Down to 4 healthy players after car crash, Jeannette girls basketball team cancels game

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, January 24, 2024 | 7:23 PM

Jeannette’s girls basketball team had to cancel Wednesday night’s game at Geibel because it had only four healthy players.

Two Jeannette players — Venicia Vignoli and Adrianna Allison — are out with lingering injuries sustained in a car accident Jan. 15.

Jeannette’s coach, Anna Leonard, the mother of Vignoli and Allison, was driving when another vehicle struck theirs and flipped it sideways on Route 30 near Norwin Town Square in North Huntingdon.

They were on their way to a game that night. Shaken up, Leonard still coached the home game against Leechburg, and the girls played after they were treated by paramedics and found a ride to Jeannette.

She said they arrived 13 minutes before tip-off.

“Adrenaline,” Leonard said. “I think that is what got us through. We were all sore as the game went on, and afterwards. I still had blood all down my leg. I coached in my socks. We were in shock. I think I’m still in shock.

“We were fortunate. There were so many people helping us. It’s all a blur. I don’t even know all of their names.”

X-ray results are pending to determine the extent of injuries.

“The girls were told to sit out for two weeks, but we have to see what the results tell us,” Leonard said.

Jeannette lost to Leechburg, 32-27.

Teams can finish a game with four players but can’t start one with four, per National Federation of High Schools rules.

Jeannette finished a game earlier in the season with three girls after two fouled out.

Mckenna Craft, Karmen Kistner, Mary Jones and Navarah Smith are also team members.

With only four, the team could be in a bind.

Jeannette (6-7, 1-3 Section 3-A) has six games remaining, including three in section. The Jayhawks are in fourth place in the five-team section.

The top four teams qualify for the playoffs.

Jeannette hasn’t been able to practice much since the accident, although it did play another game, on Monday against Burrell, with five girls.

Burrell won, 48-22.

Tonight on our way to the game, my daughters and I were involved in a very serious accident. I walked away with scratches and my two girls walked away without any injury and not a scratch. I’m so blessed and I know my dad was watching over us. pic.twitter.com/chWelEmHH1

— Coach Leonard “Hoopz” (@CoachAnna_hoopz) January 16, 2024

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

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