Prep Chatter: Big win lifts Kimberly high school girls basketball team to top of FVA standings

KIMBERLY − The Kimberly girls basketball team has put itself in position to separate from the rest of the pack atop the Fox Valley Association.

The Papermakers beat Neenah 70-59 on Friday in a battle of top-5 ranked teams. Kimberly (13-2 overall) is tied with Hortonville (11-4) atop the FVA with 9-1 records. The two teams play Tuesday at Kimberly with the winner taking over sole possession of first place.

Kimberly coach Dave Lepisto knows the Papermakers have a chance to put themselves in the driver's seat of the conference title chase if they can beat the Polar Bears, but says the focus is always on what his players are doing more than what the opponent does.

"We just focus on us," Lepisto said. "We've done that ever since the summer. We have a 10-minute scouting report (on an opposing team) and who we need to focus on, but it's all based on our concepts. These kids have bought in to being us and focusing on us, because if we try to be worried about everybody else then we're not going to be the best that we possibly can.

"The biggest thing is to make sure that our kids can focus on what we do and that we go possession by possession. Our goal is to stack possessions and score, stop, score and to get as many of those in a game. You get a bunch of those and you’re going to be successful."

Kimberly trailed at halftime against the Rockets and were behind 47-44 early in the second half. The Papermakers put together a 10-0 run that gave them the lead. Kate McGinnis scored 13 of her team-high 23 points in the second half and was 4-of-5 from the free throw line to help cap the win.

Kimberly starts just one senior — Jadyn Dietrich — and starts a sophomore (Emily Urban) and a freshman (Haylie Dulas). Ava Van Vonderen is another freshman who plays significant minutes for the Papermakers.

“They play so well on this team. They contribute so much," McGinnis, a junior, said of the younger players.

Lepisto said he helped the freshmen players when they were in the Kimberly youth program.

"I've known those freshmen kids since second grade," he said. "When I was (an assistant) under (Troy Cullen), I did the little kid stuff and as an elementary and (physical education) teacher I do a lot of tag with basketball stuff. And those kids, even at that age when we were in the small gym at JRG, they had a level of competitiveness that was fun to see."

SMC's Chew gets 500th win

St. Mary Catholic girls basketball coach Jeff Chew won the 500th game of his coaching career Thursday in the Zephyrs' 63-43 victory over Manitowoc Lutheran.

Chew is 500-200 in his career, and the Zephyrs are 14-1 this season. SMC was 26-2 last season and 25-2 in 2021-22.

Brillion's Geiger reaches 1,000 points

Brillion senior Grady Geiger scored 26 points in the Lions' 67-53 victory over Roncalli on Friday to go over 1,000 career points.

Geiger, a 6-foot-6 senior, is averaging 21.1 points and shooting 66% from the field. He's also averaging 7.3 rebounds for the defending WIAA Division 3 state champion Lions.

Basketball livestream of the week: Hortonville at Kimberly

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin's livestream of the week is a Fox Valley Association girls basketball showdown between a pair of conference co-leaders when Hortonville travels to Kimberly on Tuesday.

The livestream begins at 7:15 p.m. and the game can be seen on postcrescent.com, the Post-Crescent's Facebook page and on YouTube on the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin channel.

Area basketball rankings

* Teams are ranked "pound-for-pound" based on success against similar enrollments:

GIRLS

1, Kimberly (13-2): Papermakers tied atop the FVA with Hortonville with 9-1 records. Team has won five consecutive games after loss to Pewaukee on Dec. 29. Next: Tuesday vs. Hortonville.

2, St. Mary Catholic (14-1): Zephyrs play three games this week: At Reedsville on Monday, vs. Howards Grove on Tuesday and at Mishicot on Friday. Next: Monday at Reedsville.

3, Hortonville (11-4): Polar Bears drop 50-36 decision to No. 1-ranked Verona on Saturday. Team can take control of FVA with win over Kimberly on Tuesday. Next: Tuesday at Kimberly.

4, Neenah (12-3): Rockets look to bounce back from Kimberly loss with games against Oshkosh West, Fond du Lac and Kaukauna this week. Next: Monday vs. Oshkosh West.

5, Xavier (11-6): Hawks playing tough nonconference slate, losing to D1 power Arrowhead on Saturday. Will play Bay Conference leader West De Pere on Friday. Next: Friday vs. West De Pere.

Also: New London (14-3), Appleton East (9-5), Menasha (10-5), Chilton (10-6), Freedom (10-5), Weyauwega-Fremont (8-6).

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BOYS

1, Appleton North (12-1): Lightning beat Kaukauna and Hortonville last week to stay in contention behind Oshkosh North for the Fox Valley Association title. Next: Tuesday at Appleton West.

2, Xavier (12-1): Hawks rout Shawano 84-46 on Friday and the team is averaging 76 points per game. Next: Tuesday vs. Seymour.

3, Brillion (15-1): Lions a game behind Kiel for the top spot in the Eastern Wisconsin. Bryce Gantz leads the team in assists (4.6). Next: Tuesday vs. Valders.

4, Fox Valley Lutheran (12-1): Foxes move up a spot in the rankings after 72-46 victory over Marinette on Friday. Team leads the North Eastern Conference by two games over Freedom. Next: Tuesday at Oconto Falls.

5, Freedom (10-3): Irish make first appearance in the rankings and are coming off a 74-41 victory over Wrightstown on Friday. Donovan Davis leads the team in scoring (16.2), rebounds (10.2) and assists (4.5). Next: Tuesday at Denmark.

Others: Kimberly (8-5), Kaukauna (8-5), Clintonville (10-4), St. Mary Catholic (10-5), Neenah (8-6), New London (7-5), Waupaca (8-6), Weyauwega-Fremont (8-6), Seymour (8-5), Hortonville (8-6), Little Chute (9-6), Manawa (9-7).

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Kimberly girls win five in a row, on top of FVA basketball standings