Triad’s LeVan twin sisters, seniors Frani (23) and Cati (right photo) go up for baskets at Elgin on Friday. The siblings both scored in double figures as the Lady Cardinals rolled to a 63-12 victory. (Journal-Tribune photos by Sam Dillon)
Triad’s girls basketball team did not receive much of a challenge on Friday evening.
The Lady Cardinals tipped off the 2020-21 campaign with a 63-12 shellacking over Marion Elgin.
Triad head coach Erica Trainer credited several reasons for the season-opening victory.
“Our seniors stepped up and were great leaders tonight,” she said.
Senior twin sisters Frani and Cati LeVan respectively scored 22 and 16 points.
Classmate Abby Walls added 14 to the offensive barrage.
One thing Trainer was pleased with was her team’s ball movement against several different zone defenses.
“We worked on passing the ball against a zone defense earlier this week,” said Trainer. “We also used our speed to get up and down the floor in transition.”
The Comets employed 2-3 and 1-3-1 zone defenses in order to keep Triad from getting much penetration to the hoop.
Cati LeVan helped nullify those defenses with a three-pointer early in the game that gave the Lady Cardinals a 9-3 margin.
Elgin had trouble taking care of the basketball for much of the night.
As such, the Comets’ offense greatly suffered.
The Lady Cardinals took a 12-4 lead into the second quarter and kept pouring on their own offense.
Frani LeVan came up with a steal and coasted in for a layup that gave Triad its first double-digit advantage at 14-4.
Cati LeVan swished a trifecta over Elgin’s zone.
Madi Cox followed suit as Triad’s lead expanded to 24-4.
A jumper by Cox sent the Lady Cardinals into the halftime turn with a 26-4 lead.
Walls converted an assist by Frani LeVan into a basket.
The Lady Cardinals continued to bombard the net and took a 50-7 advantage into the fourth quarter.
Trainer put in a number of younger players for much of the final stanza.
Despite the whole-house substitutions, the Lady Comets could not put very many points on the board.
The Lady Cardinals are scheduled to host Springfield Shawnee on Tuesday.
There will be no junior varsity contest.
The varsity game will tip-off at 7:30 p.m.
Triad
F. LeVan 9-0-22, C. LeVan 7-0-16, Walls 6-1-14, Cox 3-0-7, Snider 1-0-3, Ferguson 0-1-1, Allison 0-0-0, Eaton 0-0-0, Fauber 0-0-0. Totals 26-2-63.
Three-point goals: F. LeVan 4, C. LeVan 2, Walls 1, Cox 1, Snider 1.
Elgin
Yates 3-0-6, Hafer 0-3-3, Schoen 0-2-2, Steuer 0-1-1, Berry 0-0-0, Baker 0-0-0, Deal 0-0-0. Totals 3-6-12.
Triad’s Ashtin Fauber battles for a rebound at Elgin on Friday. The Lady Cardinals thumped the Comets, 63-12. (Journal-Tribune photo by Sam Dillon)