The Sheridan girls basketball team’s sprint to the sectional continued early this week with back-to-back Hoosier Heartland Conference games at Larry Hobbs Gym.
On Monday, the Blackhawks cruised past Eastern 48-31, keeping them undefeated in HHC play. But that unbeaten conference run ended on Tuesday, when Sheridan ran into a very good Clinton Prairie team. The Class 2A No. 8 Gophers overwhelmed the ‘Hawks 53-22.
Sheridan was in control from the beginning Monday against the Comets, leading 15-5 after the first quarter and 28-12 at halftime. Allie Delph had a splendid first half, scoring 11 points. Emma Went helped out in the period with seven points in the third quarter. Sheridan increased its lead to 39-20 by the end of the third and sailed through the fourth, with four points each from Delph and Sierra Duke.
Delph finished the game with 16 points, including two 3-pointers. Went added 12 points.
The Blackhawks’ Monday victory set up a showdown between two unbeaten HHC teams, with Sheridan 4-0 and Prairie 5-0. But the Gophers jumped out to a 15-7 lead in the first quarter, then dominated in the second period, holding the ‘Hawks to five points and taking a 34-12 lead into halftime. Prairie then led 48-15 after three periods.
“Clinton Prairie’s amazing,” said Sheridan coach Jaidlin Bradshaw. “They’re super well-coached. We just have to get tougher. We didn’t do a whole lot of things right tonight. But the good news is we still have a couple more games to figure it out before we head into the sectional. So, we’re trying to be optimistic and move forward for our game Friday at Delphi.”
Delph led the Blackhawks on Tuesday with 13 points, including five straight points to begin the fourth quarter.
The victory gave the Gophers a 6-0 record in the conference. But Sheridan isn’t out of the HHC championship race just yet. The Blackhawks are 4-1 in HHC play and in a three-way tie for second with Carroll and Taylor, with three more conference games left to play.
SHERIDAN 48, EASTERN 31
Sheridan FG FT TP PF
Allie Delph 6 2-4 16 1
Chaney Smith 1 0-2 2 2
Riley Reed 2 2-4 6 1
Lillie Dickerson 1 0-0 2 3
Taylor Bates 1 1-2 3 2
Sierra Duke 3 1-2 7 1
Katy Crail 0 0-2 0 3
Emma Went 4 4-6 12 4
Lilly Chesney 0 0-0 0 1
Shelby Shaw 0 0-0 0 0
Zoey Fisher 0 0-0 0 0
Kadence Voege 0 0-0 0 1
Totals 18 10-22 48 19
Score by Quarters
Eastern 5 7 8 11 – 31
Sheridan 15 13 11 9 – 48
Sheridan 3-pointers (2) Delph 2.
CLINTON PRAIRIE 53, SHERIDAN 22
Sheridan FG FT TP PF
Allie Delph 4 4-8 13 0
Chaney Smith 0 0-0 0 1
Riley Reed 0 0-1 0 0
Lillie Dickerson 1 0-0 2 0
Taylor Bates 0 2-2 2 1
Sierra Duke 0 0-0 0 1
Emma Went 0 1-2 1 3
Lilly Chesney 0 0-0 0 0
Katy Crail 1 2-2 4 0
Shelby Shaw 0 0-0 0 0
Kadence Voege 0 0-0 0 0
Totals 6 9-15 22 6
Score by Quarters
Clinton Prairie 15 19 14 5 – 53
Sheridan 7 5 3 7 – 22
Sheridan 3-pointers (1) Delph 1.