By Ron Poniewasz Jr.
and Joe Simon
New Castle News

There was more than one loss for the New Castle High girls basketball team last night.

The Lady ’Canes suffered a 74-73 loss at the Ne-Ca-Hi Field House to undefeated Vincentian Academy, snapping their seven-game losing streak, and also lost senior standout Kaylynn Waters to a knee injury.

Waters, who leads Lawrence County with a 25.5 points-per-game average, was driving to the basket and planted her foot on a jump-stop move when her right knee buckled. She crumbled to the ground and lay there for nearly 15 minutes before walking gingerly off the court, New Castle coach Jason Rankin said.

The extent of the injury is not yet known, Rankin said, but it’s a potentially devastating blow to the Lady ’Canes and Waters, who tore her left anterior cruciate ligament in their fourth game last year and missed the rest of the season.

“She really turned it on and was playing well,” said Rankin of Waters, who had 26 points and 10 rebounds before the injury. “The game was tied when she got hurt with about four minutes left in the fourth. She was getting to the basket, drove and stopped, and I guess it just gave out.
“Just from the initial examination by the trainers, they thought it was something more in the back of the knee, possibly a sprain, but we just don’t know.”

New Castle is ranked No. 2 in the WPIAL in Class AAA by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and No. 4 in the state in Class AAA by the Patriot-News of Harrisburg.

Vincentian Academy is ranked No. 2 in the WPIAL in Class A by the Post-Gazette and No. 7 in the state in Class A by the Patriot-News of Harrisburg.

Christina Talbert stepped up in Waters’ absence. She scored a game-high 27 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, but missed free throws doomed New Castle. The Lady ’Canes were 13 of 31 from the line and missed four free throws in the final few minutes of the game. Each time New Castle could have taken the lead.

“They’re undefeated, so they’re a good team and they know how to win,” Rankin said. “You just cannot leave the door open in a situation like that — miss 18 free throws and expect to win.”

Four players scored in double figures for Vincentian (15-0), led by Brenna Wise’s 19 points. Kelsey Scott added 14 markers for New Castle (11-4), which plays Blackhawk, second in WPIAL Section 2-AAA, on Thursday.

Rankin said the Lady ’Canes, who have already clinched a playoff berth, are staying optimistic in regards to Waters’ injury.

“We’re keeping our fingers crossed and hoping it’s a sprain and she’ll be back in a short period of time,” he said. “She’s going to see the doctor who did the operation on the other knee, hopefully (today). And obviously her health is the most important thing.”

If Waters is out long term, Rankin said there isn’t one person to fill the role. It would be a team-wide process.

“We still have some players,” he said. “Dana (Perrotta) and Rachael (Razzano) have played well at times. But I’m not going to act like we’re not going to miss her. It’s huge, whether it’s one game or the season. She’s our leading scorer, our leading rebounder — she’s the heart and soul of our team. No doubt. I hate that we have to go through this again, but we have to live with it and play and play the best we can.”