GREENVILLE – The Greenville Lady Wave avenged an earlier triple-overtime loss to Sidney with a gritty 33-23 Miami Valley League victory Wednesday night, holding the Lady Yellow Jackets well below their scoring average with disciplined defense and balanced scoring.
Greenville took advantage of “Triple Lucky 7s and an Eight” to earn the win, as senior Jayda Lyons led the Lady Wave with eight points while Leah Force, Megan Loudy, and Sara Loudy each chipped in seven.
“After that three-overtime loss, I told the kids in the locker room that they weren’t ready to win that game yet because we were still learning and still in a growth process,” Greenville coach Shane Hillard said following Wednesday’s home victory. “But I told them the next time we see them, it’s going to be completely different because we are going to be different. Trust the process. We are going to be better.”
Hillard praised his team’s approach after a challenging start to the season.
“I can’t say enough about how they approach every day at practice,” he said. “I’m really just navigating them. This is all on them. We started 0-4 and they could have laid down and quit. We just came off a 30-point loss and they could have come in flat, but that’s just not how they’re built.”
Sidney entered the night averaging 38.3 points per game, but Greenville’s active zone defense limited the Lady Yellow Jackets to just 23 points, 15 below their season average.
“The zone we run isn’t a typical zone where you just guard an area,” Hillard explained. “It’s more of a man-type zone where you have to be active. You have to fly around and get to spots quickly. A team has to be built a certain way to run it, and this group is willing to do that. Even good teams have a hard time scoring against it.”
Sidney scored first, but Lyons answered with a layup nearly four minutes into the game to tie it at 2-2. Sara Loudy followed with a drive to the basket late in the quarter to give Greenville a 6-3 lead after one.
Force opened the second quarter with a pair of strong drives to the basket, pushing the Lady Wave’s lead to 10-6. Rielynn Davidson drilled a three-pointer at the 5:29 mark to extend the advantage to 13-6 before Sidney closed the gap late. Greenville carried a slim 15-12 lead into halftime.
The Lady Wave seized control in the third quarter, doubling up Sidney 10-5 in the period. Megan Loudy sparked the run with seven points, including a three-pointer, as Greenville stretched its lead to 25-17.
Sidney briefly cut the margin to 19-17 midway through the quarter, but Greenville weathered the storm—something Hillard said defines this group.
“They don’t let things they can’t control bother them,” he said. “I have to control myself sometimes, because if I’m asking them to do it, I have to do it too. They do a really good job of playing through adversity, and that’s why we’re having the success we’re having.”
A Megan Loudy runner in the lane, followed by a Makenzie Legenzoff free throw and a Loudy three from the top of the key, gave Greenville breathing room heading into the fourth.
The dagger came with just over two minutes remaining when Sara Loudy knocked down a three-pointer in front of the Greenville bench, extending the lead to 30-21.
“I didn’t really love it at the time,” Hillard admitted with a smile, “but if it goes in, it seals the game. It was off a kick-out, and that’s the best time to shoot a three. I’ve asked her to come out of her shell and shoot the basketball, and that confidence is huge for our program.”
Greenville closed out the scoring with Lyons’ second basket of the fourth quarter and a Sara Loudy free throw.
Quietly anchoring the defense was 6-foot junior center Makenzie Legenzoff, who continues to rank fifth in the MVL in shot blocking.
“Mak does a really good job of guarding without fouling,” Hillard said. “She uses her length well, protects the rim, and doesn’t leave her feet. The numbers may not jump out, but she’s been a huge part of what we do, and I don’t think she gets enough credit.”
Despite Lyons leading the team with just eight points, Hillard wasn’t concerned.
“I worry more about how many points we score as a team,” he said. “Jayda scoring eight doesn’t scare me because we can cover it up elsewhere. If you told me she only had three rebounds, then I’d be worried—but that’s not who we are. We play so well together.”
BOX SCORE:
GREENVILLE 33, SIDNEY 23
GREENVILLE – J. Lyons 8, L. Force 7, M. Loudy 7, S. Loudy 7, R. Davidson 3, M. Legenzoff 1 – TOTALS8 8-14 3 33
SIDNEY – A. Foy 12, N. Kennedy 6, P. Hensley 3, J. Shroyer 2 – TOTALS 6 8-12 1 23
3-POINTERS
Greenville 3 (M. Loudy, S. Loudy 1, R. Davidson 1)
Sidney 1 (N. Kennedy 1)
SCORE by QUARTERS
06-09-10-08 33 Greenville
03-09-05-06 23 Sidney
