News

Manchester girls win two
By The Plain Dealer staff
NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. — Megan Eckert and Jessica Hicks each scored 20 points as the Manchester girls' basketball team defeated Triton 69-52 here Monday. The Lady Squires (11-8) built a 37-28 halftime lead, then survived a seven-point third quarter as they outscored the visitors 25-10 in the final period for the win. Sophomore Carrie White added nine points for Manchester while Sherri Wagoner and freshman Heather Terflinger each had seven. The Lady Squires host Three Rivers Conference foe Oak Hill Thursday.

Manchester Girls Beat North Miami
North Miami outscored the Lady Squires 25-15 in the third quarter to take a 50-47 lead going into the fourth quarter. Sarah Garvin started the fourth quarter for the Lady Warriors by draining a 3-pointer to give North Miami a 53-47 lead, but Jennifer Jester answered right back for Manchester with a 3-pointer of her own to cut the lead back to three. Megan Eckert hit a huge 3-point field goal for the Lady Squires at the 6:10 mark of the fourth quarter to tie the game. She followed this up with a bucket and a foul, giving Manchester their first lead since the 3:41 mark of the third quarter. After trading buckets for a while, the Lady Squires built a 65-61 lead with 1:23 left in the game. But on the next trip down the floor Garvin hit another big 3-pointer for the Warriors, cutting the lead to 65-64. Erin White was fouled on Manchester's ensuing possession and hit both of her free throws to stretch its lead to 67-64. After exchanging possessions, Kristina Williams knocked down a basket for the Lady Warriors with 20 seconds left to cut the Lady Squires' lead to 67-66. Then after Manchester inbounded the ball, Eckert was fouled. North Miami tried to ice her with a time out but the senior kept her composure and knocked down both free throws to give the Lady Squires a three point, 69-66 lead with ten seconds left in the game. Eckert, the leading scorer in the TRC, ended with 25 points and eight rebounds. She was 13-for-13 from the foul line on the night. Jessica Hicks and Jester both had key performances for the Squires. Jester ended with 11 points and Hicks had 18 points and nine rebounds. "Eckert and Hicks performed as expected for us tonight but we got some key performances from some other people," Nichols said. "Jennifer Jester hit some key threes for us and Erin White hit some key free throws down the strech to help seal the victory. "Sherri Wagoner also played a great game for us. It was just a total team effort the girls showed tonight." Alissa See finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds for North Miami. Williams ended the night with 16 points and six rebounds while Garvin finished with 10 points and two rebounds. "I was real proud of the team tonight. I think they are improving greatly with each game but it was the free throw shooting that killed us in the end," North Miami coach Jody Shewman said. Shewman coached at Manchester prior to joining North Miami this season. The Lady Warriors ended the night shooting 8-for-17 (47 percent), from the line while Manchester shot 77 percent (20-for-26).

Lady Squires Lose to TRC Champs
Wabash Plain Dealer 2/5/99
ROCHESTER-Manchester dropped an 86-66 girls' Three Rivers Conference decision to Rochester here Thursday, as sophomore Jessica Hicks scored 22 points. Hicks has nine field goals-including two 3-pointers-for the Lady Squires (10-8, 3-3 TRC) and was 2 of 3 from the free-throw line. Jennifer Jester added 15 points with two 3-point field goals and 9-15 free throws. Senior Megan Eckert had just 13 points, nearly 12 below her average.

