By Stu Swartz
The Goshen Lady Redskins needed contributions from everyone to pull out a season-opening basketball victory Thursday night.
Junior Natalie Newell led the way with 21 points as Goshen withstood a late South Bend Riley charge to defeat the Wildcats, 65-57, at GHS.
The Redskins never trailed, but did see a 10-point halftime lead evaporate into a brief tie early in the fourth quarter.
Senior Lauren Shaffer hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first half for GHs and tallied 10 points overall, but she was injured early in the second half and did not return.
Junior Lauren Riegsecker had nine points and eight rebounds, senior Olivia Zepeda seven points and 10 rebounds.
Among sparks off the bench were freshman Aimee Swihart with seven points, sophomore Liana Yoder five and freshman Ali Peters two.
Junior Amber Stevenson contributed four valuable points and junior Meghan Neff was also a solid role player in relief.
Redskin coach Lenny Krebs said, “No coach wants to give up a cushion like we did because it’s hard to stop a team when it gets momentum.
“But, our girls showed some mental toughness, stepped up and got the job done. This is the type of game we probably would have lost last year.
“Liana Yoder was huge off the bench for us, making some great plays after Riley tied it.
“Lauren Shaffer was off to a great start and it’s unfortunate what happened to her. We’re not sure but she was complaining of a headache and also a sore wrist.
“We didn’t shoot very well in the second half so it took a total team effort to get it done.
“Natalie Newell was a great leader, holding the team together. We had five girls getting their first varsity experience.”
Shaffer hit a pair of ‘3s’ in the first 1:29 as Goshen hopped to an 8-2 lead. Newell scored nine points in the opening frame and the Redskins led 19-14 after eight minutes.
Swihart scored on a rebound and drive to the basket while Zepeda hit two free throws for a 25-18 lead with 5:44 to go in the second quarter.
After Riley got within 28-25, the Redskins rattled off seven straight points for their biggest lead of the night at 35-25 just before halftime. Zepeda hit five free throws in the period.
An eight-point Riley run got the Wildcats within 37-36 at the 3:20 mark of the third stanza. Goshen didn’t have a field goal in the period until Newell scored on a baseline drive with 3:02 on the clock.
Riley tied it 46-46 on two free throws by senior Finesse Barlett with 6:52 to play.
Zepeda then scored on a rebound after a steal by Yoder, Riegsecker tallied underneath and Yoder on a drive from the left side for a 52-46 Goshen lead with 5:30 to play.
Riegsecker scored a layup on a nice pass from Yoder while both Newell and Stevenson tallied on drives to the basket, keeping the Redskins in control. Peters also scored on a pass from Yoder.
