The Highland girls basketball team celebrated Senior Night in style as all five of those upperclassmen contributed in a 95-33 win over Elwood Tuesday night. None of those five fared better than the Scots’ Raven Ivey, whose 28 points lifted her to 1,008 for her career. She hit the magic number with 6:14 to go in the third quarter on a breakaway layup. Ivey wasn’t impatient to get to the milestone, even though she needed 20 going into the contest to reach the coveted 1,000-point plateau. She passed up easy scoring opportunities several times during the game in favor of easier chances for her teammates. On the evening, Ivey hit 14 of 19 from the field and just missed a double-double by adding nine rebounds. Both were game-high totals, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have plenty of help. Two other seniors also scored in double digits: Stormy Holder and Kyla Lacy. Holder hit half of her dozen shots and collected eight boards on her way to 14 points. Lacy was a point behind, hitting 6-of-13 from the field. The Scots raced out to a 26-5 lead after a quarter and were never threatened. “We wanted to cause a lot of pressure turnovers,” Highland coach Tod Windlan said. “After the first quarter, we backed off to half court and worked on some things that we wanted to for next week (sectional).” Even the other two seniors will remember their final game in Robert Fuller Memorial Gym. Kiera Allen hit both of her shots and collected a couple of rebounds.  “I thought Kiera played great,” said Windlan. “She was altering some shots. We need her to be a physical presence for us next week.” Jaleesa Mohr took just two shots also, but made one of them to finish her final game on a high note. “It was great that the seniors were able to win their last game,” Windlan said. “I was very pleased at the unselfishness they showed throughout the game. They passed up layups to give teammates even easier layups.” The underclassmen were heard from as well for the Scots, especially freshman Jessica Lark. She hit all but one of her shots for 20 points and collected seven rebounds as Highland posted a 41-24 advantage. It was difficult to find bright spots for the Panthers after the performance of Kelsey Whitson, who is one of just two seniors on the Elwood roster. Whitson hit 5-of-19 shots against a defense that obviously made it a point to know her location all of the time. She also hit 9-of-11 free throws and claimed six rebounds. Her 22 points topped the team and her rebound total was second to Elwood’s other senior, Mallory Harris, who had seven. The Scots finish the regular season with a 9-11 record and play at 6 p.m. next Tuesday in the Class 4A Anderson Sectional against Muncie Central.

It wasn’t the fact that Highland’s girls basketball team defeated Frankton 59-48 on Tuesday that made Scots coach Tod Windlan happy. It was how his team won. The host Eagles made repeated runs at the Scots (8-10) throughout the final three quarters, but every time they did, Highland responded with a key basket. The biggest instance came at the end of the first half. After starting the game with a 10-2 lead, Frankton had whittled the lead to 19-17 with 1:46 remaining in the half. Stormy Holder, the Scots’ senior forward, stepped out and made back-to-back 3-pointers to give Highland a 25-17 halftime edge. Holder fended off the Eagles on two more occasions in the second half. Her layup midway through the third quarter extended the Scots’ lead to 34-25 after Frankton had scored back-to-back buckets. Her 3-pointer with 6:42 remaining in the game built Highland’s lead to 44-35 after the Eagles had cut the Scots’ deficit to six. “We have a set play where I have to knock it down,” Holder said of her first 3-pointer. “It’s my job to bring the team up.” Holder finished with 17 points and a team-best eight rebounds. After she held off the Eagles, Kyla Lacy helped finish them off. The senior scored eight points in a 1:45 stretch early in the fourth quarter, with two 3-point plays and a short jumper. Her last 3-point play came with 4:33 remaining and effectively the win, giving Highland a 54-37 edge. Lacy led all scorers with 18 points. “We’ve led in every game we’ve played this year,  but we didn’t respond very well when teams would make runs at us in a lot of those games,” Windlan said. “I’m happy that we held our poise, especially with three freshmen playing at once.” Those three freshmen, Jessika Lark, Britney Ball and Krosley Ogden, logged considerable minutes for the Scots. Lark finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Ogden had nine points and five assists. Frankton lost despite owning a 38-25 rebounding advantage. Lauren Hendricks led the way for the Eagles, finishing with 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Mollie Hamilton added 12 points and six rebounds off the bench, while Lexi Seager had 11 points and six boards for Frankton (6-12). “We needed a couple (more) stops defensively,” Frankton coach Brent Brobston said. “I’m very proud of our effort, and the way we handled their pressure.” Highland had defeated Frankton 59-44 on Nov. 16 in a Madison County Tournament semifinal game, but both teams had made multiple lineup changes since then. “Hendricks is playing phenomenal,” Brobston said of his junior center.  “Night in and night out, she’s getting 12 or 13 rebounds a game. She’s doing a good job of penning and posting.” As for the Scots, they hope to build on Tuesday’s win. They close out the regular season with home games against Mount Vernon (Saturday) and Elwood (next Tuesday). “We’re going to be pretty strong going into sectional,” Holder said. “The team is jelling a lot, and we pulled together (Tuesday) when we needed to.”

