Bryleigh Young was one of three Highland players to hit double-figure scoring in the team’s 50-30 win over visiting Danville Tuesday.
Rob Hamilton | Morrow County Sentinel
Strong defense and a few timely offensive runs led the Highland girls to a decisive 50-30 win over visiting Danville on Tuesday night.
The Scots held their opponents to single-digit scoring in each of the first three quarters in opening up a lead that reached as many as 26 points. Head coach Matt Bradley stated that his players’ activity on that side of the ball was important.
“I thought we were super-active,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of length and some good athletes and, so, moving them around in certain areas, I thought defensively, we made them uncomfortable for the majority of the game and that’s always the goal.”
Midway through the opening period, the game was tied at three, with Highland’s points coming off a Bryleigh Young three-pointer. However, they would control most of the remainder of the quarter. Alexis Brown struck from three-point range and Addie Mullins added a basket and free throw as the Scots jumped in front 12-3 before a late Blue Devil three made it 12-6 after eight minutes.
“We played over in Ontario last week and I thought we played really well — we just didn’t make shots,” said Bradley. “At Mount Gilead, we hit 11 threes. We’re capable of it. I think we’re getting better and better and, so, just seeing the ball go in is so important, especially early. Bryleigh hit that first three and then we scored 12 in the first quarter and just took off from there.”
That momentum carried the Scots through much of the second quarter, which opened with MaKaylee Merckling draining a three at the beginning of the period and then, on the team’s next possession, drawing a foul and hitting both free throws. Young added another three and Aubree Bellamy connected on 1-of-2 foul shots to boost the Highland lead to a 21-6 margin.
They would increase their lead to 28-8 before a late Danville run cut that advantage to 15 points at the half at 28-13.
The visitors would not be able to get any closer in the second half, though. After neither team scored over the first 3:30 of the third quarter, the Scots got back-to-back shots from Mullins and Reagan Maibach to go up by 19. Brown would hit another three-pointer and Bellamy connected on four free throws in the final two minutes of the period to put Highland in front 39-17 going into the fourth.
Two threes by Bellamy played a role in Highland’s lead going up to a 26-point margin at 48-22 with 3:28 remaining in the fourth. While the Blue Devils were able to take an 8-2 advantage over those final minutes, Highland was able to pick up a 20-point home win in the non-conference outing.
Young led Highland with 14 points, while Bellamy finished with 12 and Brown had 10. Bradley noted that his team did a good job of distributing the ball, which allowed six girls to generate points, with three in double figures.
“We’re very unselfish,” he said. “Looking at our stats, we don’t have a dominant scorer, so I think we can spread it around. It felt like it was very balanced. We have a lot of girls who are capable of shooting it, so it was really good.”
The win improves Highland to 8-13 on the year. With the playoffs quickly approaching, Bradley is really liking what he is seeing from his players.
“I know that our girls are still very excited about coming to practice and getting better,” he said. “It’s been an incredibly fun group to be around, so we want to keep this thing going as long as we can.”
Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS
