ThisWeek Westerville News & Public Opinion
Page C2
December 20, 2012
BOYS FROM >> C1
Central’s Andrea Hodge looks to maneuver past Jordan Fischbach of Thomas Worthington during their game Dec. 4. The Warhawks, who beat Worthington Kilbourne 43-39 on Dec. 14 for their first victory, play host to North on Thursday, Dec. 20. LAURIE STEVENSON/THISWEEKSPORTS
Girls Basketball
Warhawks rally to end lengthy losing streak By FRANK DiRENNA THISWEEKSPORTS.COM
Trailing Worthington Kilbourne 10-2 after one quarter Dec. 14, the Westerville Central High School girls basketball team appeared to be headed to its seventh consecutive loss to begin the season and 28th in a row over the past two years. Things also seemed bleak because senior guard/forward Megan Mills fractured her left wrist early in the first quarter. Mills is expected to miss at least a month, according to coach Jamiya Pride. A pair of underclassmen, however, led a comeback and helped the Warhawks snap their losing streak by defeating visiting Kilbourne 43-39. Freshman center Emma Stile scored 19 points and sophomore point guard Andrea Hodge scored 13. “We are definitely getting better,” Hodge said. “From last year to this year, we’re a very good team now. (The victory over Kilbourne) was amazing. It feels good to finally win a game and my team did really well. When you’re losing you always have those doubts in your mind, but it’s still good to stay optimistic about things and that’s what we did to pull out the win.” It was Pride’s first win in his two seasons at Central. “We all figured the impossible is possible to walk away with the ‘W’by playing a complete game,” Pride said. “A lot of times in the past we were never able to play three full or three and a half quarters to get a victory, but it’s a bright future for the rest of our team for the rest of the year.” Before defeating Kilbourne, the Warhawks’ last win came on Feb. 16, 2011, a 56-39 vic-
urday, Dec. 22. “We have to get our chemistry together,” Slade said. “There’s still stuff we need to work on. Once we get that all together I feel like we can win it all.” With the team shorthanded, senior forward Marcus Ball stepped in to contribute and scored a season-high 21 points against Kilbourne. Slade scored a season-high 17 points against Bradley. South outscored the Jaguars 38-14 in the second half. “We were two different teams,” Calo said. “In the first half, we did not shoot well or defend. In the second half, we played harder, smarter and tougher.” South also has received contributions from underclassmen, as Kyran McClure scored 12 points and Jelani Rogers scored 11 against Horizon Science. Both are freshman guards. “We’d always like to be a little bit better than what we are, but we’re making progress and I like that,” Calo said. “We’re getting a little bit bet- Trent Slade of South looks to shoot despite pressure from ter every time, so that’s a good Horizon Science Academy’s Kamron Andrews during the host thing. We have a long way to Wildcats’ 91-25 victory Dec. 12. LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEKSPORTS go. This is a work in progress and we have some veterans, At a glance but for the most part we’re really inexperienced.” scored 26 points, including the win-
Central rallies to beat Kilbourne
Devin Jackson of North tries to knock the ball away from South’s Cheyenne Raker during their game Nov. 30. The Warriors are 6-1 overall and the Wildcats are 3-3. CHRIS
tory over Briggs in the first round of the Division I district tournament under coach Doug Etgen, who resigned following the season. Against Kilbourne, Central closed to within 21-16 by halftime and outscored the Wolves 12-2 in the third quarter to take a 28-23 lead. Central carried that momentum into its contest at Hartley on Dec. 15, as it led for most of the game before losing 4137. Hodge led the Warhawks with 13 points and senior guard Kelsey Merriam scored 10. Merriam hit a 3-pointer to
