Lady Pirates resume winning ways with 54-11 demolition of Rockets
The Cardington-Lincoln Lady Pirates got back on track in a big way, demolishing Ridgedale, 54-11, Monday. After dropping two of their last four, losing to strong Division II programs at River Valley and Clear Fork, sandwiched around securing their seventh consecutive KMAC title and increasing their KMAC winning streak to 68 games with wins over Mount Gilead and Fredericktown, Cardington-Lincoln had a nonconference match scheduled against the Ridgedale Rockets. On paper, it looked like a good matchup, as Ridgedale entered the game at 9-5 and 4-0 in Northwest Central Conference play, and Cardington came in at 15-2 overall and 11-0 in KMAC games.
The Rockets connected on only four field goals all game (one was a 3-pointer) and scored only three total points in the final three quarters.
The game was not in doubt from the early going, as Cardington controlled play over the Rockets squad, taking a 21-8 lead in the first quarter on three field goals by Abi Hardwick and a three and a deuce by Beth Hardwick, to lead five C-L scorers. In the second, an 18-1 run put the Lady Pirates ahead 39-9 at halftime. Seven Cardington girls scored in the second, with Beth Hardwick netting five points.
Cardington-Lincoln coach Jamie Edwards emptied his bench in the second half, with the Lady Pirates outscoring the Rockets 7-2 in the third and 8-0 in the fourth to finish with a 43-point win.
Eight players entered the scorebook for Cardington-Lincoln, led by Beth Hardwick with 14, Mikayla Linkous with nine and freshman Abi Hardwick with eight. Kambry Edwards, Karsyn Edwards and Emalee Artz each scored six.
In a complete team effort, seven girls pulled down rebounds, led by Abi Hardwick’s seven. Six players had assists, paced by Dana Bertke’s five and four each by Edwards and Karsyn Edwards, and seven players recorded steals, dominated by Kambry Edwards’ seven and Karsyn Edwards’ six to go along with her team-leading eight deflections.
Readying for the playoffs, Cardington-Lincoln increased its season mark to 16-2.
Lady Trojans drop road game to Vikings, 59-44
In a Feb. 8 match, Centerburg’s girls continued their rough season as Columbus Academy downed the visiting Lady Trojans 59-44. Centerburg lost its 14th straight to fall to 1-17, while the Lady Vikings improved to 13-7 (9-4 in Mid-State Ohio).
The struggle continued for Centerburg as it fell behind 22-9 after one quarter. Eleanor Schroeder nailed three threes in the first to set the tone for the Vikes. Clara Johnson had four points in the frame for C-Burg. By the time the horn went off for the break, Columbus was ahead 35-16.
Centerburg found its scoring touch with 11 points in the third, but it was no match for the prowess of the Vikes' Emily Rinner, who netted 10 of Columbus Academy’s 20 points in the quarter. The CA output was enough to put the game away for the Lady Vikings, as they stretched the lead to 55-27. Kennedi Glenn’s 3-pointer was the high spot of the quarter for Centerburg.
In the fourth, Kayla Larimore came alive with seven points and Riley Skillman put in six for the Lady Trojans, who closed the gap to respectability while Columbus emptied their bench.
Larimore finished with 15 points to lead seven Centerburg scorers. Johnson added nine and Skillman eight to pace the squad.
