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Mustangs fall short at home

By Rob Longo

For the Mirror

PORTAGE — Inside Len Chappell Gymnasium at Portage High School, there is a list of 1,000-point scorers that have left their mark on the girls basketball program. Of those eight names, the two most recent are Emily Chobany and Lexi Wozniak, each of who have played within the past four years. The duo may have graduated by now, but the last names remain a staple on the Mustang roster, as Kasey Chobany and Kaelyn Wozniak combined for nearly a third of Portage’s points in Thursday’s 65-62 loss to North Star.

“(Chobany and Wozniak) understand the game of basketball,” Lance Hudak, who is in his 20th season of coaching at Portage. “They work hard year-round to get better. They do everything out of season that it takes to get better. They come from families that are committed to the sport and are two great kids to have on the court out there.”

Kaelyn and Kasey come from a lineage of Portage players. Chobany is the third of four sisters, while Wozniak is the middle child between three sisters. While the two have plenty in common, there are some playing styles that separate them apart.

“Kasey is a lockdown defender,” Hudak said. “She wants to play the best offensive player on the other team. Her sister was the same way. They take pride in their defense and shutting down that girl on the other end.”

They say opposites attract, so naturally Wozniak is the sharpshooter that looks to poach the perimeter. This held true on Thursday, as the junior buried a pair of 3-pointers en route to her 12 points. Wozniak tries to emulate her shot after her sister Lexi, which reached the 1,000-point plateau mostly due to her quick release on long-range shots.

With similar paths to the game of basketball, the duo drew their inspiration from different family members.

“My dad played basketball and it just runs through the family,” Wozniak said. “He coached me all the way through junior high until I got to varsity. We always had a pickup game (between my dad, sisters and cousins) going, even on Christmas.”

“We have a court in our backyard and (Emily) would set up a basketball camp for me and my sisters because she loved the game so much, and she wanted to spread her love for the game,” said Kasey Chobany. “I remember her being outside trying to make her last shot in the rain while we were all inside. I remember watching Emily’s games and how she would give it her all up and down the court on offense and defense. She taught me a lot about how they’re both equally important.”

Despite all of the chemistry, Thursday’s contest didn’t go the way of the Chobany, Wozniak or the Mustangs, as Portage suffered its third loss in conference play and the second one to North Star this season. But the focus shifts to the district playoffs, somewhere the Mustangs have thrived in the past. And the next generation of Wozniak’s and Chobany’s hope to make an impact there.

“We focused on defense for most of the first part of the year, especially our help defense,” said Chobany, a senior. “We’ve lost sight of our offense a little bit. I’m going to embrace the rest of this year and hope to go farther than we ever have.”

There will be no shortage of dedication either. Kasey and Kaelyn head to the gym every morning at 6 a.m. before school starts to shoot around before the late bell rings. Kaelyn’s father George rebounds for them as well, maximizing their efforts.

“The girls up on that wall; we’ve got a good hierarchy here at Portage,” said Hudak. “When I took over here, it wasn’t so much like that. Those girls up on the banner played on very successful teams. These girls underneath them now are aspiring to that.”

NORTH STAR (65): Eutin 1 1-2 3, Friedline 9 3-3 25, Miller 3 1-3 8, Joseph 5 3-3 16, Carmean 3 2-2 8, Alexander 0 3-4 3, Ashbrook 1 0-0 2. Totals: 22 13-17 65.

PORTAGE (62): Papcun 1 3-6 5, Dividock 2 2-2 7, Chobany 3 0-0 6, Wozniak 5 0-0 12, Glass 6 5-5 19, Riskus 4 1-2 9, Hudak 0 0-0 0, Crum 0 0-0 0, Teno 0 0-0 0, Kissel 2 0-0 4. Totals: 23 11-15 62.

SCORE BY QUARTER:

North Star 11 14 21 19–65

Portage 14 18 14 16–62

3-point goals: North Star 8 (Friedline 4, Joseph 3, Miller); Portage 5 (Dividock, Wozniak 2, Glass 2).

Records: North Star (9-5; 5-1 West PAC-North); Portage (11-5; 4-3 West PAC-North).

Officials: George Figurea, Terri Perritak, Vicki Markowietz

JV: No game

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