MT. CARMEL, ILL. – It didn't take much to motivate Wabash Valley for Wednesday's Region 24 matchup against visiting Vincennes.
"It was a big team win for us against a really good team," said Lady Warriors coach Lacey Shalenko after her team's 83-78 win before a large crowd at Spencer Sports Center. "Obviously, we had some revenge to get after losing at their place last time. We came out and played well tonight."
The 15th-ranked Lady Warriors (19-2 on the season) lost at Vincennes, 90-72 on December 4. But they haven't lost since, stretching their current winning streak to 12 with the Blackout Night win.
Both teams had leads in this back-and-forth affair, and both teams had opportunities to pull away. But it was WVC that made the last move, rallying from a one-point deficit in the final 10 minutes.
Keya Patton and Jazmyn Turner led the way with 22 points, and 21, respectively. Patton turned a double-double with 11 assists to go with her point total. And Turner fell one rebound shy of a double-double of her own.
What made the difference? Shalenko thought the Lady Warriors were a better team inside on this night.
"At their place, they really got to the rim," she said. "(This time) we really tried to keep them out of the paint, and make them beat us from the outside."
Vincennes (17-4) had a 16-game winning streak snapped. The Traiblazers were led by Jhala Henry with 24 points. Veteran coach Harry Meeks' team placed five players in double figures.
WVC begins a three-game road trip on February 5 in a Great Rivers Athletic Conference matchup at Lake Land. The Lady Warriors next return to Spencer on February 15 against John A. Logan.