The Pendleton Heights Lady Arabians used their hard-nosed defense and aggressive rebounding en route to a 58-42 victory over high-scoring Anderson Highland on Wednesday night.

Leading PH on defense was junior Amanda Gaskin, who always draws the assignment of the opponent’s best player. She held Raven Ivey to a season-low two points on 1-of-7 shooting.

“I can’t say enough about Amanda defensively — she’s a warrior,” Arabians coach Shari Doud said. “She’s a defensive catalyst for us, and we have to have her on the floor to be successful.”

The Scots (7-10) managed only 42 points, a season low, on 13-of-42 from the field. They had been averaging 64.6 ppg on the year.

“We were a step slow all night,” Highland coach Tod Windlan said. “We didn’t play with a lot of intensity throughout the game, except for our three freshmen. It’s very disappointing to come out and play a game like this.”

Pendleton Heights (12-5) got off to a slow start, falling behind 8-2 in the early minutes. But the Arabians caught fire and outscored Highland 13-2 over the last 5:23 of the first quarter to gain control of the contest.

They maintained their advantage in the second period thanks to a positive contribution from Carlie Morlock off the bench. She scored 10 points, eight in the first half, and collected six rebounds.

“We know what she’s capable on the offensive end, and it was nice to see her play well tonight,” Doud said. “She played with a lot of passion, so hopefully this will give her a boost of confidence that she needs right now.”

The Scots turned the ball over 14 times and were out-rebounded 27-22. They have now lost four of their last five games. Ivey saw limited minutes in the contest due to what Windlan called a “poor defensive effort.”

“She got frustrated early, and she wasn’t helping us when she was in there,” he said. “On a night like that, other kids just have to step up, and a lot of them didn’t.”

Mur Hagerman led three Arabians in double figures with a game-high 15 points and four rebounds. Taylor Miller scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting while freshman Hannah Douglas added eight points off the bench.

“Every time we’ve had three in doubles (figures), we haven’t been beat,” Doud said. “That’s a sign of a team that’s willing to share the ball, and we got good looks out of our offense tonight.”

Freshmen Jessika Lark and Krosley Ogden led the Scots with 13 and 11 points respectively. Kyla Lacy added eight points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.

The Highland Scots came up just short against the Connersville Spartans, 66-62 in girls basketball action at Robert E. Fuller Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.
Highland had three score in double figures. Freshmen Jessica Lark led all scorers with 19 points and pulled in 11 rebounds for a double-double. Junior Emily Jones hit 6-of-6 from the field for a 16-point performance. Senior Kyla Lacy scored 14 points for the Scots. Raven Ivey grabbed a game-high 13 boards.  For the visiting Spartans, Amanda McDivitt scored 17 to lead Connersville. Emily Bloom scored 16 and Laura Richards had 11. The Scots’ second half was one of missed opportunities that prevented Highland from completing a comeback after trailing 39-29 at halftime. With the Scots trailing 41-37 at the 4:33 mark of the third quarter, a technical foul was called on the Connersville bench. The Scots’ Emily Jones couldn’t convert either free throw. The Scots got the ball out of bounds, and Jones scored a layup to cut 41-39. In the fourth quarter, the Scots trailed by two points, 64-62, following a 3-point play by Ivey with 26 seconds left in the game. Highland put McDivitt at the line, where she missed both shots. Lark pulled down the rebound for the Scots, but the ball was stolen away by Connersville, forcing the Scots to foul immediately, again.  McDivitt went back to the line and sank both shots with 18 seconds to go to provide the final margin. Offensively, the Scots missed multiple chances to score from point-blank range. Highland shot 12-of-39 on 2-point field goals. “When you can’t finish inside as many times as we didn’t finish, it’s hard to be a good, quality team like (Connersville),” said HHS coach Todd Windlan. “We had a few good individual performances, but the rest were missing in action.”  Highland opened the fourth quarter trailing 47-43. The Scots pounded the ball inside to Lark, who scored the Scots first eight points of the final period on passes from Lacy. But the Scots couldn’t get over the hump as they trailed by four points throughout the bulk of the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Lacy with 96 seconds to go would cut the game to 61-59 in favor of the Spartans and give the Scots their first chance to tie the game for the Scots in the fourth, but Highland just couldn’t get a bucket when it needed one most. Highland only had 17 turnovers in the game, but it was when those turnovers happened that killed the Scots. Highland is now 6-8 on the year and finishes the Olympic Athletic Conference portion of their schedule at 1-2.

CONNERSVILLE (64) - Rusterholz 1-3 0-0 2, Bloom 5-7 1-4 16, Richards 4-8 2-5 11, McDivitt 4-19 5-13 15, Miller 2-6 0-0 5, Issacs 2-6 3-3 8, Gwin 1-4 2-2 5, Blakley 0-0 2-2 2. Totals 19-53 18-29 64.
HIGHLAND (62) - Ivey 2-16 2-5 7, Jones 6-6 1-4 16, Lark 7-12 5-6 19, Lacy 5-18 0-0 14, Ogden 1-1 1-2 4, Holder 0-4 0-0 0, Allen 0-0 0-0 0, Mohr 0-0 2-2 2, Davis 0-0 0-0 0.

Connersville 23 16 8 17 - 64
Highland 19 10 14 19 - 62

3-Point Goals: Connersville 11-33 (Bloom 5-7, Richards 1-1, McDivitt 2-15, Miller 1-4, Issacs 1-3, Gwin 1-3), Highland 9-18 (Ivey 1-3, Jones 3-3, Lacy 4-11, Ogden 1-1, Holder 0-1). Rebounds: Connersville 34 (Richards 8), Highland (Ivey 13, Lark 11). Total Fouls: Connersville 15, Highland 23. Fouled Out: None.

Junior Varsity Summary
Connersville 34 - Goblin 13, Maddon 6, Lykins 5, Stamper 4, Kelley 3, Fowler 2, Rice 1.
Highland 29 - Tate 10, Davis 10, Ball 6, Wilkerson 2, Tilford 1.

C-Team Summary
Connersville 14 - Milbourne 4, Cruse 4, Showatter 3, King 3.
Highland 25 - Crosby 8, Wilkerson 6, Williams 4, Cleckley 3, Bilyeu 2, Goodwin 2.

Franklin 67, Anderson Highland 62

The Grizzly Cubs (10-3) knocked down eight 3-pointers in their victory over the Scots (6-7).  Carley Buchanon had a game-high with 25 points followed by Caity Shuck with 12 points. Raven Ivy led three Scots in double figures with 20 points.
      
Anderson Highland 16 14 14 18 -- 62
Franklin 19 17 15 16 -- 67

Anderson Highland -- Ivey 20, Lacy 15, Lark 11, Ogden 6, Jones 4, Allen 2, Ball 2, Holder 2, Davis 0 Mohr 0 3-pointers: Lacy 4. Totals: 23 12-19 62.
Franklin -- Buchanan 25, Shuck 12, Walden 9, Vandivier 7, Bujarsky 6, White 5, Lomoro 2, Ray 1, Hartkorn 0 3-pointers: Buchanon 2, Bujarsky 2, Shcuk 2, Vandivier, White. Totals: 21 19-29 67.

Highland 69, Switzerland County 46

Raven Ivey scored 21 points to lead a trio of Scots in double figures, but New Castle had a little more firepower as the Trojans defeated Highland 72-62 at the New Castle Fieldhouse on Tuesday. Scot freshman Jessika Lark scored 14 for the visitors in the loss. Senior guard Kyla Lacy sank three 3-pointers en route to a 14-point outing. Krosley Ogden and Emily Jones chipped in eight and seven points, respectively. Highland (5-6) is attempting to reschedule last Saturday’s snowed-out game with Greenfield-Central, but no date has been set.

Balanced scoring and a third-quarter scoring burst was all that the Anderson girls basketball needed to make it six straight wins over city rival Highland, 71-55 on Wednesday. AHS (8-2) featured four players who scored between 13 and 18 points, including LaKeisha Noethtich and Jasmine McGhee, both of whom recorded double-doubles with points and rebounds. Noethtich finished with 18 points and 12 boards, while McGhee scored 13 and had 10 rebounds. Whittlie Nelson added 17 points and Bryesha McCullough 16. “When we get balanced scoring like that, I like our chances,” AHS coach Shane Sumpter said. The Scots were paced by Raven Ivey with 28 points and by Stormy Holder, who had 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds. The Scots (5-5) , who had not trailed at halftime this season, were behind 32-29 at the break. For a time, it seemed to be a good omen for them. Highland went on a 7-0 run over the first 2:30 of the second half for a 36-32 lead. Anderson put up just one shot during that stretch . “We rebounded and got out in transition,” Highland coach Tod Windlan said. “We got it into the open court and got some easy baskets.” But after a time out by Sumpter, the Tribe appeared to be a different team. In less than 90 seconds, Anderson went on an 8-2 run to take a 40-38 lead. The rest of the quarter also belonged to the visitors. Anderson lofted a trio of 3-pointers in the period, and hit all three. Nelson, Noethtich and McCullough each had one of the bombs. Anderson took a 46-40 lead into the fourth quarter and outscored Highland 25-15 down the stretch to win comfortably. One key to the AHS turnaround was rebounding. Leading by just one in the board battle at halftime, the final margin was 38-28 in favor of the Indians. “We didn’t box out in the second half, and when we did, we didn’t go after the rebound with any aggression,” Windlan said. “We got really impatient on offense, and when you do that, it leads to not rebounding well.” A defensive halftime adjustment by Sumpter paid dividends as well. Ivey had 16 points in the first half. During the stretch where Anderson took control, she had just two baskets. “We switched and put Nelson on Raven,” Sumpter said. “Raven’s a special player. Whittlie did a great of denying her the ball and limiting her touches.” Without getting the ball regularly into Ivey’s hands, the Scots offense began to cough it up without a shot more frequently. Highland had six turnovers at halftime, but added 13 in the second half.

ANDERSON 71, HIGHLAND 55

ANDERSON — Nelson 5-8 4-6 17, McGhee 6-12 1-2 13, Noethtich 4-13 9-19 18, McCullough 5-9 5-7 16, Eskew 0-0 2-2 2, Menifield 1-2 0-0 2, Davis 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 22-45 21-36 71.

HIGHLAND — Ivey 9-22 9-13 28, Lark 2-5 1-4 5, Lacy 2-5 0-2 4, Holder 6-12 0-0 13, Allen 2-2 0-0 4, Mohr 0-1 0-0 0, Ogden 0-0 1-2 1, Jones 0-2 0-0 0, Tate 0-0 0-0 0, Davis 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-49 11-21 55.

Anderson 14 18 14 25 — 71
Highland 13 16 11 15 — 55

3-point shooting — Anderson 6-10 (Nelson 3-3, Noethtich 1-2, McCullough 1-3, Menifield 0-1, Davis 1-1), Highland 2-8 (Ivey 1-4, Lacy 0-1, Holder 1-2, Mohr 0-1). Total fouls — Anderson 19, Highland 25. Fouled out — McCullough. Rebounds — Anderson 38 (Noethtich 12), Highland 28 (Holder 9). Turnovers — Anderson 21, Highland 19.

