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HILLSBORO — The 2022-23 season has not started off well for Washington’s girls basketball program.
SOSA File Photo
The Blue Lions’ first six games have all resulted in losses — all but one by double digits — and the team held a seven-game losing streak dating back to last season. Furthermore, Washington had not defeated an FAC opponent since February of 2021, a sectional semifinal win over Chillicothe.
So, on Wednesday, if the Blue Lions wanted to turn things around and right the ship, they were going to have to start that process by beating Hillsboro on the road.
That’s exactly what took place as eight players graced the scoring sheet en route to a 47-41 victory over the Indians.
The Blue Lions have officially made a mark in the win column.
“I’m just happy for our kids,” Washington coach Sam Bihl said when asked about the win. “I feel like tonight they came out from the start and were able to put four quarters together.”
Washington started the game on an impressive 8-2 run, but Hillsboro answered in the form of Blake Herdman. The sophomore chalked up nine points in the opening quarter, along with a triple right before the buzzer, to force an 11-11 tie after one.
The second started oddly similar to the first with the Blue Lions going on a 9-0 scoring run to go up 20-11. But, following a timeout, Hillsboro picked up its defensive intensity and forced turnover after turnover to climb back into the ballgame. However, Washington still held a 22-19 lead going into the break.
At halftime, Washington’s coaching staff challenged their team in the locker room and put the game’s final two quarters in the hands of their players.
“We went into halftime and the coaches asked us, ‘What’s important to you?’ and just left it at that,” Washington senior Allie Mongold. “It was up to us and we chose to work hard.”
In a game this close, someone had to be the spark plug. Little did anyone know that Washington’s spark plug would come in the form of a true freshman.
With four points off the bench in the first half, Calee Ellars checked into the game in the third quarter and instantly made her mark with a deep triple.
In the final two possessions of the quarter, Ellars struck from deep again. And, following a steal on the other end, she knocked down a floater as time expired. Washington entered the game’s final quarter with a 37-24 lead, and Ellars — all of the sudden — led the Blue Lions with 12 points, eight in just the third quarter.
Ellars knew that her role coming off the bench would be play a vital role in her team’s path to victory.
“Our bench had a lot to do with it,” Ellars said. “During practices, getting conditioning in, that just really helped outwork Hillsboro tonight”.
Just when it looked like the Blue Lions had the game in the bag, Hillsboro decided it wasn’t going down without a fight. With a little over two minutes remaining, the Indians trailed 46-32. They’d proceed to go on a 9-0 run, highlighted by a steal-and-score from Peighton Bledsoe and a put-back basket via Rylie Scott, narrowing the lead to 46-41 with just 21 seconds remaining.
Unfortunately for Hillsboro, that effort would end up being too little and too late.
After Mongold knocked down a free throw, the second half of the pair resulted in an offensive rebound for Washington. The Blue Lions killed the remaining time and proceeded to escape Hillsboro with a six-point victory.
“I felt like tonight, from the start, there was just a vibe from all of them,” Bihl said. “They were confident, they played hard, they played together. I felt like that was consistent, and I’m proud of them. I hope tonight lights a fire into them that shows them they can do it and they can use this game as momentum.”
Statistically, Ellars led the Blue Lions with 12 points, followed by Maggi Wall with nine. Mongold also chipped in with eight points of her own.
For Hillsboro, Herdman led all scorers with 19 points while Scott followed with eight. Bledsoe contributed six points as well for the Indians.
While Hillsboro (2-8, 0-4 FAC) turns its focus to McClain on Saturday, Washington (1-6, 1-3 FAC) looks to keep momentum afloat as it hosts Miami Trace.
“I feel like we’re going to go into it stronger than we would’ve if we didn’t get this win,” Mongold said. “It’s going to push us to be even more motivated to get a win at Miami Trace. We were really motivated going into a hard week with league play and it felt really good to get a good win.”
BOX SCORE
Washington: 11-11-15-10 — 47
Hillsboro: 11-8-5-17 — 41
Washington: Scoring: Ellars 12, Wall 9, A. Mongold 8, Wade-Salmi 6, Woods 5, Sever 3, Racine 2, Gray 2
Hillsboro: Scoring: Herdman 19, Scott 8, Bledsoe 6, Fraley 3, K. Miles 3, A. Miles 2
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