Manchester Scoring Runs Dry In Loss To Warsaw
By Jeff Holsinger, Times-Union Staff Writer
NORTH MANCHESTER –When tonight’s game with Wawasee is over, Warsaw’s girls basketball team will have faced three of the top scorers in the state in the last 24 hours. Tonight the Tigers travel to Wawasee to face Shanna Zolman and the Warriors. Zolman, a freshman, leads the state in scoring with 31.8 points per game. Tuesday night they played at Manchester, where they faced Megan Eckert, Jessica Hicks and the rest of the Squires. Eckert, a 5-foot-9 senior guard, entered the game ninth in the state at 24.8 points per game. Hicks, a 5-10 sophomore, was averaging 20.1 points per game. They combined for only 19 on 7-of-22 shooting as the Tigers pulled away late to win 53-34. Eckert hit 4 of 13 for nine points, while Hicks hit 3 of 9 for six points. “I’m not knocking Manchester, but we knew two players were obviously much of their offense,” Warsaw coach Will Wienhorst said. How did the Tigers hold them to 19 instead of their usual 45 per game? “We wanted to keep Hicks from getting the ball in the low post,” Wienhorst said. “Once Eckert gave the ball up, we wanted to make it hard for her to get it back.” Warsaw junior Sara Parker led all scorers with 17. Eckert led the Squires with 13 points. Warsaw plays four players 5-11 or taller. Manchester plays only two taller than 5-10, and only one of them, Hicks, is a scoring threat. Manchester coach Keri Nichols knew knocking down perimeter shots would be crucial. “Hicks got good looks but just missed her shots,” Nichols said. “We knew it would be tough to score inside against Warsaw. Our plan was to hit from outside and hope that would open up their zone a little bit, which we started to do at one point.” The Squires stuck with the Tigers until the last two minutes of the third quarter. Hicks’ steal and layup with 2:16 to go in the third quarter closed Warsaw’s lead to 33-30. The Tigers outscored Manchester 20-4 the rest of the way. “We play a lot of players,” Wienhorst said. “We wore them down in the second half.” Manchester closed the gap to three after trailing 29-19 at halftime as Warsaw’s offense came from only one person – Parker – through much of the second half. Still, Parker alone was enough to make sure the Squires never claimed the lead. Parker scored Warsaw’s first 15 points of the second half, all eight in the third quarter and the first seven of the fourth quarter. “(Warsaw) finally started hitting shots we were giving them all night,” Nichols said. “That No. 23 (Parker) had eight points in the third quarter ... she hit shots we had to give them because of the height difference.” No other Tiger scored in the second half until the 4:15 mark of the last quarter, when Jenna Rooney’s three-pointer pushed Warsaw’s lead to 47-30. Two things stood out about Parker’s performance: One, she scored only two points in the first half. Two, the 17 points are a career high. “I would say people are going to look at Sara’s offense, but also the way she played defense and the way she hit the boards, it was the best half of basketball of her career,” Wienhorst said. “It followed one of the poorest halves of her career. In the first half she didn’t shoot the ball well and wasn’t doing what we asked her to do.” While both teams played ragged at times – they combined for 48 turnovers – Warsaw’s rebounding, especially in the first half, more than made up for sloppy ball-handling. The Tigers grabbed 28 rebounds – in the first half – and finished with 42. Their offensive rebounding hurt Manchester in the form of second-chance scoring opportunities in the first half. They grabbed 14 offensive rebounds in the quarter, and five times they turned offensive rebounds into putbacks for easy points as the Squires failed to block out. The Tigers also won despite seeing leading scorer Katie Elliott saddled with foul trouble. The 6-foot-2 senior center, who averages 17.1 points per game, picked up her third foul with 4:11 to go in the second quarter and her fourth foul with 6:02 left in the third. Even in limited minutes, she led Warsaw with nine rebounds and finished with eight points. Manchester, 6-7 overall and 1-2 in the Three Rivers Conference, is at Tippecanoe Valley (6-6, 1-1 TRC) at 6:15 p.m. Thursday. Warsaw, 9-2 overall and 3-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference, is at Wawasee (9-2, 1-1 NLC) at 6:15 this evening. Zolman scored a career-high 43 Saturday against Tippecanoe Valley. If Warsaw’s defense can contain her the way it contained Eckert and Hicks, who combine for 60 percent of Manchester’s offense, Wienhorst will be happy.

Powerful post Manchester High School's Jessica Hicks, above, has proved to be an explosive second option for the Squires behind Megan Eckert. The sophomore post player is averaging 21.8 points per game. Photo by Steve Linsenmayer Staff Photographer Photographed Jan 08, 1999 North Manchester, IN USA

Story entered Friday, 01/15/1999
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Hicks lets point guard pick and choose
The Manchester sophomore has created options for lead scorer Eckert.

