The Columbus Wildcat girls’ basketball team (4-4 overall) will begin the second half of their season tonight without one of their senior leaders. Senior forward Laura Mincks, a three year starter for the Wildcats, suffered a season ending leg injury in the opening minutes of Columbus’s 63-43 setback to the West Liberty.
Despite not recording any stats in the last two games of 2015, Mincks enters the new year as the Wildcats’ top rebounder. Her 58 rebounds are 18 more than anyone else on the squad. She brought down exactly 29 offensive and defensive rebounds before having her season end abruptly.
Columbus girls’ basketball coach Kasey Keltner states Mincks’ athletic impact stems much further than the hardwood, saying she will likely miss her final high school track and softball seasons due to the injury. The Wildcats were 4-2 with Mincks in the lineup this season.
Columbus’s first test of the 2016 calendar year comes against Mediapolis (5-2 overall) tonight. The varsity girls’ tip is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Columbus Junction.