YOUR AD HERE »

Whittell girls b-ball closes out season, finishes sixth in Div. IV West League

Anthony Gentile
agentile@tahoedailytribune.com
Whittell senior Jordyn Becker looks to make a pass around Sierra Lutheran’s Grace Bonafede in a Div. IV West League game Friday, Feb. 12.
Anthony Gentile / Tahoe Daily Tribune |

The Whittell girls basketball team closed out an up-and-down season with a pair of tough defeats. The Warriors lost to Sierra Lutheran and fell at Virginia City last weekend, Feb. 12-13, to finish in sixth place in Div. IV West League.

Whittell (8-18, 6-10 IV West) closed out its 2015-16 campaign with an ugly defeat at Virginia City on Saturday, Feb. 13. The Warriors fell to the Muckers 47-36 in a physical contest that saw both teams combine for 51 free throws.

“The physical play carried over from the first game,” Warriors coach Tom Esposito said. “We were hoping to go out with a win.”



The Warriors matched the Muckers in the second half Saturday, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 26-13 halftime deficit. Junior Samantha Forvilly and sophomore Kaitlyn Kjer led Whittell with nine points apiece and senior Jordyn Becker added six in a contest characterized by rough play.

“They were battling,” Esposito said. “The refs were wondering if it was a rugby game — they had to do whatever it took to keep the game under control.”



A night earlier, Whittell fell to playoff-bound Sierra Lutheran in its final home game of the season. The Warriors lost to the playoff-bound Falcons 44-32 on Friday, Feb. 12, unable to slow the league runner-up.

“They took it to us,” Esposito said. “We thought we were going to do well.”

The Warriors trailed 12-3 after the opening frame Friday and faced a 14-point deficit at halftime. Sierra Lutheran led by as many as 20 points while snapping Whittell’s two-game winning streak.

“They were fundamentally strong,” Esposito said. “They weren’t spectacular passers, dribblers or shooters, but they played as a full team.”

Senior Kaitlyn Kjer led Whittell with a game-high 17 points on Friday, including 10 in the fourth quarter. Kjer was the only Warriors player in double figures.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.