CRESTWOOD, Ky. — Jeff pulls away for 59-51 win over South Oldham

New Wash boys start a winning streak

BY GREG MENGELT

greg.mengelt@newsandtribune.com

CRESTWOOD, Ky. — Jeffersonville’s girls’ basketball team led nearly all the way Tuesday at South Oldham, but the Red Devils had to pull away in the end for a 59-51 victory.

Jeff led 25-23 at the half and 41-39 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, the Devils made one 2-point field goal, one 3 and went 13-for-18 from the free-throw line to seal their second straight win following a four-game losing streak.

“We handled the ball a lot better in the second half,” Jeff coach Matt Pait said. “We gave ourselves better chances to score. Once we got a little bit of a lead, they had to foul us and we hit our free throws in the end.”

Haley Vogen and Aurresshae Hines led Jeff with 11 points apiece. Nichole Midgett added nine, Taylor Sykes scored eight and Nycia Ford finished with seven for the Devils.

“It was a team effort,” Pait said. “It took everybody at certain points in the game to keep the lead and pull it out.”

NEXT: Jeffersonville (4-4) at Corydon Central (6-3), Thursday.

• First half costs Generals: Clarksville fell behind Brownstown Central 12-3 after one quarter and 30-14 at the half. The Generals made a late charge but fell 62-39.

“In the first half, we dug ourselves a little hole,” Clarksville coach B.D. Ledbetter said. “We made a mini-run at them. The girls fought hard and made a little effort [in the second half]. The girls are starting to get it, starting to learn what it takes.”

Clarksville played even with the Braves, 14-14 in the fourth quarter.

“Everybody stepped up a little on defense and created some opportunities that way,” Ledbetter said.

Haley Jenkins led the Generals with 14 points.

“In the second half, we finally got her to be aggressive,” Ledbetter said of Jenkins. “From there, people started to follow her.”

Bailey Sharp added 11 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Abby Hurtgen scored 10.

NEXT: Clarksville (3-6, 0-2 Mid-Southern Conference) at Austin (4-2, 3-1), Thursday.

• Henryville wins again: After winning its first three games of the season, Henryville dropped six straight.

But the Hornets have responded with back-to-back wins, including Tuesday’s 40-36 victory over West Washington to improve to 5-6.

“This game should be a nice confidence booster,” Henryville coach Josh Conrad said. “We had lots of positive things happen. Hopefully, we can continue to get better and keep moving in the right direction.”

Freshman Emily Hollis led Henryville with 16 points, including both of the Hornets’ 3-point shots. Senior Jasmine Harrell added six for a balanced Henryville squad.

NEXT: Henryville (5-6, 0-2 Southern Athletic Conference) hosts South Central (2-6, 1-0).



BOYS’ BASKETBALL

• Mustangs win second straight: After winning one game all of last season, New Washington won its second straight, 61-51 over Crothersville on Tuesday.

It’s the first time the Mustangs have won back-to-back games since beating Borden and South Central on Feb. 18 and 19 of 2010.

“It’s been too long,” New Wash coach Jonathan May said. “We’re taking it one day at a time. We have to improve each day. We’ve won two games, but we’re not close to where we want to be. These guys have improved, but they’re not there yet.”

New Wash, which played its Southern Athletic Conference opener on Tuesday, joined Borden (3-0 SAC) as the only two unbeaten teams in the league.

“Conference [title] is definitely one of our goals,” May said.

After leading 22-12 at the break, the pace picked up in the second half, when each team scored 39 points.

“The first half, I thought we got some pretty good looks, but we didn’t convert,” May said. “We missed some open looks. In the second half, Crothersville started pressing and picked up the pace.”

Tim Cochran led the Mustangs with 20 points. He also had a pair of assists and he blocked a shot.

“Tim’s doing a much better job at shot selection,” May said. “He’s finishing around the hole and he’s doing a better job of knowing when it kick it out.”

Also for New Washington, Ian Hughes had 15 points and 15 rebounds.

“Ian’s capable of that every night — and probably a little bit more,” May said. “I expect more out of him. Ian’s got to do that for us if we’re going to be successful.”

NEXT: New Wash (2-2, 1-0 SAC) at Rising Sun (1-4), Friday.