Rick Teverbaugh

It is a matchup that some thought might happen three times this season. But the Anderson and Highland girls missed a possible collision in the title game of the Madison County Tournament when the Tribe lost to Lapel and the Scots followed suit a night later. Tonight’s clash between longtime city rivals was virtually unavoidable. This game would certainly give the winner a leg up in any possible rematch in February at the sectional level.  The Indians have the momentum for certain. They have won every game since that loss to the Bulldogs in the county semis. That has included two impressive road wins at Columbus East and at Muncie Central. “You can usually throw the schedules out the window for this game,” said Anderson coach Shane Sumpter. “I think this will be an emotional game for both of us.” “I expect it to be a very physical game,” said Highland coach Tod Windlan. “Between the two schools there is an intense rivalry. We haven’t had much success against them the past 10 years or so.” Highland has three players who average scoring in double figures, topped by Raven Ivey at 20.1 points. Stormy Holder averages 13.1 points and Kyla Lacey 10.6 Jessika Lark isn’t far behind at 8.4. “We’re playing pretty well,” said Windlan. “We just have momentary lapses here and there. We get off to good starts. We’ve never trailed at halftime in a game. We need to develop a winning attitude. We just don’t know how to pounce on somebody and put them away.” One way the Scots could do that is with outside shooting. Three of their regulars are hitting over 30 percent from 3-point range, Holder (39 percent), Ivey (36) and Lacy (32). Another way would be by hitting the boards. Ivey grabs 6.1 rebounds per contest, followed by Holder at 6.0 and Lark at 4.1.  Highland will also be likely to turn up the pressure.  “Highland will press us the whole time,” said Sumpter. “They use a diamond, a 2-2-1 and a man. We go about it a different way — in the halfcourt.” Anderson ’s Bryesha McCullough leads the team by averaging 15.0 points per outing. LaKeisha Noethtich averages 13.9 and Jasmine McGhee 13.2. AHS has strong rebounding as well with Noethtich averaging 9.6 caroms and McGhee 9.2 with McCullough getting 5.4. The two schools have players who know each other very well, not just from playing in this prep series. Many play AAU basketball with or against one another not to mention the typical summer playground or park pickups.  But the coaches also know each other as both graduated from Frankton. “We’ve known each other a long time,” said Sumpter. “I have tremendous respect for Tod.” Playing the opening game of the boys-girls double-header tonight is seen as a positive. “I think it’s kind of good,” said Windlan. “I think it creates a nice atmosphere for the girls.”

The Highland Scots fell to Jay County in an Olympic Athletic Conference matchup 60-58 on Saturday afternoon at Bob Fuller Memorial Gymnasium. Senior Raven Ivey scored a game-high 27 points for the Scots. Fellow upperclassman Kyla Lacy scored 13 for Highland. The third quarter did the most damage to the Scots’ cause. The visiting Patriots would score 14 in the quarter. Conversely, the Scots managed only five points in the third period. “We struggled to get good looks all day,” said Scots coach Todd Windlan. “When we did get some looks (in the third), we couldn’t convert any.” The day was rough for the Scots all the way around. Jay County completed a sweep in the triple-header between the two OAC combatants with a 47-21 win in the reserve contest and a 32-22 victory in the freshmen game. Highland (5-4) will host Anderson Wednesday night at 6 p.m. to tip off the annual boys/girls doubleheader between the two city rivals.

The Highland Scots had a plan going into Monday night’s matchup with Madison-Grant. First, don’t get caught in a half-court game. Second, don’t let up. Behind a decisive 14-1 run in the second quarter, the Scots’ succeeded and pulled away with a momentum-building 59-45 win in Fairmount. “We were going to try to make it a faster paced game,” Highland coach Tod Windlan remarked. “They wanted a half-court game, and we didn’t.” With ball movement and crisp passing a must, the Scots (5-3) used their pressure defense to maintain their lead as transition baskets helped build a 38-28 advantage at halftime. Highland’s stout defense held the Argylls to 17 second-half points compared to the Scots’ 21.The Argylls (5-2) committed 28 turnovers. “We have the material to do it,” Windlan referred to the Scots’ pressure defense. “They just kind of adapted into it. Our help-side and our man (defense) was a great area of concern before the year, and it’s been getting better than our on-ball.” Raven Ivey led the Scots with 28 points and eight rebounds. The senior shot 12 of 20 from field. Kyla Lacy followed with 10 points, finishing 3 of 7 from the field with three assists. Stormy Holder scored five, hauled in five rebounds and logged three assists. As a team, the Scots were 20 of 47 from the field. Sara Webster, who fouled out late, paced the Argylls with a team-high 18 points. Shelby Wells added 11 points while Cady Riggs finished with eight. “The kids are getting more comfortable with what we’re doing,” Windlan said. “We’re getting a little bit better each game, and we’re going to have to because our schedule is going to get tougher.” The Madison County runner-ups host Olympic Athletic Conference rival Jay County (7-1) on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. Next week, the Scots go head-to-head with their second straight Class 4A opponent in city foe Anderson (5-2).

