The Centerburg Trojans extended their undefeated season with a commanding 53-33 victory over Cardington on Friday night, improving to 8-0 on the year.
The Trojans’ defense set the tone, forcing 29 turnovers and limiting the Pirates to just 3-of-6 shooting from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Centerburg capitalized with 14-of-21 shooting from the charity stripe and a red-hot 7-of-16 from beyond the arc.
Centerburg head coach Bill Abner was pleased with his team’s resilience after Cardington jumped out to an early 8-2 lead.
“We knew that Cardington was going to come to play, and they jumped out to an early 8-2 lead on us. That’s the largest lead anyone has had on us this year. They’ve got talented kids on that team, so I was really happy with the way that we responded, finishing off the quarter on a 12-0 run,” Abner said. “Kenlee’s 30-footer at the buzzer was also a huge spark.”
That momentum carried into the second quarter, as the Trojans held the Pirates scoreless for over five minutes to take control of the game. Centerburg’s defense was particularly effective in limiting Cardington’s standout player, Hardwick, who finished with just 4 points — all in the first quarter.
“I think that really established the tone for the rest of the game. Holding Hardwick to 4 points was huge. She’s a very good player, so we knew we had to contain her,” Abner said. “I thought we executed our defense fairly well.”
Kayla Larimore led all scorers with 17 points, continuing her consistent play for the Trojans.
“Kayla scoring 17 is par for the course for her. She’s just an amazingly consistent player. Night in and night out she finds ways to score and help our team win. As a coach, you don’t want to take a kid like that for granted. She just brings it every single game,” Abner remarked.
Tiara Sheppard was a key contributor as well, finishing with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 steals, while Kenlee Faurall added 12 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds. Faurall also knocked down 2 of her 5 three-point attempts, helping to stretch the defense.
“It was good to see Kenlee knock down some threes. She’s been struggling a bit shooting in games, but she can really shoot it in practice, so I knew it was a matter of time,” said Abner. “I’m also happy for Tiara. She’s turned herself into a legitimate 3-point threat this year. She’s now 5/15 on the year after going 3/4 tonight.”
Evie Stowe, despite a scary moment when she took a hard fall in the third quarter, played a key role on both ends of the floor with 4 steals, 3 assists, and 4 rebounds. Stowe finished with 2 points.
“Evie took a nasty spill in the 3rd quarter, and I was really worried when she fell. Her vertical is insane, and when she leaps like that, sometimes bad things can happen,” Abner said. “She’s such a huge part of our team, so it was definitely a scary moment. You look at the box score and see she had 2 points, but it doesn’t show how she runs the offense. She also grabbed 4 rebounds, had 3 assists, and 4 steals. She’s a classic example of a kid who is vital to a team’s success without needing to score a lot.”
