Salem begins defense of title

The Quakers cruised pastSoutheast in the Division II sectional opener.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
AUSTINTOWN -- At this time last year, Salem High guard Lizzie Jesko was wearing a knee brace and spending most of her time thinking about therapy, not basketball.
After suffering an ACL injury during soccer season, Jesko missed the entire basketball season, playing just a few garbage minutes at the end of a handful of tournament games.
A year later, the brace is off and the future is bright.
"It was nice just to get back in the tournament frame of mind," said the senior, whose Quakers entered Monday's game with a 19-game winning streak. "We're ready to go."
Jesko, who set the school assist record before the injury, has completely recovered and hopes to lead the Quakers to a second straight district title.
On Tuesday, they took the first step.
Strong performance
Salem jumped out to a 33-2 lead over Southeast and cruised to a 65-27 victory in the Division II sectional opener at Fitch High School. Niles beat Wilson, 62-32, in the early game.
"We were mostly just anxious to play," said Salem coach Steve Stewart, whose team had a nine-day layoff before the game. "We were ready to face somebody. We had a lot of energy and we did a lot of good team stuff.
"The goals were simple today."
Senior Alyson Cotter had 14 points for the Quakers (20-1), who advanced to play Chaney at 6 p.m. Thursday. Junior Sarah Hamilton and senior Renee Farina each added 12.
Salem lost to West Branch in last year's regional semifinal. The Warriors are the only team to beat the Quakers this year.
"I told the team in the locker room before the game that if you don't feel a different feeling for the tournament, there's something wrong with you," Stewart said. "It's a whole different world. Somebody's eliminated every single night."
Hannah Harmar scored nine points and Olivia Weber added eight for Southeast (4-17).
Niles-Wilson
Senior guard Stacia Ray scored 22 points -- including six 3-pointers -- and Stephanie Parish added 12 for Niles (11-10), which took a 31-14 halftime lead.
Kesha Letlow scored 14 points to lead Wilson (3-18).
scalzo@vindy.com