High school basketball games are 32 minutes long. Usually games are decided within various sections that occur over that span. Many coaches say that the most important of those 32 minutes are the first four minutes of each half. But those coaches might rethink that wisdom following the championship game of the Madison County Girls Basketball Tournament. Lapel claimed the county title with a 59-52 triumph Saturday night over Highland. The Bulldogs pulled it off with a pair of one-minute stretches where they outscored the Scots 13-0 combined. The first one-minute stretch came at the end of the first half. Highland held a seven-point lead and had the ball. Lapel scored the final six points of the half. Julie Miller converted a three-point play, and Lauren Turner hit a 3-pointer. “That lost us the game right there,” said Highland coach Tod Windlan. “We were yelling, ‘One shot!’ And we took two. Nobody looked over at us, and we had two seniors on the floor.” “I said to the coaching staff as we were walking off the floor (at halftime) that might have been the turning point of the game.” Highland managed to maintain the lead at the end of the third quarter despite the Bulldogs hitting all but one shot over that eight-minute span. The Scots’ Raven Ivey scored eight in the quarter, which was nearly half of her team’s points and nearly half of her game total of 18. But the Bulldogs refused to go away and actually had a fourth quarter lead of 52-51 with 1:17 on the clock when Ivey went to the free-throw line for a two-shot opportunity. She hit the first but not the second, leaving the score tied. That was Highland’s final point of the contest. It took just two seconds for Turner to get fouled after the Highland miss as the Scots tried to swarm the Bulldogs with a full-court press that they used for most of the game. Turner hit both of her free throws to lift her into double figures in scoring. Highland’s last good chance to score came with under a minute to play when Ivey had a shot from in close. The ball bounded off the rim. Jennings rebounded for Lapel and quickly called time out with 41 seconds left before the Scots could surround her. Lapel got the inbounds pass to her, and she was fouled going to the basket. Jennings missed the first free throw but hit the second. It was 55-52. Highland panicked a bit and tried to tie it up in one possession. The miss was boarded by Jennings, who had four of her nine rebounds in the final quarter. Again the press came at her. “I learned real early not to pick my dribble up,” said Jennings. “It was a very tough press.” Jennings got the ball up the floor and into Turner’s hands for a hoop that made the score 57-52. “We have this full court press drill was run every day,” said Jennings. “We are taught to come to the ball. We work on attacking the basket after we break the press.” Highland misfired from long range again; Jennings again rebounded and was fouled. Her two free throws with 10 seconds left sealed the victory.  Ivey scored 18 for the Scots, and Stormy Holder was right behind with 16 points, but the rest of the team only accounted for 18 points. “We got some wide open looks, but we didn’t hit them,” said Windlan of his team’s 19 of 53 shooting from the field. “We also didn’t have good transition defense. When a team breaks through your first two waves of the press, you have to make a bum’s rush to get back. But we played three freshmen tonight, and I saw some good things.” The Scots are now 3-2 and the Bulldogs 3-0 in this young season.

Score by quarter
 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT Total
 Anderson Highland 15 10 20 7 0 52 
 Lapel 14 10 18 17 0 59
 
Anderson Highland - Ivey 18, Jones 2, Lacy 4, Ogden 3, Holder 16, Lark 9, Tate 0, Mohr 0. 3-pointers: Holder 3, Lacy, Ogden. Totals: 19 9-13 52.

Lapel - Jennings 18, H. Guion 6, Prater 2, Miller 9, Bartel 6, Turner 12, Davidson 6. 3-pointers: Turner. Totals: 22 14-18 59.

