Lenape girls fall to powerful St. John Vianney

It's one of the unfortunate realities of playing for a great program.

"I feel like I'm making up for lost time," said Lenape senior Sapphire Brown. "I had to work my behind off for three years on JV - now I'm just trying to put it all on the floor."

Brown is a rangy, athletic, and scrappy guard for the Lenape girls' basketball team.

For most area teams, she'd be on the verge of scoring her 1,000th point.

But she's a senior. And this is her first year on varsity.

She spent three years as a backup to one of South Jersey's best backcourts. She's spending this season releasing three years of pent-up energy.

Energy, in fact, is the hallmark of her game. And it was a defining trait for Lenape in its battle Friday night with the best team in New Jersey.

At least for part of the night, Lenape's energy had St. John Vianney on its heels.

The Indians ultimately lost, 62-43, at home. But Lenape looked like a worthy foe to a team most are predicting to win the Tournament of Champions.

"It was a great experience. I loved it," Brown said. "It was challenging but we still played hard. And this shows that we can play with anyone."

Brown finished with nine points and three assists. After a steal by Shane Holmes, her fastbreak layup brought the Indians to within 10 with 6 minutes, 42 seconds left before Vianney (14-1) pulled away.

"We competed tonight - we competed with the No. 1 team in the state," said Lenape coach Rob Hummel, whose team fell to 12-1. "We ended up losing by 19, but I don't think the game showed like that."

The Lenape gym was packed, and it felt more like a postseason atmosphere. The tension in the gym made his team's performance even more encouraging for Hummel.

The Indians are stocked with players not used to screaming fans and opponents rotating 11 players every quarter. But inexperienced players stepped into the spotlight as St. John Vianney made an all-out effort to stop Lenape's senior star forward, Maddie Sims, who finished with four points and five rebounds and battled foul trouble most of the game.

Lenape sophomore Kendal Keyes, one of South Jersey's up-and-coming sharpshooters, finished with a team-high 11 points.

But it wasn't enough to overcome Vianney's mix of star power - Kelly Campbell scored 24 points and Kim Evans netted 14 - and depth. A deep rotation allowed the Lancers to feature a full-court press nearly the entire game.

"It's become our strategy to work their guards and take their legs," said Lancers coach Dawn Karpell. "It's a fun style. And once we get into a rhythm, it works to our benefit."

St. John Vianney 15 18 14 15 - 62

Lenape 13 13 8 9 - 43

SJV: Kim Evans 14, Kelly Campbell 24, Tina Lebron 8, Vanessa Pinho 2, Julia Ramos 5, Sarah Karpell 2, Zoe Pero 5, Gabrielle Caponegro 2.

L: Maddie Sims 4, Amanda McGrogan 4, Kendall Keyes 11, Shane Holmes 6, Sapphire Brown 9, Caroline Kovacs 2, Shannon Mulroy 7.