Central trailed host Kilbourne 42-34 after three quarters before rallying for a 54-53 win Dec. 14. Charles Carmon’s steal and subsequent three-point play with 1.7 seconds remaining lifted Central to the win. On Central’s previous possession, Carmon missed two free throws. But coach Todd Minney told Carmon during a timeout that he would eventually turn in the key play. “I missed two free throws before that and as I came back to the bench I was pretty upset because I wasn’t sure if we were going to have another chance,” Carmon said. “(Minney) told me when I was coming back to the bench ‘Don’t worry about it. It’s fine because you’re going to be the hero of this game.’So that was quite a coincidence that I was the hero of the game.” Eric James scored 14 points, Jalen Malone scored 13 and Carmon scored 11. “This one was good for our kids’ confidence to see the growth that they’ve been having as a team and we’ve been working really hard on just the small things,” Minney said. “(We are) sticking to the fundamentals and really putting time in because these kids are
Below are the recent results and coming schedules for the Central, North and South boys basketball teams: CENTRAL Dec. 4 – Defeated Groveport 69-52. Eric James scored 19 points and Charles Carmon and Jalen Malone each scored 12. *Dec. 7 – Lost to Dublin Scioto 6140. Malone scored 11 points. *Dec. 11 – Def. Hilliard Bradley 5434. Jack Birkhofer scored 18 points and James scored 10. *Dec. 14 – Def.Worthington Kilbourne 54-53. James scored 14 points, Malone scored 13 and Carmon scored 11. *Dec. 21 – At Westerville North Dec. 29 – At New Albany Of note: The Warhawks are 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the OCC-Cardinal. NORTH *Dec. 14 – Def. Scioto 58-43. Jack Gibbs scored 22 points, Jaylen Benton had 12 and Adrian Cook added 11. Dec. 15 – Def. Cleveland Villa AngelaSt. Joseph 70-69 in Play 4 Cancer Shootout at Massillon Jackson. Gibbs
so limited experience-wise.” The Warhawks are 4-1 overall and 3-1 in the OCC-Cardinal entering a game at Westerville North on Friday, Dec. 21. The Warriors improved to 5-0 by defeating Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph 70-69 on Dec. 15 in the Play 4 Cancer Shootout at Massillon Jackson when Jack Gibbs made a half-court shot as time expired.
close the Warhawks to within 39-37 with 1 minute, 20 seconds left, but Ariel Packer’s two free throws with 22 seconds remaining sealed the win for Hartley. “Our girls are playing harder the last couple of games and we’re finally playing defense the way we would like to,” Pride said. “There are other things on the offensive side, but our success will start with The following schools are seeking coaches: defense and (the Hartley game) Big Walnut – Girls soccer. Contact athletics proved we can play away in a director Steve Glesenkamp at (740) 965-7778 or harsh environment and still be steve_glesenkamp@bigwalnut.k12.oh.us. Canal Winchester – Volleyball. Email résumé GIRLS >> C3 to athletics director Kent Riggs at
ning 3-pointer from half court at the buzzer. Cook had 21 points and Benton added 10. *Dec. 21 – Home vs. Westerville Central Dec. 29 – Home vs. Canton McKinley Of note: The Warriors are 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the OCC-Cardinal. SOUTH Dec. 4 – Lost to Brookhaven 55-52. Julian Wade scored 16 points, Kyran McClure scored 11 and Trent Slade scored 10. *Dec. 7 – Def. Kilbourne 62-58 (2OT). Marcus Ball scored 21 points and Slade scored 14. Dec. 8 – Def. Eastmoor Academy 4945. Matt Chellis scored 14 points. Dec. 12 – Def. Horizon Science Academy 91-25. McClure scored 12 points, Slade and Jelani Rogers each scored 11 and Jalen Bell scored 10. *Dec. 14 – Def. Bradley 62-38. Slade scored 17 points, Ball scored 12 and McClure scored 10. *Dec. 21 – Home vs. Hilliard Darby *Dec. 22 – At Scioto Dec. 28-29 – Newark Holiday Tournament Of note: The Wildcats are 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the OCC-Cardinal. *League contest
“The key to defeating Central will be our team defensive effort,” North coach Kevin Thuman said. “Central has the ability to score, so we hope to make them work for their points. On offense, we need to be able to be effective running our half-court sets and use our defense to start our offense.” fdirenna@thisweeknews.com
Schools announce coaching vacancies kriggs@canalwin.k12.oh.us by Jan. 7. Marysville – Boys soccer. Candidates should complete an application at marysville.k12.oh.us. The deadline is Jan. 25. •To add to this list, contact ThisWeek at (740) 888-6069 or sports@thisweeknews.com.