FRANKLIN FURNACE — There are times when one watches a game and knows, without question, that each side will come out better for having played said matchup.
Monday’s nonconference matchup between the Green Lady ‘Cats and South Webster Lady Jeeps certainly will qualify as one of those matchups.
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Following a terrific start by Green that saw the Lady ‘Cats jump out to leads of 14-5 and 20-8 at the first quarter and halftime breaks, Melissa Knapp’s group grabbed control early — but Ryan Dutiel’s bunch at South Webster countered with a 29-point second half, ultimately rallying from a 12-point halftime deficit to cut its contest against Green to as little as four.
However, Green junior and Marshall commit Abbie Knapp’s 25-point, 18-rebound performance, which included 18 points in the second half alone, ultimately proved to be huge in the Lady ‘Cats’ 44-37 victory over the Lady Jeeps Monday evening at Green High School in Franklin Furnace.
For Melissa Knapp, the game was one that will only make Green better going forward, and with eight consecutive victories, including three straight wins by 11 points or less, the Lady ‘Cats are certainly finding different ways to win close affairs.
“We put a good game together,” Knapp said. “Everybody’s going to put up their best game against us. I personally think that it’s better that we have close contests because it tests us and makes us better through the adversity that we are forced to face as a team, which is only going to help us especially in postseason play. That’s a good quality win for us. South Webster’s a good ballclub. They’re very athletic with a lot of good young kids.”
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As for South Webster, Dutiel was thrilled with the effort showcased in his young group, which cut the 12-point lead down to four on three separate occasions (36-32, 38-34 and 40-36) en route to outscoring Green 29-24 in the second half.
“I’m so proud of the girls,” Dutiel said. “That’s one thing that I said to them right off of the bat. I loved the way that they competed with so much heart and never gave up. It showed. They believed in themselves. That’s one of those things where you can see the growth in them. That’s what we’re trying to do with starting such a young lineup.”
In the opening quarter, Green’s unselfish ball movement was evident from the outset. Enjoying arguably its best quarter as a team, Knapp set the tone with four early points, a pass up ahead in transition to Elizabeth McBee who shuffled a ball off to Laney Strickland for a bucket, a perfectly-executed high-low pass to Strickland for another basket, and, along with McBee, back-to-back three-pointers to end the opening quarter ahead by a 14-5 margin.
“Green’s a really good team,” Dutiel said. “(Abbie) Knapp is outstanding. That’s not to take away from anybody else — she’s just outstanding. She is what you would expect out of a D-I athlete. She was just hard to handle with our size, because we are smaller. However, I think, as she played with a lot of heart, we matched that also, and that’s what I’m so proud of.”
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Both teams’ defense stiffened in the second quarter, as the play of both Claxons on the South Webster end defensively, along with that of Ava Abrams on the Green side, proved to be huge.
Ultimately, Abrams’ bucket with less than two minutes to play in the opening half, and a buzzer-beating layup by Green’s Destiny Alexander put the Lady ‘Cats ahead by a 20-8 margin at halftime, which proved to be Green’s largest lead as Abrams’ defensive work proved to be a huge factor in holding South Webster to one field goal in the second quarter of action.
“Ava has really embraced her role defensively,” Knapp said. “We talk about it quite a bit — she’s going to defend the opposing team’s best offensive threat every night. She can plant and move her feet, and I thought that she did a great job against both Claxons. She did a great job on Addi. She’s really taken that role to heart. Offensively, she can knock down shots when we need them and I have no problem with her shooting the ball at all.”
South Webster, however, roared to life in the third quarter.
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Led by an inspiring effort from the Claxon sisters as well as Emma Campbell, the Lady Jeeps responded to the halftime deficit in an exceptional manner as Campbell scored five quick points out of the halftime break while Ava Claxon scored inside immediately off of an inbound pass, giving the two freshmen 14 of South Webster’s first 17 points in the ballgame as the Lady Jeeps cut the lead to single digits.
“Ava and Emma both are incredibly athletic,” Dutiel said. “They can do anything. Emma’s going to be special. She’s really good. She’s got a nice shot and is really quick off of the dribble. I think the thing about Emma that really stands out is how basketball smart she is. She knows the game. You can see that and she knows when to push it, when to pull back, when to take a shot. She’s really been such a wonderful addition to our team. Ava’s been the one that’s been the main scorer, but she does many things so well. She’s so skilled and does so many different things.”
When Green responded by way of Abbie Knapp, who scored seven of the Lady ‘Cats’ eight third-quarter points, to take a 28-17 third-quarter advantage, Addi Claxon responded by absorbing contact and scoring for what ended up being a successful and-one conversion that brought the Lady Jeeps within single-digits again at the end of the third quarter, 28-20.
This fired up the engines for a terrific fourth quarter from both Claxons. Complementing one another beautifully, the duo scored each of South Webster’s first nine fourth-quarter notches with Ava Claxon lofting up a beautiful, high-arching floater over Knapp that dropped through the hoop and Addi Claxon again finishing through contact for her second and-one of the second half.
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Seemingly igniting confidence in the rest of the South Webster unit with their play, Campbell and Violet Edwards followed by scoring each of the Lady Jeeps’ next seven points, and South Webster had a 12-point deficit down to just four on three separate occasions, including a 40-36 margin with less than two minutes remaining.
“Addi is the heart of this team,” Dutiel said of his senior leader. “She is the one who is the leader in the locker room, on the floor, off the floor. She’s the one who players look to, and that says a lot about her. She is just the hardest working kid I think I’ve ever had. It shows. Her lateral quickness is excellent. She’s not afraid of challenges. She took on Knapp, and didn’t bat an eye. When I gave her the assignment, she said, ‘Okay.’ She was ready to go. She doesn’t back away from anything. She’s a competitor and the other girls feed off of her.”
But having played in a number of high-level contests throughout her career, Abbie Knapp handled the fire with brilliance in multiple areas.
From facilitating the offense to rebounding on the low block and knocking down free throws, Knapp proved to be brilliant. The junior scored 18 of Green’s 24 second-half points, three-quarters of Green’s total, en route to finishing with her 25-point effort while adding in a team-high 18 rebounds and matching a team-high with three assists for the Lady ‘Cats.
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“Abbie from the free throw line — she was huge again,” Knapp said. “Thank goodness she was there to seal the deal. She stepped up there and knocked down pressure free throws in a big situation.”
With the win, Green moved to 8-1 and will now get until at least Thursday, Jan. 8 to recoup prior to the start of the 2026 portion of its slate.
“I’m proud of the girls,” Knapp said. “We’ve got a few days here to recover and also work on our strength and conditioning,” Knapp said. “We’ve got a long layoff here, so that concerns me, but it’s also going to give us opportunities to work on things that we need to. We’ll get to work and see where it takes us.”
As for South Webster, the Lady Jeeps, despite playing four freshmen in its top six, sit 4-4 overall. Three of its four losses have come by 11 points or less, and all four of its losses have come to teams that are at least 7-2 or better (Chesapeake, Waverly, West and Green).
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“Those are four quality teams whose coaching staffs and players we have a ton of respect for and hold in high regard, and we competed with each of them,” Dutiel said. “We may be undersized, but we’re never going to let that get in the way of who we play and let that be a factor. We’re going to give teams everything that we’ve got, and they’re going to know that they played South Webster at the end of it.”
