Prep girls basketball: Fenwick blitzes Carlisle, pushes record to 9-7

Kaitlynn Anzel is a Fenwick High School senior who’s loving the Falcons’ winning vibe this year.

It remains to be seen how the rest of the girls basketball season will go, but Fenwick is finding success right now under first-year head coach Scott Dalton.

“Coach Dalton has helped us tremendously,” Anzel said Wednesday night after the Falcons whipped visiting Carlisle 63-34 to improve to 9-7. “He’s built up our confidence, and he’s made us the team we always knew we could be. It’s been a really fun year.”

GIRLS BASKETBALL: Valley View 40, Edgewood 34

BOYS BASKETBALL: Madison 60, Carlisle 41

Fenwick has won six of its last nine games and is seeking its first winning season since going 11-10 in 2013-14. The Falcons were 23-45 over the last three years with Dalton as an assistant under John Rossi, who moved on to Franklin.

“There’s always room for improvement, but I’m happy with 9-7,” Dalton said. “I thought there was some talent here, and I knew coming back that we could be a quicker team. We’ve got a lot of guards and Jenna Adams. She’s 6-1, but she runs track and cross country, so I know she can run.

“I wanted to play an up-tempo game, and that’s what we’ve been doing. Slowly and surely, we’re starting to get better. Our goal is to have a winning season, and I think we’re on the path to have that.”

Fenwick’s athleticism and full-court mentality flustered Carlisle (7-10) into 28 turnovers. The Indians opened the game’s scoring with a Christa Harris basket, then gave up 14 straight points.

Anzel had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Falcons. Adams contributed 13 points, 13 boards and six steals, and Hannah Beckman scored all 12 of her points in the third period.

Carlisle was down 29-16 at halftime. The Indians tried to stay competitive in the third quarter, but the hosts finished the stanza with a 15-point burst to go ahead 50-23.

“I’d say it’s up there with one of our better performances,” Anzel said. “It was definitely a team win tonight. We had 21 steals and a bunch of assists, so we all did it together.”

“We wanted to press them and create those turnovers and get some easy buckets,” Dalton said. “That was our game plan, and that’s exactly what we did.”

Cami Glover paced Carlisle with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Harris had 9 points, and Abby Erisman added 8 points and five boards. The Indians lost senior Savannah Parrish to an ankle injury in the second period.

“We kept it close at the beginning of the second half, but we got tired,” Carlisle coach Randy Glover said. “I didn’t sub as much, and our tiredness started to get us not into the right positions.

“Their pressure got to us, and that’s a testament to Fenwick and the style they play. Scott has them playing good basketball. They also did a nice job changing up defenses against our young kids. The good thing was we didn’t quit in the second half. I thought we finished playing hard.”

The Indians have struggled since starting the season 5-1. They will return to Southwestern Buckeye League Buckeye Division play Saturday at Dixie.

“I think these young kids are learning how to play varsity basketball,” Randy Glover said. “Some of the young kids need to step up and learn how to be leaders on this team.

“I think when we play well and stay focused, we will be a hard team to play. I think we’re learning to give effort. Now we’ve got to learn to give the right effort.”

Ten Falcons scored in Wednesday’s game. Elena Daly had 9 points and five rebounds, Cat Richards grabbed seven boards, and Anna Beebe totaled five steals and five assists.

Fenwick has shown more depth in the second half of the campaign. Junior guard Brooke Brunner, a transfer from Alter, became eligible in Game 12.

The Falcons will be at home against Roger Bacon in Greater Catholic League Coed Division play Saturday. They have just one road game (against Carroll next Wednesday) remaining in the regular season.

Carlisle 2-14-7-11—34

Fenwick 11-18-21-13—63

CARLISLE (7-10): Savannah Parrish 0 2 2, Christa Harris 4 1 9, Abby Erisman 3 2 8, Emma Riley 0 1 1, Kaylee Dingee 1 1 3, Cami Glover 3 5 11. Totals: 11-12-34

FENWICK (9-7): Hannah Beckman 5 2 12, Brooke Brunner 1 0 2, Jenna Adams 6 1 13, Rachel Tebbe 1 0 2, Megan Neff 1 0 2, Isabella Arends 1 1 3, Cat Richards 1 0 2, Kaitlynn Anzel 6 2 16, Elena Daly 4 0 9, Emily Adams 0 2 2. Totals: 26-8-63

3-pointers: F 3 (Anzel 2, Daly)

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