St. Vincent girls’ red-hot shooting pave way, routing Grandview in JCAA opener

It took no time whatsoever for St. Vincent girls basketball to find its footing against Grandview, taking the conference opener in resounding 68-22 fashion in the Indians’ first game in two weeks.

Leaning on a high-energy attack from outside the arc in the first half, the Indians built up a comfortable 37-point lead at the intermission, never wavering in a staggering win to open up Jefferson County Athletic Association play at home.

In their first home game in 38 days, just their second of the season, the Indians led 13-0 and 20-0 runs in the first and second quarters respectively to round up a dominating lead by the end of the first 16 minutes.

By the time Grandview finally caught its breath coming out of the locker room, it was far too late.

“All week, they've had great practices,” Indians coach Mel Kirn began. “You could tell by the way they passed the ball tonigh. They didn't care who scored. They moved the ball around, finding the open person, and you can't ask for more than that.

“I mean, that was – It was fun to watch.”

St. Vincent improves to 12-1 for the year, shooting forward for its largest victory since the opening round of the FSCB Holiday Classic last month and opening the conference slate in style.

Kate Rubel led all scorers with 18 points in the victory, while Rylee Robinson’s 15 on five 3-pointers plus 13 and 11 from Allie Patrick and Lana Adams added scoring depth that the Eagles couldn’t line up with.

Grandview, meanwhile, slips to 2-7 for the year after a miserable first-half performance doomed the Eagles to a bludgeoning 40-plus-point loss on the road.

Brooke Patterson led Grandview with 8 points in the loss, while Sydney Riddle added 7 right behind her to keep the pace.

With junior Robinson’s 3-point parade in the first half, it came all too easy for St. Vincent as they rained in triples to spread the floor, which only helped them create more opportunities on the doorstep.

In total, the Indians hit 10 3-pointers on Thursday night, including a ridiculous five-bucket night from Robinson on the outside, a testament to the marksmanship of this stout (and young) St. Vincent squad.

Robinson, who’s become quite familiar with a leadership role with the Indians after leading them in scoring last season while Adams and Patrick were sidelined, maintained an aura of dominance from deep on Thursday night.

She couldn’t miss in the first half, and when she started catching fire, so too did the rest of her offense as St. Vincent started picking up steam.

Though the interior offense has been sluggish at times this season, the Indians are looking more and more comfortable with that inside game and that’s only brought more respect and fear to the exterior dominance they’ve portrayed this year.

“All of a sudden Rylee got hot,” Kirn said. “That's how you build your lead. Before you knew it, it was 13-to-nothing.”

In the blink of an eye, the Indians took right over the matchup, as they so often have this season, and the visiting Eagles got lost right away as St. Vincent claimed a 46-point win in Perryville.

Opening up JCAA play with a victory, it’s a step in the right direction for the Indians as they’re hot in pursuit of a conference championship to go with their Holiday Classic title a month ago.

Though the sights are set even higher with a potential run at a state title later this winter, for the moment it’s a glorious come-up with an all-important opening victory that’s sure to send some shockwaves within the conference.

Allowing just 7 points in the first half, the new-look Indians’ confidence and collaboration have propelled them to new heights, and Kirn’s got them humming as they enter the start of a big late-season stretch.

The Indians next host Meadow Heights at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, with the hosting St. Vincent eyeing a 10th consecutive victory against the Panthers, sitting at 5-7 on the year.