Cougar girls lose WBL contest to Celina

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

The Van Wert Cougars got off to a slow start against Celina and never caught up, losing to the Lady Bulldogs 59-49 in a Western Buckeye League game played in the Cougar’s Den.

Celina led 12-4 at the end of the first quarter, but the Cougars rallied a bit in the second period, outscoring the Lady ‘Dogs 12-11 to trail by seven points, 23-16, at the half.

Celina went on a 16-12 run in the third quarter to push its lead to 11, 39-28, heading in to the final stanza. Both teams played about even in the fourth period, with the Cougars outpointing Celina 21-20 in the quarter for the final score.

Free-throw shooting was an important factor in the fame, with the Lady Bulldogs making 26 of 31 (83.8 percent) versus 17 of 23 for Van Wert (73.9 percent).

Kylee Bader led the scoring for both teams with 21 points, including an 8-of-8 performance at the free-throw line. Emily Bihn scored 11 for Celina, while Taylor Guingrich added 10 points.

Molly Gamble and Alexis Dowdy led the Cougars with 13 points apiece.

With the loss, Van Wert drops to 8-8 overall and 3-3 in league play. Celina is now 5-1 in the WBL and 11-3 overall.

The Van Wert junior varsity team continued its winning ways, beating the Bulldog JVs 36-31. The Cougars had balanced scoring with four players scoring 6 points apiece to lead the team, which is now 12-4 overall.

Van Wert will next host non-conference foe Lima Central Catholic on Monday, January 30, starting at 6 p.m.