The No. 9 Cardington-Lincoln girls’ basketball team upset No. 6 Bishop Ready to take the Sectional title in the Division II Central 1 Sectional/District tournament on Feb. 24, with a 52-47 victory.
Bishop Ready jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the first quarter, but Kinstin Henthorn brought the Pirates within two with a three. She then made a difference on the other side of the floor, snagging a loose ball for a steal. Henthorn continued her strong first quarter, putting the Pirates on top 8-7 on her second three of the game. Later in the quarter, down 15-12, she tied up the game with her third make from deep. The Silver Knights were up 17-15 after one quarter of play.
In the second quarter, Bishop Ready was up 21-17, when Henthorn went from deep again to make it a one point game. The game was tied 24-24, and Magi Hallabrin stepped in front of a pass for a steal. It was a see-saw battle in the quarter, and at the end of the first half the game was tied 28-28.
“Bishop Ready was a very tough opponent that plays a tough schedule so we knew that they would be well prepared,” said Coach Kevin Fitzpatrick. “In the first half, the key was making shots. We were able to answer every time Ready made a play. Kinstin Henthorn made 4 threes and kept us in the game. It was a tight and well played first 16 minutes.”
With Bishop Ready up 37-32, Lydia Hess had an open look from three and drained the bucket to cut the lead to two. Cardington-Lincoln took a two point lead after three quarters by outscoring the Silver Knights 13-11.
The Pirates finished out strong, outscoring Bishop Ready 12-8 to seal the win.
“The second half we decided to play mostly man to man defense so that we could find their shooters,” Fitzpatrick said. “It worked out well for us because we stopped that part of their game. I think we held them to 2 made threes after they made five in the first half.”
Cardington-Lincoln led 37-26 in rebounds, 11-9 in assists and 11-8 in steals. Both teams shot 35%, but Bishop Ready had the upper hand from three at 33% to 29%. The Pirates made 67% of their free throws, and the Silver Knights were at 60% from the charity stripe.
“I thought we controlled the glass and were very aggressive in the paint,” Fitzpatrick said. “Our post players were able to get some buckets in transition and that made a difference. I thought that Abbi Hardwick did well handling their pressure and making her free throws down the stretch when we needed them.”
Henthorn and Hardwick each had 12 points in the game to lead the scoring for the Pirates. Henthorn had two assists, two steals and a rebound. Hardwick grabbed four boards, and tallied three assists and three steals. Madison Caulkins put up nine points and grabbed 10 rebounds. She also had three assists and two blocks. Bertke tallied eight points, five boards, two assists and two steals. Hallabrin had five points, six rebounds and three steals.
“I’m so proud of my kids and the way that they’ve evolved over the season,” Fitzpatrick said. “We’re playing three freshmen significant in some games and they’ve really grown up and gotten better. I’m proud of the entire team because they were involved and engaged the whole game whether they were on the court or the bench. That’s truly what the word “team” means. Couldn’t be happier.”
Next up for the Pirates is a matchup between No. 5 Centerburg, as the KMAC foe is coming off a sectional championship win over No. 11 Worthington Christian. The game takes place on Feb. 26 at 7 p.m.
