LINCOLN -- Shiloh Christian simply could not guard Lincoln's Robin Kirk in the paint, who scored 23 points powering the Lady Wolves to a 61-45 nonconference win at home Nov. 21.
Lincoln coach Emilianne Slammons gets goose bumps just talking about her.
"She's probably what every college coach dreams of in a college player. She's like a power forward. She's not really a post. She looks so athletic and so agile. Basketball is so natural to her," Slammons said. "I just got goose bumps talking about her and you can tell she eats it up."
The Lady Saints roster features 6-2 Rachel Cox and 6-1 Hallie Hutchinson, both of whom tower over the 5-11 Kirk and anybody else Lincoln put onto the hardwood, but that didn't matter. Kirk's mobility and prowess around the basket proved more than the Lady Saints could handle as Lincoln executed its game plan to feed Kirk in the post.
Kirk scored six points in the first five-and-half minutes of the game prompting a time-out by Shiloh Christian coach Bryan Rooney with his team trailing, 11-4.
Kirk scored twice more sandwiched around Katie Thompson's 3-pointer for the Lady Saints. Tania Ortiz hit a buzzer-beater on an in-bounds play underneath the basket when she dribbled into the lane and Lincoln held a 17-9 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
There were some tense moments after Kirk fouled out on a charging call with Lincoln leading 48-29 at the 5:36 mark of the fourth quarter. Shiloh Christian went on a 12-4 run fueled by Lincoln turnovers and hit 6-of-7 free throws. Landree Cunningham had Lincoln's only basket during the run off a steal, but she fouled out on a controversial call fighting through what Lincoln coaches protested was a moving screen.
Kyli Jenkins missed a layup on the run, then got a quick whistle for reaching in. That marked the 13th team foul against Lincoln and Shiloh's Madelyn Sestak made both ends of the double bonus. Acie Thurlby added a layup so with the lead shrunk to 52-41 and 2:59 remaining Slammons asked coaches working the scorer's table to turn up the music so she could get her point across.
"It was crazy, I looked out at the court and I saw two players who played for me last year out there. I kind of panicked for a little bit, too; and I called a quick time-out and I said, 'Calm down,'" Slammons said.
Thurlby had to check out because of a bloody nose and Lincoln finally caught a break. Hutchinson blew a layup and Abby Goldman cleared the defensive rebound. She was fouled and made 2-of-2 as Lincoln finally reached the double bonus to kickstart a 9-4 Lady Wolves' run to seal the win. Kinley Webb broke long and scored a layup to get the lead back up to 59-41 with the clock down to 1:17.
"After I told them to calm down they finally realized that 'hey, we can do this. It's OK,' and they actually ran the press break better than I would have expected," Slammons said. "I looked out there and I was a little scared to begin with and they stepped up and they finished the game like how we should have finished it."
Lincoln (17-of-25) attempted and made more free throws than Shiloh Christian (16-of-22), which proved a factor down the stretch. Jenkins got 14 free throws and scored 13 points with Webb and Tania Ortiz adding six apiece while Goldman had five. The Lady Wolves outscored Shiloh Christian 11-2 in the third and got into the bonus early in the fourth.
"We talked about getting to the foul line at halftime. Winning each quarter is a goal that is important to us. We've got 11 goals. We've got 11 players," Slammons said. "We got 11 goals for each player and they're really owning it. They played well tonight. They're playing as a team and as a coach that's what you pray for that kids just work together and they figure it out."
Lincoln 61, Shiloh Christian 45
Shiloh Christian^9^14^2^20 -- 45
Lincoln^17^15^11^18 -- 61
Lincoln (5-1): Robin Kirk 11 1-1 23, Kyli Jenkins 2 8-14 13, Kinley Webb 1 4-6 6, Tania Ortiz 2 2-2 6, Abby Goldman 1 2-2 5, Landree Cunningham 2 0-0 4, Arianna Ortiz 1 0-0 2, Trinity Adair 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 17-25 61.
Shiloh Christian (2-2): Acie Thurlby 4 7-9 16, Hallie Hutchinson 2 3-5 7, Ryli Russ 3 0-0 7, Rachel Cox 2 2-2 6, Katie Thompson 1 0-0 3, Lauren Wyand 1 0-0 2, Madelyn Sestak 0 2-2 2, Katelyn Simpson 0 2-4 2. Totals 13 16-22 45.
3-point Goals -- Lincoln -- 2 (Goldman, Jenkins). Shiloh Christian -- 3 (Thurlby, Thompson, Russ).
Rebounds -- Shiloh Christian 39, Lincoln 32. Assists -- Shiloh Christian 6, Lincoln 13. Steals -- Shiloh Christian 9, Lincoln 3. Blocks -- Shiloh Christian 2, Lincoln 1 (Kirk).
Sports on 12/04/2019