Brock Netter, Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
LUCASVILLE — It’s amazing how quickly a two-week stretch can change a team’s identity.
Fresh off the turn of the new year, Valley was sitting at 5-6 overall after a loss to South Webster.
But since that loss, the Indians been on a white-hot streak, and they, just maybe, earned their most impressive win of the season on Monday.
Led by a dynamic performance from Ella Thompson, the Indians (11-7) led wire-to-wire and made a statement with a 51-43 victory over Green (11-2) in non-conference action.
CREDIT: Brock Netter/SOSA
“We’ve been having so much fun as a team lately, especially in practices and we’ve made such a huge difference in our growth from the beginning of the year,” Thompson said. “It’s really helped us gel as a team and enjoy playing the game even more.”
Thompson was on a mission from the tip and made her impact early, with a level of consistency Valley truly needed.
She attacked the rim, took smart choices and graced the score sheet in the clutch, finishing with a game-high 25 points.
“Green is a really good team, so we knew we had to have a fast start,” Thompson said. “We came in early and got a lot of shots up, and it just carried over into the game.”
A fast start is exactly what the Indians got as Thompson scored the opening seven points, pacing Valley to a quick 7-2 lead. Green narrowed the gap to 7-5, but Austin Frantz and Mia Rose splashed back-to-back 3’s to make it 13-7 after the first quarter.
The Bobcats weren’t out of the game, though.
Abbie Knapp shouldered the offensive load to bring the deficit to within 18-16. However, Green didn’t exactly help itself as turnovers began to pile up.
Valley, meanwhile, took advantage of that.
The Indians swiped a steal and Thompson finished on the other end, plus the foul shot, to extend the lead to 21-16. Frantz later found Katelyn Queen for a bucket to make it 26-20 at the break.
PHOTOS: Images from Valley’s win over Green
“We had a lot of injuries and didn’t really start the season the way we wanted to,” Queen said. “But we’ve grown so much, taken such great pride in our nightly effort on the court, having a lot of fun playing the game. It’s been a huge part of us winning.”
Green committed eight first-half turnovers, and those issues continued in third. In the opening 90 seconds, they committed three turnovers that led to consecutive Queen buckets before Emily Ruhl drilled a triple for a 7-2 run that extended the lead to 33-22.
“Our 1-3-1 has been a complete gamechanger for us, and teams have struggled with it,” Thompson said. “We spend 30-45 minutes everyday in practice working on defense, figuring out what our roles are and having that communication to make it as effective as possible.”
Green had an answer back, though.
Ava Abrams buried a triple, followed by buckets inside from Knapp and Laney Strickland, to cut the deficit to 37-31 and later 39-34, entering the fourth.
Each team’s offense sputtered to begin the fourth, but the clock was on Valley’s side and the Indians used that to their advantage.
Thompson scored the first two buckets to make it 43-36 as Valley started to be more methodical about its approach.
While maintaining possession and limiting turnovers, eventually, back-to-back 3’s from Frantz and Thompson pushed the lead to 49-39 before the Indians closed out the win.
“We’ve all played together since we were in first grade, so there’s a level of trust and fun with this team that makes everything work,” Queen said. “There’s a lot of work in and we all believe in one another since we know how much we’ve all put into this season. It just comes down to being mentally strong and getting through it.”
Following Thompson’s monstrous night, Queen finished with eight points and four rebounds while Frantz and Rose added seven points each.
For Green, Knapp finished with 26 points and 15 rebounds while Strickland added 11 points and eight boards.
Valley returned to action on Thursday and handed Waverly a loss, winning its sixth game in the past seven tries. The Indians will now meet with Martin County (Ky.) on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Green rebounded with a win over Notre Dame on Thursday and will next meet with Cincinnati Wyoming at Eastern Brown on Saturday.
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