Lake Holcombe increases win record as week goes on

By Ginna Young

Although they suffered a loss early in the week, the Lake Holcombe girls basketball team bounced back to take the remaining two games of the week’s schedule.

Jan. 18 vs. Clayton conference (L 45-42)

Clayton made the trek to Lake Holcombe for the conference match, with the Chieftains taking a 28-21 lead into halftime. It was a different story in the second half, as Lake Holcombe was outscored, 24-14.

The Chieftains couldn’t come up with any more points before time ran out and Clayton went home with a 45-42 victory.

“It takes a team to win or lose, and tonight, we had way too many turnovers and missed bank shots,” said coach Jennifer Lechleitner. “That combination caused a loss.”

Sophomore Emma Lechleitner led for Lake Holcombe, with 14 points, followed by senior Brooke Lechleitner and junior Karly Kirkman, who each had 12 points. Freshman Abby Jones added 4 points to the mix.

“I’ll have the team continue to work hard on our faults and look for some wins coming in at the end of this week,” said J. Lechleitner.

Jan. 21 vs. Bruce conference (W 62-39)

Coming to call next, was conference opponent Bruce, where scoring was mostly one-sided for Lake Holcombe’s benefit.

“This game was a nice chance to get more minutes for our freshmen, Abby Jones and Emily Kirkman, under the direction of our two seniors, Brooke Lechleitner and Carly Vavra,” said J. Lechleitner.

The Chieftains took a six-point lead into halftime, but in the second half, Lake Holcombe’s offense exploded and they won 62-39 over the Raiders. The win wasn’t without its hazards, though.

“Justine Kane was battling out again and got a black eye,” said J. Lechleitner. “Belle Jones was playing some good defense, and Karly Kirkman and Emma Lechleitner did some good ball handling for our team.”

B. Lechleitner led the way, with 20 points, including a three-pointer, while E. Lechleitner made three shots beyond the arc, finishing with 17 points. The junior Kane ended with 9 points, followed by K. Kirkman and A. Jones, with 6 each.

B. Jones added 2 points on the night.

Jan. 22 vs. E.C. Immanuel non-conference (W 72-66)

The next day, Lake Holcombe headed to E.C. Immanuel, for a non-conference showdown. The Chieftains took their momentum from the previous night into the first half against the Lancers, heading into halftime with a 37-27 lead.

By the second half, the Lancers had righted themselves and made it a closer game. Falling back on their lead from the first half, Lake Holcombe came away with a 72-66 victory.

“Saturday’s are always hard to play games on, and [I’m] glad the Lake Holcombe girls stuck together and achieved another win,” said J. Lechleitner. “We had a couple key players foul out (B. Lechleitner, K. Kirkman), which left others to have to pick up their style of play. Belle Jones hit a couple key shots today that kept us ahead of E.C.”

K. Kirkman had a big night offensively, recording 22 points, 12 of those from three-point land. B. Lechleitner came next, with 16 points, finishing with two shots from long range, followed by E. Lechleitner, who also shot a three and notched 15 points.

Kane also added a three, ending with 11 points and B. Jones had 6 points.

Lake Holcombe improves their record overall to 8-5, with a 5-2 standing in the East Lakeland Conference.