RICHMOND —In a game that had two big first-half scoring runs, New Palestine’s was bigger.
Pendleton Heights had to play catchup most of the night. The Arabians got within one point, twice, but weren’t able to come all the way back in the Indiana High School Athletic Association’s Class 4A Sectional 9 girls basketball semifinal Friday at Richmond’s Tiernan Centre.
Pendleton Heights lost to the eventual sectional champions, 58-50.
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The Arabians went on a 16-2 run, covering the latter part of the first quarter and a portion of the second to take a 23-14 lead. New Palestine answered with 17 straight points. The Dragons led 29-23 at halftime and scored the first bucket of the second half.
“We got that good lead to start with,” Pendleton Heights coach Chad Cook said. “You want to have a lot of confidence building that 9-point lead, but 4, 6 points in a row for them, and we lost our ability to be calm and collected. We started shooting some shots we shouldn’t shoot, made a couple of turnovers and got rushed, offensively.”
The Dragons led the rest of the way, but the Arabians kept fighting back.
Leading that fight was senior Megan Mills, who led all scorers with 23 points. She had 16 points in the second half and 10 in the fourth quarter before fouling out.
When Mills left on fouls, she was the second starter to do so. Freshman Whitney Warfel had fouled out earlier. Later in the game, starters Kylea Lloyd and Kylie Davis were disqualified for fouls.
“They went on that run,” Cook said. “We answer it back and get back within one and live around that one possession mark for the last four minutes, but what a game to have four girls foul out.”
Along with Mills’ final foul, Davis drew a technical foul. The Dragons hit three of the four free throws, then went to the line again on their next possession, with Isabella Gizzi connecting on two more from the line. The Dragons’ lead had grown to 52-46 with 2:50 to go. Plus, Mills was done for the night.
“We had our chances, and I give our girls a lot of credit, getting all the way back,” Cook said. “The point of the game where it became too far for us to come back was when they called the tech.
“They get two extra free throws and the ball back, and they score on that. It made a one-point game a six-point game.”
Cook questioned some of the calls, including the technical on his player.
“I sure hope it was deserving; I don’t know. I thought they were calling it on me.”
It was too much to overcome. New Palestine hit 15 fourth-quarter free throws. Gizzi led the Dragons in scoring with 21; she went 17-of-18 at the line for the game.
It was the final game for Pendleton Heights seniors Mills and Aubree Dwiggins. Dwiggins followed Mills in the scoring column with 9 points.
“My girls are going to be outstanding citizens, outstanding humans. They care about people,” Cook said of his group. “I’ve got nothing but love for them, and I am really proud of how they played this season, giving themselves a chance to win this sectional. This was a tough one to swallow, but I am proud of them anyway.”
The Arabians finished the season 13-12.
Following the two seniors, Davis scored 6 points. Lloyd and Gracie Conkling scored 5 points each, and Warfel scored 2.
Opening-round win
Pendleton Heights opened the tournament Wednesday, Feb. 5, with a decisive win against Greenfield-Central.
The Arabians beat the Cougars 45-27, outscoring their opponent 31-15 during the final three quarters.
The win was the team’s fifth in the last six games and second versus Greenfield-Central this season. On Nov. 22, in Pendleton, the Arabians defeated the Cougars 52-37 in a Hoosier Heritage Conference contest.
In the Feb. 5 tournament opener, Dwiggins led all scorers with 17 points. She had 11 in the first half and 7 in the second quarter, when the Arabians outscored the Cougars 13-4 and began taking command.
Dwiggins went 5-of-6 from the field in the first two quarters and was 8-of-12 for the game.
Davis scored 14 points. Only four players scored. Mills added 8 points, and Warfel scored 6.