Highland had to use bench strength and perseverance to get past Elwood 70-57. In Wednesday’s nightcap the Scots got into foul trouble early and often. Their leading scorer, senior Raven Ivey, was whistled for two personals in the first three minutes and sat the rest of the first half. It took her less than a full minute to get two more at the start of the third quarter. So the Scots needed to get help and they got it from a senior and a freshman. Stormy Holder battled inside all game and was extremely consistent in both halves. The 5-foot-11 senior had 11 points in each half and grabbed seven rebounds in the first half and six more in the second. That was a double-double of 22 points and 13 boards. The freshman was Jessika Lark. Lark rescued the Scots in the first half as she hit all five of her shots and brought down three rebounds. Without those two Highland definitely would have been down at intermission instead of on top 36-29. In each half the Panthers were in the double bonus before the end of the first eight minutes of play. “They were calling fouls very tight,” said Highland coach Tod Windlan. “Our kids didn’t adapt to it. I think when they call them close it hurts the team that wants to apply pressure.” Unfortunately for Elwood, it missed opportunities much of the night to capitalize at the charity stripe. The Panthers hit 5-of-13 from the line in the opening half and 11-of-20 in the second. Over those first 16 minutes, Elwood senior Kelsey Whitson and junior Paige Hanlin kept the Panthers right on the heels of their prey. Whitson hit all but one of her six shots and added five rebounds. Hanlin also missed just one shot, nailing five fielders, three from beyond the arc. That accounted for all but three points the Panthers scored before the break. Another fresh Highland face, sophomore Diamond Tate, helped the Scots extend the lead to 48-38 going into the final quarter. She hit all three of her shots and tacked on a couple of boards. With Highland up by 10 and Ivey coming back into the game it seemed likely that the Scots would finally put some distance between themselves and the Panthers. But Elwood had other plans. The Panthers actually cut into the lead and was down four a couple of minutes into the fourth period. “There were some times we could have folded but we didn’t,” said Elwood coach Candice Williams. Elwood senior Shalynn contributed nine points in the final quarter. But it wasn’t enough. The Scots hit 5-of-11 from the field, including a pair from Ivey. With the Panthers still behind and running out of time they had to send Highland to the line. In the fourth, the Scots netted 12 of 19 freebies to seal the win. “Stormy (Holder) is playing on a bad ankle,” said Windlan. “She hurt it before the season started. She’s a tough kid.” Holder led the team in both scoring and rebounding. Kyla Lacy scored 12 points and Lark 10. “I was happy that we stuck through the adversity and won the game,” said Windlan. Elwood had three players score all but three points. Whitson finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Hanlin had 17 points and Wright 15.

Elwood 17 12 9 19 -- 57
Highland 19 17 12 22 -- 70
ELWOOD -- Hanlin 6-9 3-7 17, Salinas 0-3 0-2 0, Whitson 8-16 6-13 22, Wright 4-17 6-8 15, Huffman 0-0 0-1 0, Jones 1-5 0-0 2, Jesse 0-1 1-2 1. TOTALS 19-51 16-33 57.
HIGHLAND -- Ivey 3-8 2-2 8, Jones 3-6 2-7 8, Lacy 3-5 6-8 12, Ogden 0-1 0-0 0, Holder 7-18 7-9 22, Lark 5-5 0-3 10, Mohr 1-2 0-0 2, Tate 3-4 0-2 6, Davis 0-3 0-0 0 (Elwood scores field goal in Highland basket). TOTALS 26-53 17-31 70.
3-Point Shooting: Elwood 3-12 (Hanlin 2-3, Wright 1-8, Jones 0-1); Highland 1-5 (Holder 1-2, Ivey 0-1, Lacy 0-2).
Rebounds: Elwood 37 (Whitson 13, Hanlin 9, Salinas 3, Jones 3, Jesse 2, Wright 1, Team 7); Highland 40 (Holder 14, Ivey 5, Jones 4, Lark 4, Mohr 4, Tate 3, Lacy 1, Ogden 1, Team 4).
Turnovers: Elwood 27; Highland 24.
Total Fouls: Elwood 25 (Salinas 5, Wright 5); Highland 31 (Ogden 5, Lark 5).

