Girls basketball: Cloverleaf brings energy in county rivalry win over Buckeye

WESTFIELD TWP. — Trudging along during a frustrating opening 12 minutes or so Monday, the Cloverleaf girls basketball team figured out what was wrong. The Colts needed more energy. They went to an old staple, a 2-2-1 three-quarters court press, sped up the pace a bit and methodically pulled away from much-improved Buckeye 52-31 in a non-league game between Medina County neighbors. Now 3-0 and averaging 58.7 points, Cloverleaf held the Bucks (2-1) to 1-of-16 shooting in the middle quarters to turn an 11-9 score into 36-18 heading into a largely inconsequential fourth quarter. "Our defense changed," guard Evie Barth said. "Our 2-2-1 we got into, that always works against teams that we know we can pressure. We have quick guards and we know we can pressure them easily and force turnovers (31)." All-Metro Athletic Conference point guard Barth was clearly the best player on the floor with 19 points, six rebounds, three assists and six steals. Backup center Kayla Shook hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds — starter Merrin Crow had four boards, three steals and took a charge — while Saige Foky contributed an efficient 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting. Cloverleaf didn't exactly light up the nets — it made zero 3-pointers in a 22-point, 26-shot first half — but stayed true to its volume shooting philosophy behind a new-look motion offense that kept everyone involved. The Colts took 16 more shots than the Bucks and outscored them 12-0 from 3-point range. Smaller Cloverleaf won the rebounding battle 37-30, had 11 assists on 19 field goals and posted 15 steals. The Colts also rallied in the second half to finish 10-for-18 at the foul line. "At halftime we had a talk," Barth said. "We needed to pick it up a little bit." Starting three seniors and two freshmen and bring in two more ninth-graders off the bench, Buckeye got a solid all-around effort from freshman small forward Ava Wolf, whose aggressiveness led to eight points, six rebounds, four assists and six steals. Veterans Kwynn Czerwony (6 points) and Ruby Hudak (5) were next in the scoring department. Despite making just 10-of-40 field goals, 0-of-8 3-pointers and 13-of-20 free throws, the Bucks were competitive for most of the first half with a defense that did a good job contesting shots within 10 feet and making sure Cloverleaf long-range shooters such as Barth, Foky, Mackenzie Seiwerth and Emma Hibler didn't get a ton of open looks. Buckeye's defensive scoring average increased to 37.7, but that's still a stellar number. "We tried to establish defensively what we've been doing in the first two games," coach Ron Clady said. "Actually, I felt like we played well defensively. We just couldn't score points there in that second quarter. We're still discovering where our offense is going to come from, but our defensive effort is really on point and that's what we're really going to have to hang our hats on all year." Cloverleaf wasn't at its best by any means but was content with another win in its second official night on a new 94-foot floor at the high school. A nice-sized crowd and pep band were there to support. The Colts are experienced, making an effort to be selfless and already well on their way to a winning season. "Compared to the first two games, it was a little slow, I'd say," Barth said. "It took us a minute to adjust, but once we adjusted, we were able to find our rhythm." Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com. Cloverleaf 52, Buckeye 31 BUCKEYE &emsp;&emsp;9 4 5 13 — 31 CLOVERLEAF &emsp;&emsp;11 11 14 16 — 52 Buckeye — Ava Wolf 1-6-8, Kwynn Czerwony 3-0-6, Carlie Gunkelman 1-0-2, Ruby Hudak 1-3-5, Macey Greer 0-0-0, Juliana Melillo 1-1-3, Kylee Kash 2-0-4, Ava Piovarchy 0-0-0, Molly Danilovic 0-3-3. TOTALS: 9-13-31. Cloverleaf — Emma Hibler 1-3-5, Mackenzie Seiwerth 1-0-3, Merrin Crow 0-3-3, Saige Foky 5-0-12, Evie Barth 8-2-19, Madi Young 2-0-4, Makinsey Bayer 2-2-6, Kayla Shook 0-0-0, Kendall Seiwerth 0-0-0, Addie Evans 0-0-0, Cameron Todd 0-0-0, Samantha Porter 0-0-0, Jayce Kreider 0-0-0. TOTALS: 19-10-52. 3-point goals — Foky 2, Barth, M. Seiwerth. Rebounds — Buckeye 30 (Wolf, Czerwony 6), Cloverleaf 37 (Shook 10). Assists — Buckeye 6 (Wolf 4), Cloverleaf 11 (Barth 3). Records — Buckeye (2-1), Cloverleaf (3-0). Junior varsity — Cloverleaf 56, Buckeye 32 (C: Evans 15, B: Kash 10).