by Gregg Meadows
Coach Kurt Kaufman’s Tri-Valley girls basketball team has started the new year with a bang, reeling off three straight wins to start 2023 with victories over River View, Maysville, and John Glenn to improve their overall record to 11-2 and Muskingum Valley League mark to 9-1.
Tuesday night, Jan. 11 in New Concord, the Lady Dawgs put on a long ball shooting display, swishing 12 three-pointers through the nets en route to their 58-37 win over the host Lady Muskies, after JG lost by just a point – 49-48 – to Tri-Valley in Dresden back on Nov. 30.
Senior All-Ohioan Lexi Howe led the winners (who had double digits leads at each break) with 19 points, with plenty of help from her teammates who shot lights out from behind the arc. Mackenzie Harvey totaled 15 points in the victory – all three-pointers – while Kylan Brock added nine counters (all treys), and Karlee Rose chipping in six markers with her pair of long bombs. Mya Oliver’s 21 points led John Glenn, with Mckinzi Linscott adding 10.
TV dropped the junior varsity contest, losing 38-27 to the host Lady Muskie JV’s. Clara Goss’s five points led the Lady Dawgs. Addison Paisley’s 11 points led winning JG.
Back on Saturday, Jan. 7 in South Zanesville, Tri-Valley defeated the host Maysville Lady Panthers by a 59-23 count. Once again, the Lady Dawgs enjoyed double-digit leads at each break, as senior standout Lexi Howe paced TV with her game-high 21-point effort, followed by 13 counters from Mackenzie Harvey (with a trio of treys) and eight points from junior starter PD Moore. Jerzei Blackketter’s seven points topped the Lady Panthers. In a two-quarter junior varsity contest, Tri-Valley prevailed by a 13-4 score and were led by Ella Knowlton’s six points.
The Lady Dawgs’ Jan. 4, Wednesday night, 58-16 win over visiting River View in Dresden at The Dawg House was Tri-Valley’s 9th win of the season, and saw eight players crack the scoring column for the winners, led by senior standout Lexi Howe and sophomore starter MacKenzie Harvey, who scored 14 points apiece.
The home team jumped out to a 20-2 lead at the first break and never looked back, as the Lady Dawg advantage mushroomed to 42-10 by halftime and 57-14 heading into the fourth quarter. TV freshman starter Maddie Garber also chipped in eight points for the winners, while Lady Dawg juniors PD Moore and Karlee Rose each added six counters. Annika Collett added four points with a pair of third quarter counters, while TV’s Addison Wilson and Kylan Brock both chipped in three points each. Lily Yoder’s six points and four from Prestyn Patterson led the Lady Bears.
Tri-Valley won the junior varsity contest as well – 48-11 over River View – and were led by freshman Ella Knowlton’s 11 counters, nine from classmate Maddie Garber, seven counters from Annika Collet, six out of Clara Goss, and five apiece from Kylan Brock and Audrey Wickerham.
Tri-Valley caps their three-game road journey on Saturday, Jan. 14 with a trip north to Berlin Highland High School to take on state-ranked Rocky River Magnificat in the annual and prestigious ‘Classic in the Country’ girls basketball three-day tournament over the Martin Luther King. Jr. holiday.
The Lady Dawgs then return for a four-game home stand (their last four regular season home games of the 2022-23 season) with Dresden dates vs. Bishop Watterson on a rare Tuesday night, Jan. 17 contest, then they host Philo the next night on Wednesday, Jan. 18, followed by a Dawg House visit from Morgan (Saturday, Jan. 21) and wrapping up the extended home stand with a Wednesday night, Jan. 25 game with visiting Meadowbrook.