O’ville wins McDonald’s Tip-Off Tourney

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

The Ottoville Lady Big Green again proved to be the best team in the tournament, beating Van Wert 57-37 to take the McDonald’s Tip-Off Tournament championship for the second year in a row.

The Big Green had two players in double figures, with Abby Siefker again leading the team with 13 points, while Lauren Kramer added 12 points for the tourney champs. Van Wert, which had no players in double figures, was again led by Alex Morrow, who had 9 points on the night, while Lauren Butler added 8 points for the Lady Cougars.

The game was close — for a quarter — as Ottoville was up by just a point, 13-12, at the end of the first period. But a 21-point second-quarter explosion gave the Big Green a 13-point lead, 34-21, at the half. Ottoville outscored the Lady Cougars 23-16 in the second half to post a 20-point margin of victory in the contest.

The Big Green starts off the young season with a 2-0 record, while Van Wert is now 1-1 on the season.

In the consolation game that began the night, Crestview held off the Wayne Trace Lady Raiders for a 42-34 victory, despite a tough night at the foul line.

MacKenzie Richard again led the Lady Knights with 11 points, while Kirstin Hicks had 8 points and Danica Hicks and Lauren Motycka each added 7 points on the night. For Wayne Trace, Sarah Feasby had 10 points, while Ashley Saylor added 8 points and Krystal Wannemacher scored 7 points on the night.

Crestview took a 7-5 lead in the first quarter, but the Knights widened the gap a little in the second stanza, outscoring the Lady Raiders 15-10 to lead by seven points, 22-15, at the halftime break. The Lady Knights had a nine-point lead, 36-27, heading into the final stanza and outscored Wayne Trace 8-7 in the fourth period for the consolation win.

Although Crestview led the Raiders in three-point shots made, 3-0, the Lady Knights made only 5 of their 17 attempts at the charity stripe (29.4 percent), while Wayne Trace was 10 of 15 (66.7 percent) from the line.

Crestview is now 1-1 on the season, while the Lady Raiders start out at 0-2.