Bath’s Claire Foust of Bath and Delphos Jefferson’s Kyrstin Moore go to the floor for a loose ball during Monday’s duel of previously unbeaten teams at Bath High School.
Richard Parrish | The Lima News
BATH TOWNSHIP – Playing a Monday night game is not the normal routine for the Bath girls basketball program.
However, playing tenacious defense is a constant for Bath.
In Monday’s nonleague game against visiting Delphos Jefferson — a matchup of two unbeatens — Bath’s defensive pressure helped pave the way for a convincing 42-16 victory over Jefferson.
With Monday’s win, Bath improved to 6-0 overall. The Wildkittens are at the top of the Western Buckeye League, tied with Ottawa-Glandorf and St. Marys for first place with a 2-0 mark.
Delphos Jefferson slipped to 6-1 overall. The Wildcats are at the top of the Northwest Conference, tied for first with Crestview, Columbus Grove and Lincolnview at 2-0.
“I thought our kids played really well,” longtime Bath coach Greg Mauk said. “I told them that it was kind of a weird day. We really don’t play Monday games. We didn’t have practice yesterday. So, it was just kind of a weird environment. But they came out and quickly turned it into a basketball environment and gave the fans a show.”
Bath held Jefferson senior standout Lyv Lindeman to 10 points on Monday. Lindeman entered Monday’s contest averaging 25.8 points per outing. Lindeman, who will be playing basketball at Tiffin University next school year, came away on Monday with two 3-pointers, five rebounds and four steals.
“Our defense was really good,” Mauk said. “We tried to give our kids a little bit of a break (during the game). Faith Clark (2 points, 2 steals, 2 assists) guarded her (Lindeman) the whole game. We knew she (Lindeman) could not come out of the game. So, trying to get her (Lindeman) a little bit fatigued maybe helped us out a little bit.”
Claire Foust, a 6-foot-1, senior post player, led Bath on Monday with 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Anne Oliver, a 6-foot, senior forward had 12 points, six rebounds, four steals and two assists. Izzy McDermott scored nine points on three 3-pointers for the Wildkittens.
Foust came into Monday’s game averaging 14.2 points and 16.2 rebounds per contest. Oliver was averaging 14.2 points per outing.
Bath had a 7-3 lead by the end of the first quarter. Jefferson played nearly the entire first quarter with no points to show for it. However, Lindeman got her team on the scoreboard with a long-range 3-pointer at the buzzer.
At the halftime break, Bath led 15-8.
In the third quarter, Bath pushed the tempo and pulled out to a 36-16 lead by the third stop. The Wildkittens were 8 of 11 shooting from the field in the third quarter. Bath connected three times behind the 3-point line. McDermott made two of those long-range shots for Bath in the third stanza.
Jefferson’s Lauren French, a 6-foot-3 senior post player, was out Monday with an injury.
“I heard she (French) was out,” Mauk said. “We would have had to guard a little bit differently. It’s unfortunate for them, that she (French) was out.
“But I thought their kids fought back. We happened to get on a little bit of a roll in the middle part of the game, and we just pulled away.”
For the game, Bath shot 51.7 percent from the field. Delphos Jefferson connected on just 19.2 percent of its field goal attempts.
Bath committed 15 turnovers on the night, while Jefferson turned the ball over 17 times.
Bath won the battle on the boards, 24-14.
“I think there was a lot of physical play down around the basket,” Mauk said. “I thought Claire (Foust) really fought through it really well and handled herself well. That’s what you expect out of your seniors. Those experienced kids have been through these battles. So, they know to just keep plugging, keep plugging. … And that’s what they did.”
Bath 42, Delphos Jefferson 16
Delphos Jefferson 3 5 8 0 – 16
Bath 7 8 21 6 – 42
Delphos Jefferson
Madison Burris 3, Lyv Lindeman 10, Claire Brinkman 3. Totals: 5-3-16.
Bath
Faith Clark 2, Marlie Mason 2, Claire Foust 14, Kelsie Carlson 3, Izzy McDermott 9, Anne Oliver 12. Totals: 15-7-42.
3-pointers made: Jefferson – Madison Burris 1, Lyv Lindeman 2; Bath – Kelsie Carlson 1, Izzy McDermott 3, Anne Oliver 1.
Records: Bath 6-0; Delphos Jefferson 6-1
