By Becky Walz,
The Turkey Valley girls’ basketball team (16-5, 13-3 UIC) wrapped up the regular season this week with a pair of wins over Central Elkader and Clayton Ridge. In the process, senior Ali Hoffert surpassed Shelby Reicks’ career point record of 1266 points in 5-on-5 basketball at Turkey Valley. After Tuesday’s game, Hoffert’s total stands at 1269 with the postseason ahead.
At home
After rescheduling the UIC contest with Central Elkader (10-11, 9-8 UIC) twice due to inclement weather, the Trojans and Warriors were finally able to get on the court Monday in Jackson Junction, with TV coming out on top 49-38.
TV connected on its first three shots to leap ahead 7-0 before Central responded with a 7-0 run of its own to tie the contest up with 2:35 remaining. As the clock went under 1:00, Trojan senior Ali Hoffert connected to give TV back the lead, which was short-lived as the Warriors hit a trey as time wound down to leave TV trailing 10-9 after the first eight minutes. Central extended its lead in the second period to 22-18.
Following the halftime break, the Trojan offense went to work, taking a 26-25 lead on a Jalyssa Blazek free throw with 5:10 to play in the third. TV never again relinquished the lead, sprinting ahead 35-28 with eight minutes to play.
“We didn’t shoot well in the first half. We had decent looks, but either we were thinking about the shot and took ourselves out of rhythm, or we’d pass it up because we weren’t playing aggressively enough. Defensively we struggled to stop ball and lacked intensity on the boards. The girls stuck with it and came out fighting in the second half to take control. Jalyssa Blazek did a super job guarding Delaney Scherf, only allowing her two second-half points,” said Coach Carla Nymeyer.
Ali Hoffert had the hot hand, going 5-for-8 from three-point land and totaling 20 points in the game to go with four rebounds. Active all over the court, Jaycie Byrne had 12 points, eight steals, four boards and four assists. Kara Reicks had eight points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals in the books. Pulling down a team-high five rebounds was sophomore Jacqlyn Schmitt.
Finale
In the regular season finale, the Lady Trojans wasted no time taking control of the game versus Clayton Ridge (9-10, 6-9 UIC), disposing of the Eagles, 59-26, at home. The win secured TV sole possession of second place in the UIC.
“We anticipated being in contention for a conference title and the girls put up a great fight throughout the season to earn the runner-up position. That’s a great finish through a season that most didn’t think would even happen due to the challenges that COVID-19 has presented,” said Coach Nymeyer.
TV’s defensive pressure put CR on its heels as the Eagles struggled to handle the ball, allowing the Trojans easy baskets to start the game and take a 19-7 lead after the first period. The advantage continued to grow in the second frame as TV led 40-11 at the break. With the large lead, the Red and White began to send more bench players into the game in the second half with the win solidly in hand.
Entering the night, Ali Hoffert needed 14 points to become the all-time leading scorer for TV, she knocked down 17 to go with six rebounds and four steals. Jaycie Byrne contributed 16 points and six steals, while Jacqlyn Schmitt came off the bench to add nine points and six boards.
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