East Knox 61, Lucas 19
The East Knox Bulldogs (2-2, 1-0) showed up to play in a big way Dec. 7 against Lucas (0-4, 0-1), with the team controlling the pace on both ends of the court in a 61-19 win.
The Bulldogs went up 12-6 after one quarter and took the momentum into the second quarter, outscoring Lucas 19-6 to go up 31-12 at the half. In the third quarter, East Knox was cruising with a 19-2 advantage led by senior Natalie Smith’s seven points and six points for sophomore Ella Divan. East Knox finished the game strong, outscoring Lucas 11-5 on the way to a big 61-19 win.
“Our girls played hard as a team last night,” EK Coach Mandy Todd said after the game. “Our goal was to hold Lucas to under 20 points and we achieved that. We want our defense to define us and the girls showed that last night.”
Smith finished the game with 17 points, including a pair of makes from downtown. Divan had 12 points and sophomore Sydney Opfer scored eight points in the win.
"It was a total team effort as most players scored and all contributed defensively,” Todd said.
Zanesville 61, Utica 29
The Zanesville Blue Devils (3-1, 2-1) hosted Utica (1-4, 0-2) Dec. 6 and while the Redskins hung tight in the first quarter, the middle of the game belonged to Zanesville in a 61-29 win thanks to a three-headed monster of scoring.
Utica’s Carlie Hill's athletic steal in the first quarter and Abby Dickson's 3-pointer made it a 7-5 Zanesville game early. With Zanesville up 9-7 in the first quarter, Utica's Bridgette Posey blocked a shot near the basket. Hill then followed up with another steal with the game at 11-7 Zansesville. It was 11-9 and Zanesville was threatening to score in the low post, but Riley Thompson thwarted the opportunity with a steal. Zanesville had a 15-11 lead after one quarter, making it anyone’s game.
The Blue Devils then went off for 26 points while holding the Redskins to seven in the second. Callie Baker had a steal in the quarter for the Redskins and Bella Coulter nailed a 3-pointer.
Trailing 41-18 entering the third quarter, the Redskins had trouble finding the hoop and were outscored 17-5. A highlight for Utica was a steal by Kaitlyn Evans. Utica outscored Zanesville in the fourth quarter, but the Blue Devils were already well out of reach on their way to 32-point win. Abby Paxton and Leigha Burnett each had blocked shots for the Redskins in the final quarter.
Zanesville was led by a trio of juniors who combined for 49 of the team’s 61 points. Andrea Steger-Sowers had 17 points, Jada Seyfried scored 16 points and Jersey Draughn scored 15 points.
Mount Gilead 40, Highland 33
Mount Gilead (4-0, 2-0) remained perfect in the young season in a tough win Dec. 7 over Highland (0-6, 0-2), thanks to solid game by senior guard Madilyn Elson, who scored half the team’s points in a 40-33 victory.
The game was tight from the opening tipoff, with the Indians and Lady Scots knotted at 14-14 after one quarter. Sophomore Faith White had a big quarter with seven points to lead the offense. Both teams had trouble finding the basket in the second quarter, with the Indians outscoring Highland 5-4. Elson scored all five points on a three and a pair of free throws for the Indians.
Mount Gilead had a 19-18 lead going into the third quarter, and the Indians did a great job defensively by not allowing a single Highland point while putting up 11. Highland finished the game outscoring the Indians 15-8, but Mount Gilead hung on for the seven-point win.
Elson, who is the top scorer in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference, scored 20 points to lead all scorers in the win, including a pair of 3-pointers. She was also 8-for-9 from the free-throw line. White was in double figures with 11 points on the night.
Aubree Bellamy led the way for Highland with seven points, including a 3-pointer. Abby Jordan scored five points.
