Columbia Tip Off Tourney Recap
As usual the Columbia Tip Off Tourney showcased some top talent and fun teams to watch. There were some easy wins and some hard fought battles, but each team got the chance to get their season underway and learn who…
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Continue ReadingAs usual the Columbia Tip Off Tourney showcased some top talent and fun teams to watch. There were some easy wins and some hard fought battles, but each team got the chance to get their season underway and learn who they are and who they can be. Marquette Catholic won a hard fought battle with defending champion Greenville on a last second shot and carried that momentum to a victory over host Columbia in the finals. Here are some of the top players that we saw:
- Adrenna Snipes a 2022 guard from Marquette Catholic was incredible throughout the tourney. She averaged 25 points per game and had the last second shot to put the Lady Explorers in the championship game. Her 22 points in the first half of the Columbia game had the victory well in hand after the first 16 minutes. Adrenna also had 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 6 steals per game. She is an exciting player that can get where she wants on the floor with her dribble. When she is in the open court she can weave in and out of traffic with the best of them.
- Rylee Pickett a 2020 guard from Greenville almost led her team into the final with a huge night in the semi final game. She had 31 points and hit big shot after big shot. Rylee averaged 18 per game for the tourney and did a good job of handling the ball in addition to scoring at a high level.
- Natalie Iberg a 2021 guard from Greenville really finished strong by having 10 and 16 points her last two games. After a rough start the opening night shooting the ball Natalie was 4/10 from the 3-point line in the last two games combined. Natalie is always a force on defense and this tourney was no different. She had 7 steals in the 3rd place game and finished with an average of 5 per game.
- Abby Williams a 2022 wing from Marquette Catholic was the steady force on defense and on the boards that Coach Green needs. She averaged 9.3 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists per game. Abby had 12 points in the championship game and is stepping forward as a player that will be there to provide another scoring options for Marquette Catholic.
- Aryn Henke is 2020 guard from Columbia. Aryn was really tough the first two games of the tourney. She averaged 13 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals per game from her point guard spot. Unfortunately in the second quarter of the championship game she went down with a sprained ankle. Aryn is the leader of the Columbia team because of her ability and extensive varsity experience, hopefully she can return soon.
- Ava Khoury is a 2021 post from Columbia. Ava proved to be a viable low post scoring option for Coach Germain throughout the tourney. She averaged 9.3 points per game and 7 rebounds per game in the last two games. She is also a shot blocker as she got 2 per game in the tourney. Ava does not have many varsity minutes coming into this season but looks like she could be a consistent option in the paint with continued work.
- Aubrey Hubbard is a 2020 guard form Waterloo. Aubrey is one of the better shooters around when she can find space. Unfortunately most team know that. She was able to find openings in the first game and hit 7 threes and 25 points. Those options were closed down in the other two games but Aubrey has developed into a steady point guard that offers more than scoring to her team.
- Danika White is a 2020 guard from New Athens had a big finish in the 7th place game of the tourney. Danika is the focal point of her team and the opponents know that. Because of that she had a slow start the first two games but was her old self on Saturday. Against MELHS she had 23 points and 7 rebounds.
- Destiny Williams is a 2020 guard from Metro East Lutheran. Destiny in the leader of the team as a senior and 4 year starter at point guard. She had a good start to the tourney including a 16 point game in the consolation semi final. Unfortunately Destiny could not be available for the 7th place game. MELHS will definitely have to work through some growing pains early but Destiny will help keep them together.
- Avery Bohnenstiehl and Alyssa Powell had good tournaments for Triad. Avery made an immediate impact for the team with her defense. She is a very long player that gets her hands on passes and can turn them into instant offense. Alyssa is an athletic 3/4 that will battle in the paint and get offensive boards all day long. Both girls are 2022 players that will be counted on heavily by Triad this year.
Marquette Catholic pulled off a bit of an upset in winning the tourney. The season will go on from here and it will be interesting to see how each team progesses.