By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – The way Bedford North Lawrence plays defense, there’s a few coaches who would like to press charges when the Stars unleash the full fury of their pressure. First-year Bloomington North coach Kiley Jarrett might be able to accomplish that. She’s a police officer, after all, so if there’s a section of the criminal code regarding assault or harassment on the court, she can find it.
She’ll get to witness BNL in attack mode when the Stars journey to North on Tuesday night.
The No.4 Stars have battered the Cougars in recent meetings, winning 12 straight in the series, the last nine by a felonious average of 43.5 points. And that difference took a hit when the running-clock mercy rule limited BNL to a 72-38 win last season.
BNL, facing another opponent with a length advantage, will look to counter North’s measurable edge (four starters 5-11 or taller) with speed and aggression.
“We have to do what we do,” BNL coach Jeff Allen said. “We have to pressure them on the perimeter, and we need to get out in transition.”
After rewatching BNL’s win over Mooresville in the season opener, Allen is already giving his defense high marks. The Stars blasted to a 24-3 lead en route to that 58-31 triumph. The Pioneers shot only 25 percent.
“I thought our defense was really outstanding,” Allen said. “That’s really a good thing to see, this early in the season. They’ve bought into what we’re preaching in practice and carrying game plans over. I thought everyone played well defensively.”
On the other end, Chloe Spreen led the way with 22 points while Madisyn Bailey added 17. Bailey also had five assists. Miley Sherrill, making her varsity debut, added 14 points. Spreen claimed 9 boards, and that’s the only area Mooresville could exploit. The Pioneers won a lot of reach battles for rebounds.
“Ball movement and sharing the basketball was good,” Allen said. “We have a couple of really good players, and other kids who aren’t that experienced. I was anxious to see what we looked like with those two seniors leading us, and we got a really good example of willingness to share the ball.
“The part I like was we battled on the boards. For us to be competitive against really good teams, especially against size, we have to battle and outwork people. For the most part, with the size and strength they had, we really battled. If we can play even on the boards, that bodes pretty well for us.”
North, which will make its home debut, started with a 53-38 loss to Northview. But the Cougars bounced back with a 64-49 win at Greenwood, scoring 30 points in the fourth quarter while converting 18 of 18 free throws.
Junior guard Ava Robbennolt leads the Cougars in scoring at 14.5, although North has plenty of weapons across the board with senior guard Ava Reitmeyer (12.0), freshman Ashley Stegemoller (10.5) and 6-0 senior Mia Robbennolt (11.0).
Jarrett took over in August when veteran coach Jeff Turmail (six seasons, concluding with a 17-7 campaign last year) made the jump to school administration. Jarrett was a starting guard on North’s 2003 regional championship team, and she later played at Ball State.
“I am excited to be able to take over the program,” Jarrett said. “My goal is to create a winning culture on the north side of Bloomington. We have a young team, but with the leadership of returners (the Robbennolts and Reitmeyer), we will have a season full of success.”
During last year’s clash at BNL Fieldhouse, Spreen scored 24 points and Karsyn Norman added 18. North was guilty of 30 turnovers.
BNL slipped to No.3 in the latest IBCA state poll, which does not divide by classes.
BNL at BLOOMINGTON NORTH
When: Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.
Records: BNL 1-0 (ranked No.4 in Class 4A); Bloomington North 1-1
Last meeting: Last year at BNL, the Stars cruised to a 72-38 victory. Chloe Spreen had 24 points and Karsyn Norman added 18 for BNL. Kenli Sullivan had 11 points for North, which was guilty of 30 turnovers.
Previous game story: BNL’s wave crashes on North
Game notes: BNL has won 12 straight games in the series, the last nine by an average of 43.5 points. First-year coach Kiley Jarrett was a starting guard on North’s 2003 regional championship team.
Starting lineups
Bedford NL Stars
F – Chloe Spreen 5-10 Sr.
F – Miley Sherrill 5-9 Fr.
G – Tori Nikirk 5-6 Jr.
G – Madisyn Bailey 5-9 Sr.
G – Trinidy Bailey 5-7 So.
Bloomington North Cougars
F – Mia Robbennolt 6-0 Sr.
F – Audrey Burton 5-11 Fr.
F – Ashley Stegemoller 5-11 Fr.
G – Ava Reitmeyer 5-11 Sr.
G – Ava Robbennolt 5-8 Jr.
