COVINGTON – Arcanum played a familiar foe in the second round of the Division III girls sectional basketball tournament on Tuesday. Once the Lady Trojans got off to a great start going up a 20-4 in the first quarter and 33-7 halftime advantage and they would go on to post a 49-35 win over the Bethel Bees.
The intensity and pace at which the Lady Trojans play defense is overwhelming to the opposition and Arcanum has benefited from it by getting a lot of baskets in the open floor especially in the first half.
Camille Pohl had a big first quarter with 6 points all around the rim. Ironically, they would be the only points of the game for her.
Gracie Garno had 5 pints, Kayla O’Daniel 4, Hailey Unger 3 and Taylor Gary 2 in the first quarter as the Trojans built a 20-4 lead.
Gray had a big second quarter by hitting the glass and converting second chances for 8 points as Arcanum went on top at the break 33-7.
In the third quarter the Trojans scored 13 points, but gave up 12 to Bethel and in the final stanza it was like the team let off the gas giving up 16 points, but it was enough to hang on for the 49-35 win over the Bees.
After the game a clearly dejected coach Michael Dean talked about his team.
“It wasn’t a pretty win, wins are what matter and we are moving on, but we can’t shoot the percentages we shot tonight and expect to move on in the next round,” Dean said.
“We didn’t step into our shots when we had the looks and we had seams, just never drove to the basket. We just wanted to dribble drive, that’s not our game, and we were just plain cold in the second half,” Dean stated.
“Our defense showed up in the first half, but our offense disappeared in the second and we have to find a way to fix that in the next four days of practices,” Dean added.
Dean did recognize the play of Camille Pohl and the intangibles she brings to the table.
“Camille is so athletic and does so many things that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet like some of the other kids, but she is a strong floor leader and gives us a lot of extra things we need. She hustled and made some great plays tonight and doesn’t always get recognition for that,’ Dean praised.
It was a record setting night for freshman Taylor Gray who pulled down 12 rebounds on her way to a single season rebounding record of over 210 on the season.
“Taylor did a fantastic job tonight and actually set the school record for rebounds in a season and did it against a couple of kids with length, she fought hard in the paint,” Dean stated. “She works hard and that shows by the number of rebounds she has over the year and she has a bright future ahead of her,” Dean added.
Arcanum was led by Gray with 15 points, O’Daniel had 11, Unger 9, Garno 8 and Madelyn Fearon 6.
With the win, the Trojans advanced to the sectional title game where they will meet the No. 1 seed Waynesville, who defeated National Trail 65-41. That game is at 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 25 at Covington.
“We’ve been fortunate the last two games to have really strong first halves to cover up a lot of the mistakes we’ve made in the second half. We won’t have that luxury in the next game,’ Dean concluded.
Score by quarters:
Arcanum^20^13^13^3^–^49
Bethel^4^3^12^16^–^35
Individual scoring:
Arcanum – Garno 8, Pohl 6, Unger 9, O’Daniel 11, Gray 15.
Bethel -: Olivia 3, Nailie 6, Klaudia 1, Kenna 16, Sam 4, Lyda 2, Makenna 3.
