Franklin Regional girls bounce back, defeat Plum in Section 2-5A matchup

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, December 17, 2018 | 9:27 PM

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The Plum girls basketball team wasted no time in establishing a lead in Monday’s Section 2-5A contest at rival Franklin Regional.

Kennedie Montue converted a layup four seconds into the game, and Kelsie Zik followed with a 3-pointer 20 seconds later.

But Franklin Regional rallied to take its first lead midway through the opening frame, built a nine-point advantage after one and maintained it the rest of the way in a 61-49 win.

“We were able to keep our poise even though we had some foul trouble, and Plum was doing what they could to get back in the game,” said FR senior forward Jordan Yaniga, who delivered a game-high 20 points to go along with 11 rebounds.

Yaniga made several key plays in the second half when she tallied 13 points. Of her seven points in the fourth quarter, five came from the foul line on 5 of 6 shooting.

“We stuck together, ran our plays well, and got a good team win,” Yaniga said. “We knew we could do it. We just had to believe in ourselves.”

Franklin Regional (3-2) bounced back from a 57-34 loss to Gateway in its section opener last Thursday.

“There was some anxiousness to see how we were going to respond,” Franklin Regional coach Anthony Kobus said. “We had two good days of practice to prepare for Plum. The girls had great attitudes.”

Plum and Franklin Regional battled down to the wire last year for the fourth and final playoff spot in the section, and the Mustangs won out in that chase.

“It was nice to get a little revenge,” Yaniga said. “We came back strong because we knew we could do it.”

Panthers senior forward Alex Reitz, who missed the game against Gateway because of an injury, finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds. She scored eight points in the first quarter.

Montue led the Mustangs (0-1, 1-4) with 18 points and eight rebounds, and Zik added 15 points and eight boards.

“Both teams fought very hard, and tonight, Franklin Regional was just a little bit better than us,” Plum coach Steve Elsier said. “The reality is that it’s just one game, one section game.”

Franklin Regional and Plum will rematch at Plum on Jan. 22.

Franklin Regional led Monday by nine at halftime and by 12 at the end of the third quarter.

The Panthers were ahead by 10 after a 3-pointer from Cali Konek with 5:07 left in the fourth. Konek scored nine of her 12 points in the final quarter.

Plum, however, didn’t go quietly and went on an 8-3 run. Mackenzie Lake sank one of two from the foul line with 3 minutes left to cut the FR advantage to five.

But the Panthers countered with an 8-2 run of their own on baskets from Konek, Yaniga and Reitz and a pair of free throws from Yaniga to put their lead back to 11, at 57-46, with 1:28 on the clock.

“Plum made a run late,” Kobus said, “but the girls never wilted.”

Michael Love is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Michael at mlove@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MLove_Trib.

Tags: Franklin Regional, Plum