1:00 pm)

Men’s Basketball (5-6) vs Transylvania University (4-7)

Location: Karl H. Weaner Center

(3:00 pm)

Away

Wednesday, Jan. 4

Women’s Basketball (6-5) at Bluffton University (7-4)

(6:00 pm)

Men’s Basketball (5-6) at Bluffton University (3-8)

(8:00 pm)

Saturday, Jan. 7

Wrestling at Waynesburg University (Waynesburg Invitational)

(9:30 am)