By Cort Reynolds
RIDGEWAY - The visiting Ada High School girls basketball team rallied late but lost a 41-39 nailbiter to Hardin County rival Ridgemont on a very cold Monday evening, January 20.
The tough non-conference road defeat dropped the Bulldog record to 2-13. The Gopher girls improved to 4-8 with the seesaw victory.
Ridgemont jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Anna Conley fed Brooklynn Andreasen for the first Bulldog basket on a layup at the 3:18 mark to pull within 6-2.
The Gophers scored two driving field goals to make it 10-2. Andreasen swished a lane shot and Ada edged within 10-6 after the opening stanza.
The Bulldogs completed a 9-0 run to take an 11-10 edge. A Gopher foul shot tied it. An Aubrie Overly basket gave the hosts the lead and sparked a 5-0 spurt.
Conley scored inside to cut the deficit to 15-13. Gopher Kylie Shreve sank a lane shot, followed by an Ada free throw. The hosts took a narrow 17-16 edge into the halftime locker room.
Conley sank a layin off an Andreasen pass, but Gopher Laney Elsasser answered with a transition layup. After two Ridgemont free throws, Conley scored inside to stay in striking distance at 25-20.
Elsasser canned a pull-up bank shot, followed by a Riley Hites layup to provide a 29-20 Gopher edge.
Ada junior Ashley Hevlin converted a field goal. A basket by freshman Emily Gibson pulled the Bulldogs within seven. Shreve was fouled with 0.5 ticks left in the stanza and split the pair to give Ridgemont a 32-24 lead after three periods.
Bulldog Kenley Poling drained a three-pointer early in the fourth stanza.
Gibson made a bucket, then banked in a lane shot to inch within 34-31. Sophomore Poling nailed the second of her two triples in the fourth quarter to edge Ada within 36-34 at the three-minute mark.
Bulldog senior Lexi Poling drained a trey to give Ada the lead at 37-36 with about 2:30 left. Meanwhile, Ridgemont missed four straight foul shots.
But Shreve nailed a long corner deuce to put the Gophers back in front by a point. One Elsasser charity striper made it 39-37 with 42 seconds remaining.
Conley scored inside to tie it at the 30.6-second mark, 39-39. Ada forced a turnover but then was called for a five-second violation on the ensuing in-bounds play to lose possession.
Elsasser was fouled on a drive into the lane with 10.7 seconds to go. She made both clutch free throws to give the hosts a 41-39 lead.
A potential game-tying shot in the lane by Conley missed off the front iron with three seconds left, and Hites grabbed the rebound to preserve the win.
“Anna had a decent look at a shot from 10 feet out,” said Bulldog third-year head coach Zach Ricker of the final possession.
Conley paced Ada with a dozen points. Sophomore guard Kenley Poling tallied nine markers on three triples.
Gibson netted six points. Sophomore Andreasen and Hevlin added four apiece.
Elsasser topped Ridgemont with 13 points. Shreve and Brilynn Rudasill each netted eight points. Overly added seven markers.
Ada connected on 13 deuces and drilled four triples. The Bulldogs converted just one of seven foul shots (14 percent).
Ridgemont canned 16 two-pointers and drained no treys. The Gophers canned nine of 21 free throws (43 percent).
The Bulldogs committed 18 turnovers, while Ridgemont was guilty of 13 miscues.
Ada 39 (2-13)
Lawrence 0 1-2 1, K. Poling 3 0-0 9, Gibson 3 0-0 6, L. Poling 1 0-2 3, Hevlin 2 0-0 4, Burns 0 0-0 0, Conley 6 0-3 12, Andreasen 2 0-0 4.
Totals: 13-4/17-/39. 3-pointers: K. Poling 3, L. Poling 1.
R’mont 41 (5-7)
Overly 2 3-6 7, Hites 2 1-2 5, Shreve 3 2-4 8, Rudasill 4 0-5 8, Elsasser 5 3-6 13. Totals: 16-0/9-21/41. 3-pointers: none.
|
ADA RIDGEMONT |
1 6 10 |
2 10 7 |
3 8 15 |
4 15 9 |
FINAL 39 41 |
The Bulldogs (0-7 BVC) host tough league foe McComb (12-3, 6-1 BVC) in a league bout Thursday, January 23. The Panthers are third in the 11-team BVC behind Riverdale (7-0) and Liberty-Benton (7-1).
The Ada girls are 2-7 on the road and 0-6 at home.
