Danville 53, Northridge 51
Danville (3-3, 1-2) and Northridge (3-5, 2-4) battled it out until the end with a fourth-quarter shootout, and Jaylyn Workman was able to make some timely free throws down the stretch to help seal a 53-51 win for the Blue Devils on Dec. 20.
Danville went up 12-6 after one quarter, with Workman providing the brunt of the scoring with six points including one from 3-point range. The tables turned in the second quarter with Northridge scoring 15 points and holding Danville to nine. Jaylyn Smith and Ella Proper each hit a trey for the Blue Devils, and it was a 22-21 Northridge lead at the half.
Danville outscored Northridge 14-11 in the third quarter, with six players scoring for the Blue Devils, led by four points for Workman. The fourth proved to be the definitive quarter, as both teams scored 18 points down the stretch and the Blue Devils were able to take the tight victory. Workman had six points in the fourth quarter to lead the way.
Workman was the top Blue Devil in scoring with 20 points, on a night in which she made 11 free throws, including six clutch makes in the fourth quarter to help lead the team to victory. She also had seven rebounds, three assists and four steals. Addison Mickley had 11 points in the win, to go along with two boards, a steal and a block. Proper had seven points, two boards, a block and a steal.
Cardington-Lincoln 42, East Knox 31
Cardington-Lincoln (6-2, 4-0) had a huge night controlling the glass, with Madison Caulkins and Samantha Miller-Spires each hitting double digits in rebounds, as the Lady Pirates made easy work of the East Knox Bulldogs, 42-31, on Dec. 17.
The Pirates went up 7-5 after one quarter, highlighted by a pair of steals by Samantha Miller at the beginning of the game, as well two steals by Abigail Hardwick and one by Kaliann Hardy. Lydia Hess drained a three to lead the scoring charge in the quarter.
East Knox outscored Cardington-Lincoln 9-8 in the second quarter to make it a 15-14 game at half, in favor of the Pirates. Genevieve Longsdorf had four points in the quarter for Cardington-Lincoln and Molly Totten had four points for the Bulldogs.
In the third quarter, Longsdorf showed her defensive fortitude with a block as Cardington-Lincoln led 19-14. Later in the quarter, Hardwick drained a three to make it a 23-17 game in favor of C-L. The Pirates had a 29-22 lead after three, with Hardwick providing the firepower this quarter, with one from beyond the arc and three makes from the foul line.
Cardington-Lincoln finished strong with a 13-9 advantage in the fourth to seal the win.
The Pirates led in nearly every department, including rebounds 42-26, assists 10-3, steals 14-13 and shooting 30%-18%. East Knox shot better from the free-throw line, 68%-53%.
Cardington-Lincoln’s top scorer was Hess with 11 points. She also had three boards, three assists and three steals. Caulkins was a force defensively with 15 boards (eight on the defensive glass), a steal and a block to go with her six points and an assist. Seven of her rebounds were offensive, giving the team extra chances at scoring opportunities. Spires had five points and racked up 11 boards, six steals and an assist. Hardwick put up eight points, four assists, two steals and a board. Longsdorf had eight points, seven rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Natalie Smith led the way for East Knox with 16 points, including a pair of threes.
Johnstown-Monroe 42, Utica 39
Utica (1-5, 0-4) traveled to Johnstown-Monroe (4-4, 3-2) and fell just short in a 42-39 loss to the Johnnies on Dec. 17.
Down 4-0 in the first quarter, Utica's Bella Coulter came away with a steal that was followed by another quick steal by Skylar Parker to thwart a Johnnie scoring attempt. Riley Thompson drained a three to make it a one-point game shortly after. Trailing 8-5, Abby Dickson stole the ball and scored on a fast break layup, making it a one-point game again. She then hit a three for a 10-7 lead.
In the second quarter, the game was tied 10-10 and Abby Paxton hit a three to take a three-point lead. It was a 15-12 game when Dickson took the ball away and went coast-to-coast for a layup to go up five.
The Johnnies were up 23-19 in the third quarter when Dickson brought the Redskins within one point on a deep three. On the next Johnnie possession, Dickson stepped in front of a pass and scored on a fast break to go up by one. Up 31-26, Dickson had another steal and a bucket to continue her impressive performance, continuing when she drained a three in the fourth to make it 39-36, but the Johnnies held on for the win.
Utica did well defensively with a 9-2 steal advantage but they were out-shot 30% to 37% and out-rebounded 30-27. JHS also had an advantage in the assists, 12-7.