By QUINTIN HARLAN

“Take it one game/day at a time” is one of sports’ most used clichés. The fact that it is also one of the truest forms of philosophy is what makes it widely used. And that could sum up Highland forward Raven Ivey’s beliefs as it pertains to her ambitions for the 2007-08 season. The four-year varsity performer for the Scots has a few goals for her final prep season, including winning a second Olympic Athletic Conference championship, winning in the sectional tournament, and beating city rival Anderson. The first such chance to achieve might come in the finals of this week’s Madison County Tournament, rovided both Highland and Anderson earn their way to Saturday night’s championship game. “We have to push ourselves,” said Ivey of what she and the Scots have to do to be successful in not only the tournament but for the season. “We just need to keep trying to push and see how far we can go.” The 6-foot senior is averaging 30 points and 10 rebounds through two contests for the Scots this season. She scored 33 points in a 75-59 loss at Class 4A No. 4 Carmel last Wednesday. The following Saturday, in the Scots’ home-opening win over Indianapolis Arsenal Tech, Ivey tallied 27 points. In both contests she grabbed 10 rebounds. All this while nursing an injured thumb on her left (non-shooting) hand. “I’ve never scored that many points in back-to-back games,” Ivey said. “She’s a good player,” said Highland coach Tod Windlan. “I don’t think she knows how good she can be though.” Ivey’s reputation has spread enough amongst the Scots’ opponents that some have started asking about her. Saturday, Ivey was not at Highland for the pre-game shoot-around or the first half of the junior varsity contest. Players from Tech were asking any and all if Ivey was there and if another member of the Scots was Ivey. If she keeps up her pace, college programs are sure to take notice. As of yet though, the prospect of playing college basketball hasn’t even appeared on the radar. “Not that I’m aware of,” Ivey said when asked if any college had expressed an interest in her. “I’m just trying to keep working hard and pushing myself.”

Quintin Harlan
Short of winning multiple championships and the wearing the hardware that goes with accomplishing that feat, there’s one surefire way to make a basketball coach happy. 
That is to have that coach’s team come away with a victory, but still have room for improvement and things to work on in practice. That might well be the formula for the Highland Scots girls basketball team at Monday’s practice. Saturday afternoon, Highland picked up its first win of the young 2007-08 campaign with a 68-54 win over the Indianapolis Arsenal Technical Titans. For most of the game, the Scots were in control of the tempo of the contest. However, a bevy of turnovers late in the game made things interesting as what had been a double-digit lead for the Scots was whittled down to single digits at 60-52 with 2:55 to go in the fourth quarter. Raven Ivey would then score six of Highland’s next eight points as the Scots put the game away in the closing seconds. Highland hurt its cause in the fourth quarter with turnovers, which Tech was all too eager to turn into transition opportunities. “We had a lot of turnovers,” HHS coach Tod Windlan said. “We didn’t execute what we wanted to do (offensively) all night. You’ve got to execute no matter how they’re playing. But, the gold lining in the clouds is that we got a win.” As shaky as the finish of the game might have been for Highland, the start couldn’t have gone any better. Highland won the opening tip of the game, and the ball went right to Emily Jones, who put the first two points of the game on the board before the spectators were comfortably back in their seats. The Scots would find themselves ahead 21-11 at the end of the first period. Highland would hit eight of 16 field goals in the opening period, with Ivey scoring 11 in the first eight minutes. The home team would keep a double-digit lead into the locker room at 41-27. Highland would open the lead to as many as 19 points at 50-31 in the third quarter. Highland put four players into double figures. Ivey led all scorers with 27 points on 11-of-21 shooting from the field. The 6-foot senior forward also pulled in a game-high 10 rebounds for her second double-double in as many games. Classmates Kyla Lacy and Stormy Holder both scored 11 in the Highland victory. Holder hit 4 of 7 from the field. Jessica Lark came off the bench to score 12 points for the Scots. The Highland freshman hit 4-of-7 shots from the floor. The Titans were paced by the 22 points of center Catherine Gibson. The 5-foot-11 post player hit on 9-of-16 attempts. She pulled down a team-high nine rebounds for Tech. Highland narrowly lost the rebound battle, 32-31. Turnovers kept the contest as close as it was. For the game, Tech committed 37 turnovers. Highland had 29 miscues, with 11 of those coming in the final quarter of play. Highland (1-1) will take on Elwood in an 8 p.m. tipoff in the second game Wednesday night of the Madison County Tournament at Alexandria.

 

Score by quarter
	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	OT	Total
Tech	11	16	12	15	0	54
Anderson Highland	21	20	15	12	0	68
Tech - Gibson 22, Henry 11, Woods 5, Cross 4, Wynne 4, McMorris 4, Cash 2, Robinson 2, Bullock 0, Wells 0. 3-pointers: Henry. Totals: 23 7-11 54. Anderson Highland - Ivey 27, Lark 12, Lacy 11, Holder 11, Jones 4, Tate 2, Mohr 1, Ogden 0. 3-pointers: Ivey, Holder. Totals: 26 14-26 68.