News Progress

Photo by Darian Hays
ALAH's Kim Davis dribbles downcourt.

November 26, 2014

Go on 22-5 run to complete comeback

by Matt Kracht
NP Sport Reporter

Four quarters were simply not enough time to decide the winner of Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond versus the Casey Westfield Warriors last Thursday night. Trailing 27-15 at the half, the Lady Knights stormed back with a 22-5 run in the fourth quarter and overtime to defend their home court, ultimately prevailing 64-61.
After the game, ALAH head coach Craig Moffett talked about what was said to the team during half time.
“I challenged them. I thought the first half we played soft, did a lot of silly things, getting in foul trouble. We talked fundamentals, and I told them to raise our physicality and intensity mostly.”
The Lady Knights were dominated for most of the first half but looked like a completely different team in the second. Moffett insisted that the defense keyed the turn around.
“We handled the ball better, and we turned up our defense without fouling. That is what got us in trouble in the first quarter was a lot of reaching and fouling. We played as a team. It looked like some individuals in the first half, but we came together as a team in the second half.”
The Lady Knights were led to victory from the play of their guards. Logan Kauffman, Mycaela Miller and Kimberly Davis took control in the second half leading their team back from what looked to be an insurmountable deficit.
In the first half the Lady Knights seemed content to settle for jump shots, and Moffett blamed himself for the lack of scoring in the lane. Read More

Photo by Joe Wheeler
Okaw Valley’s Amanda McClain (left) tries to box out Sullivan’s Emily Neuhauser (right).

November 26, 2014

Lady Redskins rout Timberwolves in one-sided affair

By Joe Wheeler
Reporting in Sullivan

It was all Sullivan Thursday evening as the Okaw Valley Lady Timberwolves could not muster enough defense to stop Sullivan’s offensive attacks. On top of the defensive woes, OV struggled to get balls to fall and calls in their favor. Sullivan would grab the lead early and never trailed over the course of the competition that eventually ended 57-32.
“Our shots weren’t falling,” said Okaw Valley head coach Don Gardner. “Sullivan’s defense was pretty stout. They are a very quick team whose overall speed gave us some trouble getting open looks.”
The Lady Timberwolves played aggressively, but fouls hurt the ladies in blue, as Sullivan scored 16 points over the course of the game at the charity stripe. Read More

Photo by Keith Stewart
Sullivan's Alyssa Marshall prepares to strike from beyond the perimeter Monday night. The junior point guard scored 17 points off five 3-pointers to help her team to a 59-30 win over Arcola.

November 24, 2014

Redskin victory falls on Stiff’s 1,000th career game

by Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com

When you see the stat, “five 3-pointers” is attributed to the Sullivan girls’ basketball team, one might at first conclude it belongs to Emily Neuhauser or Elissa Stewart.

But Monday night, that stat, in fact, belonged to junior point guard Alyssa Marshall, who finished with 17 points, one of three lady Red to score double digits in their 59-30 win over Arcola.

“I didn’t expect Alyssa Marshall to have 17 points. I don’t know what happened this evening with her, but I told her, whatever she did, she needs to do it again,” said Sullivan head coach Sheri McCain. “I’m just so absolutely proud of her. For the last two years we’ve been challenging her to shoot the ball, shoot the ball. She made that first one and then she was just lights out from there. But what impresses me the most was her defense on [Rylee] Fishel. She made it very difficult for Fishel to touch that ball.” Read More

Photo by Keith Stewart
Sullivan’s Emily Neuhauser tries to drive past Teutopolis’ Chelsey Hardiek Monday evening. Neuhauser led the Lady Red with 24 points and 7 rebounds in their 49-43 victory.

November 19, 2014

Neuhauser scores 24 to put Sullivan 1-0 on year

by Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com

No blowout this time.

For both returning players and fans, last year’s season opener at Teutopolis and subsequent 67-24 landslide was forgotten Monday night when the Sullivan girls’ basketball team handed the Wooden Shoes a 49-43 loss to begin the season 1-0.

“For us going to T-town last year and losing by 40 some points was very difficult for these girls,” said head coach Sheri McCain. “So I think getting this win tonight will help them to kind of get that monkey off the back as far as finally beating a T-Town caliber team.”

Sullivan trailed through two quarters and were down 20-19 heading into the half, and it wasn’t until the third quarter did Sullivan pull ahead, thanks in part to 50 percent shooting from the perimeter. Read More

November 19, 2014

Fourth quarter runs put ALAH on top

by Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com

The Lady Knights recovered a briefly held lead from the second quarter in the final period Monday night to defeat Meridian 66-54 during the season opener in Macon.

Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond led the Lady Hawks through most of the second quarter and only fell behind at the end of the half when Meridian sank a 3-pointer to go up 24-22. Despite Meridian then earning its biggest lead of the night at the beginning of the fourth quarter up 46-36, the Lady Knights went on a 7-point run to pull within three and then completed the come-from-behind win with an 8-0 run culminating with senior Elyse Harris’ 2-point bucket to take a 53-51 lead. Meridian would vie temporarily, responding with its own bucket to tie the game, but ALAH embarked on yet another run, this time of six straight points to take a 60-53 point lead. Mycaela Miller and Kim Davis then closed out the game with six points between the two scored from the line. Read More