By Jeff Lockridge
of the News Sentinel

Every superstar needs a side-kick. Even Michael Jordan. Not to say that Manchester High sophomore Jessica Hicks is quite up to Scottie Pippen's standards, but she does just fine according to team leader Megan Eckert. "If we get Jessica the ball down low, she's going to do one of two things--get fouled or score," Eckert said. Eckert, a senior point guard, is the Squires' leading scorer at 24.5 points a game. That alone is impressive. Consider that she rarely gets off a shot without two or three defenders in her face, and one begins to understand why Eckert is the area's most explosive offensive player. That's where Hicks comes in. "She has helped out a lot. If I'm able to create things rather than just score, I can do a lot more and get her the ball," Eckert said. At 5-foot-11, Hicks has stormed onto the girls basketball scene and given Eckert some much needed scoring relief. Hicks knew losing three starters this year meant she would be counted on for big numbers. She has responded by boosting her average of seven points a game last season to 21.8 points a game this season. "I knew it would be tough, but I knew I could handle it," Hicks said. "Do I feel like Megan has confidence in me? She keeps passing me the ball. That's fine with me. No complaints here." Hicks attributes half of her points to offensive rebounds. She is averaging 10.4 bounds a game. Hicks plays power forward and center for first year coach Keri Nichols. After earning a spot in the starting lineup midway through her freshman year, she has solidified her role this season under a new offensive system. "We put a lot of emphasis on our post game, just for the fact that Megan has a lot of pressure bringing the ball down court," Nichols said. "Now teams are having to worry about Jessica in the post, and they can't send anyone up from the post to double team Megan. A lot of our success can be attributed to Jessica. She's surprising people." Much of Hicks' progress can be traced back to last summer. While her competition was at the local swimming pool in search of the ultimate tan, Hicks maintained a rigorous workout schedule. She played for a Whitko AAU team on the weekends, a Wawasee club league on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and spent her days off developing new moves at nearby Maple Park and lifting weights. "I'd say that probably helped out," Hicks said. "When I got on the AAU team I started working really hard. I worked on posting up, driving the baseline, shooting--stuff like that." Hicks' play has helped Manchester turn a rebuilding year into a competitive campaign. The Squires are 6-5 and have been contenders in every game but one. Nichols believes Hicks made her biggest strides in the season opener against Bluffton. Hicks scored 27 in leading Manchester to victory and helped exact some measure of revenge on the Tigers, who bested the Squires in the Class 2A semi-state a year ago. "It was a big game in that Jessica started to show that last year wasn't a fluke," Nichols said. "I think she has to be consider one of, if not the best, sophomore in this area of the state." Hicks' newfound success has not gone unnoticed. Opponents are now clamping down on her, which could lessen her point production. "Some games I get double-teamed, but that's fine because that leaves others open to score," Hicks said. "It's always exciting to score, but I would trade in all my points just to win." With the departure of Eckert after this season, Hicks will shed the sidekick label and take on the "superstar" role herself. Not that she's ready to be the next Michael Jordan. Or even the next Megan Eckert. But she makes an awfully good Jessica Hicks. "I've thought about it, and I'll probably have to be a bigger leader next year with Megan gone," Hicks said. "I don't have any idea what it will be like. I just want to do the best I can."

