Off to blazing start
Butler's 31 1st-quarter points help bury Knoch

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By Mike Kilroy
Eagle Staff Writer

JEFFERSON TWP — No Olivia Bresnahan?
No problem — at least for the first eight minutes.
With the Butler sophomore star resigned to charting stats on the bench because of an ankle injury, the Golden Tornado girls basketball team went on a prodigious eight-minute run to start the game on the way to a 64-41 win over Knoch Monday night.
When the first-quarter buzzer sounded, Butler had a 31-12 lead. The Golden Tornado attempted 23 shots in the period, made 11, including four 3-pointers, and threatened to run Knoch out of its own gym.
"Every time we left someone open, they hit a shot," said Knoch coach Curt Vasas. "That didn't necessarily help."
But Knoch adjusted, going away from a zone defense and switching to man-to-man. Butler also cooled, which helped the Knights to hold the Tornado to five points in the second quarter.
Knoch (0-3) cut the lead to 38-30 early in the third quarter, but Butler pulled away late.
The uneven start didn't please Butler coach Dorothea Epps.
"We just got out of sync," Epps said. "Sometimes, when you get those big leads, you kind of start relaxing a little bit, and I think that's what we started doing."
Sophomore Casie Cygan started for Bresnahan and mirrored the play of her team: fast start, midgame lull.
Cygan scored 10 points in the first quarter and finished with 14.
"She was a little bit nervous," Epps said. "But that's why you play these pre-season games to get those bugs out. She did fine."
Lyndsy Day had a big game for Butler, scoring 15 points. She also had a handful of assists and steals to lead the Golden Tornado. Jenna Manuel came off the bench to add 12 for Butler.
Vasas was pleased with the way his team fought back from the early deficit.
"They buckled down," Vasas said. "These are the types of teams we want to play — aggressive, in your face — to get us ready for section play."
Sara Montgomery kept Knoch in the game in the second quarter, scoring eight points and snaring five rebounds in the period. She finished with 14 points and 11 boards.
"She played very strong underneath tonight," Vasas said.
Injuries are something both teams will be watching closely in the coming days.
Bresnahan is day to day with her ankle injury. Epps said she could have played against Knoch, but with a long and arduous season ahead, the coach said she felt it would be prudent to keep her on the bench.
Knoch is awaiting word on the status of Megan Gray. The senior guard suffered a knee injury before the season and is still waiting for the results of an MRI. Those results are expected to come Wednesday.
BUTLER 64
Lyndsy Day 6-11 1-3 15, Karissa King 2-6 0-0 6, Erica Miller 1-9 4-6 6, Casie Cygan 4-11 4-4 14, Kayla Gilliland 0-6 2-2 2, Katherine Sylvia 1-3 0-0 2, Ashley Onufrak 1-1 1-1 3, Rachel Doutt 2-3 0-0 4, Casey Fleeger 0-0 0-0 0, Becky Nowacki 0-0 0-0 0, Amanda Dymun 0-0 0-0 0, Katresa Savisky 0-2 0-0 0, Jenna Manuel 4-8 2-2 12. Totals: 21-70 14-18 64
KNOCH 41
Megan Burlbaugh 0-0 0-0 0, Haley Hutterer 3-14 0-1 7, Hannah Novotny 1-2 0-0 3, Kristen Gagen 0-4 0-0 0, Lindsay MacArthur 3-6 0-2 6, Jess Protzman 0-1 0-1 0, Sara Montgomery 6-8 2-2 14, Jade Thrower 1-3 0-0 2, Laura Gray 3-3 3-3 9. Totals: 17-41 5-9 41
Butler 31 5 15 13—64
Knoch 12 13 12 4—41
3-point goals: Day 2, King 2, Cygan 2, Manuel 2
JV: Butler 62-28