Photo by Ryan Tincher.
FOUNTAIN CITY, Ind. – A fast start enabled the Winchester girls basketball team to repeat as sectional champs on Saturday night.
“These girls have worked very hard for this and I am very proud of them,” Winchester Head Coach Holly Gutierrez said. “They are such a special group.”
With a 63-36 victory, the fourth-ranked Golden Falcons claimed the Class 2A Northeastern Sectional title.
“They bring it every day,” Gutierrez said. “They want to win together and win for each other. You don’t have teams like this very often.
It was the 16th championship for Winchester. Including last season, the Golden Falcons won in 1977, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1999, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013.
Winchester (23-20) will face Covenant Christian (16-9) in the opener of next Saturday’s Speedway Regional at 10 p.m.
“Covenant Christian is a great team,” Gutierrez said. “If we can get them, Triton Central is probably an even better team.
No. 8 Triton Central (20-4) meets South Putnam (19-5) in the second contest at noon. The title affair is slated for 8 p.m.
The celebration was subdued because of an injury to Shelby Miller in the second half.
“It is hard to win and to celebrate when you have a kid that went down like that,” Gutierrez said.
Miller, who had 11 points, seven rebounds and three blocks, was on the floor for several minutes after a lay-up in the final period.
Flying Start for Golden Falcons
Winchester led 15-4 at the end of the first quarter.
“We talked about getting off to a better start,” Gutierrez said as she compared the beginning of Friday’s win over Union County. “We did different things and we got up and down the floor a little bit better. Defensively, we had a little bit more pressure on the ball.”
The Golden Falcons held a 27-12 advantage by halftime.
“We knew it was a tall order,” Lincoln Head Coach Garry Laymon said. “We didn’t get off to a good start.”
Defensive pressure was the biggest factor early in the game.
“We really struggled,” Laymon said. “They change it up. They run several different presses. They are just so big.”
Despite the score in the third period, the Golden Eagles did put together a stretch of nine straight points.
“We played hard,” Laymon said. “They’re just downright good.”
Maddie Lawrence led Winchester with
“We’re all just grateful to be here,” Lawrence said. “Right now, we are having so much fun together.”
The Winchester players were more relaxed on Saturday.
“We just had to stay calm,” Lawrence said. “We came out nervous (on Friday) and we knew the stakes were high. Tonight, the one thing we tried to do was to stay calm and keep running the offense.”
Hannah Graft had 12 points, three assists and two steals, while Becca Chamberlin also finished with 12 points.
Kira Robinson added eight points and five rebounds.
For the Golden Eagles (12-12), Laynie Russell led the way with 11 points. She also had four rebounds.
Olivia Davis finished with 10 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Emmie Pugh tossed in eight points. Allie Owens had four points and Hannah Hall grabbed four rebounds.
It was the final game for Lincoln seniors Davis, Hall, Ryanne Davis, Haley Black and Katie Black.
“It’s always kind of tough,” Laymon said of going into the locker room for the last time. “It’s a little tough to go in a talking to them.”