Whitko tops Lady Squires
By Samuel-Shane Cooper
Wabash Plain Dealer December 4, 1998
NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. — BrieAnn Starkweather scored 31 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Whitko over Manchester 74-62 here Thursday in a Three Rivers Conference matchup. The 5-foot-11 senior shot 14-of-19 from the field while dominating the inside. Whitko (4-2 overall, 2-0 in the TRC) held a convincing lead throughout most of the game, making runs of 10 and 11 points on two separate occasions and taking the lead to as many as 21 in the third quarter. "We didn't play our game from the beginning," Manchester coach Keri Nichols said. "We weren't consistent." The Lady Squires (3-2, 1-1) took an early 8-7 lead with 5:31 remaining in the first quarter, but Whitko went on a 15-5 run to end the period with a 22-13 lead. Forward Jessica Hicks kept Manchester in the game, shooting 4-for-6 from the field while scoring eight points in the second quarter. However, Starkweather's 5-for-5, 10-point, second-quarter performance helped the Lady Wildcats push their lead to 42-28 at halftime. Whitko began the third quarter on a 7-0 run. Stephanie Warner converted a bounce pass from Kelly Osborn into two points giving the Lady Wildcats their biggest lead of the game at 49-28. On Manchester's next possession, Hicks continued her hot shooting —starting with a drive in the lane — recording eight points as she led Manchester on an 8-1 run to bring the Lady Squires within 12 points 4:22 into the third quarter. Warner answered for Whitko, scoring five straight points including a 3-point play. Hicks tipped in a lob pass from guard Megan Eckert to end the third quarter, cutting the Lady Wildcat lead to 57-46. The fourth quarter belonged to Hicks and Eckert. The duo scored 15 of Manchester's 16 fourth-quarter points and combined for all but two of the Lady Squires' field-goal attempts. Manchester outscored the Lady Wildcats 9-3 to begin the final period. "We expect a lot of Jessica (Hicks) and Megan (Eckert)," Nichols said. "We'll give them the ball until the other team can stop them." Even with the late Manchester heroics, Whitko bounced back with a 9-4 run to end the game. Eckert finished the game with 25 points on 10-for-20 shooting and six rebounds while Hicks scored 27 points on 11-for-17 shooting. She also grabbed three rebounds. Manchester will host Marion at noon Saturday.

Eckert paces Lady Squires to win
Wabash Plain Dealer November 30, 1998
By Chris Garner
WABASH, Ind. — The Manchester girls' basketball team rode an extremely hot third quarter and the equally-hot Megan Eckert to a 95-50 win over Wabash at Coolman Gymnasium Saturday. Leading 35-20 at the half, the Lady Squires came out on fire in the third period, hitting 75 percent (15-of-20) of their shots from field and outscoring the Lady Apaches 34-19. For the game, Manchester was 28-of-53 (53 percent) from the field and 6-of-13 from 3-point range. Eckert, a 5-foot-9 senior who twice has been named Wabash County's Player of the Year, led the Lady Squires with 28 points while hauling down 10 rebounds. After hitting only one of her two shots in the first period, she finished 13-of-22 for the game from the floor and hit six of the eight shots she took in that fateful third quarter. "We were due one of those quarters," Keri Nichols said after winning her third game as coach of the Lady Squires in four tries. "We were really lackadaisical in the first half, but we were pleased with the second half." Manchester shot 65 percent (24-of-37) while amassing 60 second-half points. Sophomore Jessica Hicks followed Eckert with 21 points and Sherri Wagoner with nine points on three 3-pointers. Hicks led the Lady Squires with 14 rebounds as the smaller and undermanned Lady Apaches were out-rebounded 50-30. Senior forward Beth Dock did not play, she was vacationing with her family for the holiday. Gina Curtis led Wabash with 22 points. She also had six rebounds from her guard position. Sophomore Nikki Randas had 12 points and 10 rebounds while classmate Tara Jackson had 13 points, suffering through 1-of-18 shooting while hitting 11-of-14 free throws. As a team, the Lady Apaches shot only 23 percent (12-of-53) from the field in the face of Manchester's full-court pressure the entire game. Only outscoring the Lady Squires 22-11 from the free-throw line eased the margin to 45 points. Eckert was simply unstoppable, operating the Manchester offense from her spot at point guard. When not dishing off to insiders Carrie White, Ann Harms or Hicks, she was driving and slashing her way to the basket, hitting soft jumpers or rebounding her own misses and following them up. "Megan is really starting to come into the point-guard position," said Nichols. "She's just now starting to see some of the opportunities." White finished the game with 10 rebounds and six points and Harms had eight points and four rebounds. Manchester will host Whitko Thursday in a Three Rivers Conference battle while Wabash entertains Southwood the same evening.

Manchester girls win
By The Plain Dealer staff
WABASH, Ind. — Megan Eckert scored a game-high 23 points to lead Manchester to a 60-43 win over county rival and host Southwood Tuesday. The 5-foot-9 senior, twice Wabash County's Player of the Year, had seven field goals, including a 3-pointer, and was 8-for-9 from the charity stripe. Sophomore forward Jessica Hicks, averaging 27 points in the Lady Squires' first two games, added 16 points while freshman Ann Harms had nine points in only two quarters of play. Brooke McKee led the Lady Knights (0-3) with 14 points on seven field goals. Laura Kinder had nine points and Annie Cly chipped in with eight. Manchester also won the junior varsity game 39-20. Southwood plays in the Caston Invitational Saturday while the Lady Squires travel with the boys' team to Wabash for a varsity doubleheader Saturday beginning at 6 p.m.

