The Centerburg Trojans (7-2, 3-1) made it five straight wins with a 55-39 victory over Utica (4-5, 3-1), where Kayla Larimore and Tiara Sheppard combined for 38 points in a Dec. 29 home non-conference battle.
Centerburg got out to a 4-0 lead, but Utica’s Abby Dickson cut the lead to one with a three. However, it was all Trojans the rest of the opening quarter, finishing 18-5. In total the Trojans were able to go on a 21-4 run, getting out to 25-7 in the second quarter. Dickson then nailed her second three of the game to make it a 15 point game. Kennedi Glenn was huge in the first half for the Trojans, going for four threes to lead the charge.
“We came out and jumped on them 18-3 which honestly surprised me,” said Centerburg Coach Bill Abner. “I wasn't sure how we'd start because we played Northridge the night before, but we came out with great energy. Of course, Kennedi knocking down four first half threes really broke things open.”
Utica showed plenty of fight in the third quarter, however. Centerburg was up 33-19, but Dickson continued to be the bright spot for the Redskins with her third three of the game to cut the lead to 11. Callie Baker scored on a fast break for Utica to make it 41-26, which was followed by an Emily Ritzer steal and then another three for Dickson to make it a 41-29 game. Dickson then had a steal for Utica, but couldn’t score on the possession keeping it a 12 point game.
By the fourth quarter it was 52-35 on a three by Grace Cyphers of Utica, but Centerburg was able to hold on for the win.
Larimore was the top scorer in the game with 23 points. She worked hard to get to the charity stripe, while also hitting her foul shots, going 11-for-14. This season has been a back-and-forth battle between Larimore and Fredericktown’s Cally Carpenter for the KMAC scoring title. The junior Trojan is currently second with a scoring average of 18.6 ppg.
Sheppard had a double-double, going for 15 points and 10 boards. Kennedi Glenn also hit double figures with 12 points, all coming on threes in the first half. Kenlee Fairall and Evie Stowe contributed nicely with four assists and five steals apiece.
“Total team effort,” Coach Abner said. “Kennedi was red hot in the first half, Evie had a great game at point and caused havoc defensively. Kenlee was all over the court on defense and Kayla and Tiara continued to be a great one-two punch for us on offense. And Chesnee and Taylor gave us great minutes off the bench, We played one of our most complete games of the year.”
Utica was led by Dickson, who had 15 points including her four makes from downtown. Ritzer scored nine points and had two steals, and Cyphers had seven points.
The Redskins had won four straight before the loss, so this was a big matchup for the Trojans.
“We knew going in that Utica was very dangerous and riding a four game win streak,” said Coach Abner. “They have shooters with effective size down low and that would present a lot of challenges to us. But like we have done for most of the year, our defense was up to the challenge and I thought we really flew around and caused them to force a few things.”
Centerburg also beat Northridge the night before the Utica win, by a score of 56-39.
Larimore and Sheppard were the stars of this game as well, with 17 and 16 points respectively. Larimore was 5-for-6 from the foul line and Sheppard was 3-for-4, while also hitting a three. Glenn was hot again from deep, nailing three from downtown and putting up 11 points. Stowe had seven points, Fairall had three points and Taylor Bryant scored two points.
Coach Abner said the Trojans need to get healthy, as they have battled a flu bug that he admitted has knocked the Trojans off balance a bit. However, they are off to a great first half of the season.
“We know there is a lot of basketball left,” Abner said. “I am very pleased with how hard we're playing. It's such a fun group to work with. But we're about to enter the grind of January and that always tells the true story of a team. We hope we're up for the challenge.”
