Ripon’s Kaylee Lehmkuhl helped repel a Ripon Christian comeback Thursday night to lead the host Indians to a 38-31 Trans-Valley League girls basketball victory.
Ripon (3-0 TVL, 10-9 overall) jumped out to a 15-3 first-period lead before the Knights (1-2, 5-7) closed in to 26-20 after three quarters. Twice in the final period, Ripon Christian came within four points before Lehmkuhl (15 points, five steals, two assists, two rebounds) went a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line and added a field goal, a pair of steals and a key rebound.
“We always talk about playing defense together, and I just love the way we work on the court and off the court,” Lehmkuhl said. “That’s what gets us through the game.”
Danika Escola added six points, five rebounds and three steals, and Scarlett Ponce (two points) provided a lot of spark at the right time for the Indians.
“We gave up too many turnovers, and didn’t make shots,” Ripon coach John Scheid said. “And we and when you have turnovers and miss shots, that’s a bad combination.”
Lehmkuhl’s fourth-quarter free-throw display was part of an overall 7-of-8 team effort from the free-throw line, as opposed to 4-of-14 from the line for the Knights.
“We did make free throws,” Scheid said. “That’s a big one. That kept us in the game right there.”
Ripon Christian’s Reagan Van Der Hoek dominated the paint with high-point honors and a double-double, scoring 18 points with 15 rebounds, three steals, a block and an assist. Her eight third-period points helped trim the Indians’ lead from 10 points at halftime to six going into the final quarter.
“We got off to a very slow start,” Van Der Hoek said. “That start gave us anger and some more drive. On defense, we tried our hardest and got a lot of deflections.
“That big deficit in the first quarter gave us incentive to go as hard as we could the rest of the way.”
Knights coach Mike Vander Molen credited his team’s defense with the comeback.
“I am super proud of the way we responded after that start,” he said. “They came out and hit all those 3-pointers and couldn’t miss, and everything seemed to be in and out for us in the first half, and it didn’t faze us.
“Defensively, we kept battling, got a lot of loose balls and got their lead down to three. I hate losing, but that was as proud as I could be after a loss.”
Tuesday night at 7, the Knights host Escalon, and the Indians travel to Sonora.
Junior varsity
Ripon Christian 35, Ripon 22
Rhian Heuvel led the Knights with 10 points with Bella Arganbright adding eight points.