Wabash Plain Dealer 11/18/98
Concordia downs Lady Squires
By The Plain Dealer staff
NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. — Megan Eckert led all scorers with 30 points and sophomore Jessica Hicks added 27, but it wasn't enough to keep Manchester from dropping a 75-70 decision to Fort Wayne Concordia in girls' basketball here Tuesday. The tandem of Eckert and Hicks combined for 81 percent of the Lady Squires' offense. Erin White chipped in five points and four rebounds while Sherri Wagoner added three points and three rebounds. Hicks had nine rebounds to lead Manchester. Eckert, Haley Brown, Carrie White and Megan Sell each had four. Eckert also dished out five assists. Jenny Conkle had 21 points to lead the Lady Cadets. Macy Vogelgesang added 13 points and Jessica Carl had 10. Manchester (1-1) travels to Southwood Tuesday.

November 12, 1998 Fort Wayne Newspaper
Manchester Squires
Coach: Keri Nichols, first season, (0-0).
Last year: 21-4 overall, 7-0 TRC. Lost to Bluffton in the semistate championship game.
Letter winners: Six returning, four lost.
Strengths: The Squires have a player who can light up the scoreboard in 5-foot-7 swing player Megan Eckert. She averaged 17.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last year. Jessica Hicks will play the post. Hicks averaged 7.4 points per game and grabbed 6.3 rebounds per game.
Weaknesses: Manchester is talented, but still very young. Eckert and Sherri Wagoner are the only seniors on the roster. The Squires will also need to replace the backcourt of Katie Parker and Jodie Peden.
Outlook: Manchester has built a fine tradition in the last few seasons. It's up to new Nichols to continue that tradition. "I think if we can be patient for the first half of the season and continue to learn, we should have a very successful season," Nichols said.

Schedule 

Nov. 13 at Bluffton 

Nov. 17 Concordia 

Nov. 24 at Southwood 

Nov. 28 at Wabash 

Dec. 3 Whitko 

Dec. 5 Marion 

Dec. 12 Wawasee tourney 

Dec. 17 at Maconaquah 

Dec. 29 Wabash County tourney 

Dec. 30 Wabash County tourney 

Jan. 5 at Central Noble 

Jan. 11 at North Miami 

Jan. 14 Triton 

Jan. 16 Northfield 

Jan. 19 Warsaw 

Jan. 21 at T. Valley 

Jan. 28 Lewis Cass 

Feb. 4 at Rochester 

Feb. 11 Oak Hill

Lady Squires win opener
Wabash Plain Dealer November 14, 1998
By Roy Church
BLUFFTON, Ind. — Sophomore Jessica Hicks scored 27 points to lead Manchester to a 70-64 victory over Bluffton Friday in the season opener for both teams. The victory made Keri Nichols a winner in her debut as head coach of the Lady Squires. Manchester, who lost to Bluffton in the championship game of the Class 2A semistate last season, jumped out to a 20-11 lead after the first quarter and a 38-22 halftime lead. “We had a good first half,” Nichols said. “Hicks was hot inside early and we benefited from three 3-pointers in the first quarter.” They came from Jennifer Jester, Megan Sell and Megan Eckert. “We are a very young team, and it’s hard to play with the lead,” Nichols said. Bluffton came back in the second half, outscoring the Lady Squires 42-32, but never getting closer than the final margin. “They hit some 3’s and we missed some easy shots,” Nichols, a former assistant at Martinsville, said. Outscored from the field, Manchester connected on 22 of 28 free throw attempts to win the game. Eckert, last year’s leading scorer, hit 10 of 12 and finished with 17 points. Lindsay Wolf led Bluffton with 14 points. Jill Shanklin added 12 points and Jaymie Garrett had 10. Manchester hosts Fort Wayne Concordia Tuesday.

© 1997 brhicks@ctlnet.com

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