The Turkey Valley girls basketball team had plenty to celebrate last week.
There was the victory Tuesday over their arch-rivals. There was Bella Stika’s school-record 26 rebounds in that 39-36 win over South Winneshiek. There was the 68-13 Senior Night victory over West Central on Friday. There was Kee High’s 38-28 win over MFL MarMac the same night that gave the Trojans a share of the Upper Iowa Conference title.
And, maybe most importantly, there was the return of a senior player who was the victim of a Jet-Ski accident this past summer.
“The biggest celebration belonged to Ashlyn Busta and her family on her return to the court,” Turkey Valley coach Steve Hoffert said. “The Busta family has been through so much the past year. To see Ashlyn playing the sport her and her family-love was nothing short of remarkable. Ashlyn epitomizes the way her team plays; they play with heart, they are resilient and no matter what situation, they find a way to persevere.”
Add it all up and it was quite a week for the Trojans, and it wasn’t like this week started off on the wrong foot, either, as Turkey Valley beat Class 2A 14th-ranked Jesup 48-46.
In other words, the remarkable turn-around season continues for Hoffert’s Trojans.
A year ago, Turkey Valley finished 7-15 overall and sixth in the Upper Iowa standings. On Friday, they celebrated winning a share of the Upper Iowa Conference title.
“It’s just a testament to the girls … They’ve grown up, and they’ve gotten better,” Hoffert said after his team finished with a 14-2 conference record. “They came to practice every day willing to get better. It’s just their resiliency and their maturity that has put them over the top.”
And while Kee was winning a defensive showdown with MFL MarMac, the Trojans completely dominated West Central – jumping out to a 28-2 first quarter lead and extending the advantage to 35-6 at halftime.
They did so without Steinlage but got an emotional lift from Ashlyn Busta, who started, scored two points, grabbed a rebound, dished out an assist and made a steal.
Turkey Valley had 11 players break into the scoring column. Emersyn Hoffert led the way with 18 points while Delaney Busta and Stika both added 10 points. Stika again dominated the boards with 15 rebounds.
“Playing without Addi, I don’t want to do it obviously,” Hoffert said, “but it was good to see other girls step into her role. It was a really good night, and I’d say that with or without Kee winning.”
That Kee win left both Turkey Valley and MFL MarMac with 14-2 UIC records while Kee finished third in the standings with a 13-3 mark.
The Trojans, however, will in all likelihood have to go to Lansing for its second playoff game. Turkey Valley plays host to West Central tonight (Thursday) and a victory sends them to Kee on Tuesday.
West Central 2 4 5 2 13
Turkey Valley 28 17 15 8 68
Scoring – Emersyn Hoffert 18; Bella Stika 10; Delaney Busta 10; Ellaney Bodensteiner 8; Hazel Nieman 5; Annika Bodensteiner 5; Kendall Kuennen 4; Makinley Lutgen 3; Ashlyn Busta 2; Ella Ives 2; Layni Schuchhardt 1
Rebounds – Stika 15; D. Busta 7; Nieman 4; Hoffert 4; Schuchhardt 3; Brynlee Hayek 3; E. Bodensteiner 3; A. Bodensteiner 1; A. Busta 1; Kuennen 1; Ives 1; Miyah Byrne 1; Assists – D. Busta 3; Kuennen 3; A. Bodensteiner 2; Schuchhardt 2; Stika 1; A. Busta 1; Hayek 1; Ives 1; E. Bodensteiner 1; Steals – Hayek 3; Stika 2; D. Busta 2; Kuennen 2; E. Bodensteiner 2; Nieman 1; A. Bodensteiner 1; Lutgen 1; A. Busta 1; Hoffert 1; Blocks – Ives 1; E. Bodensteiner 1
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