HOPE — Hauser junior Bree Hadley had extra motivation going into Tuesday’s Mid-Hoosier Conference matchup against Edinburgh.
Hadley’s cousin Azlyn Whittington, a Hope Elementary second-grader, will be having surgery soon for Chiari malformation.
Hadley made her presence felt on the court, finishing with a team-high 13 points to give the Jets a 53-36 girls basketball victory.
“It was a little hard on me with the emotions,” Hadley said. “The team really helped me out tonight. Since it was a conference game, we really wanted to win this.”
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With Hauser (4-8, 2-2) leading 21-20 at halftime, the Lancers (5-6, 0-1) came back early in the third quarter to take a 25-24 lead. Edinburgh’s lead was short-lived when the Jets finished out the quarter scoring eight straight points and to take a 32-25 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Hauser kept the momentum going by starting the final period on a 13-6 run to extend the lead to 45-31. That ended the Lancers’ comeback hopes.
Edinburgh’s Destiney Ramey scored a game-high 19 points, with 11 coming in the first half. The Jets put the team’s top defender, Mel Hasler, on Ramey at times during the second half, and it disputed the Lancers’ offensive rhythm.
Hasler arrived back home Tuesday after missing time with the team while attending the National Finals High School Rodeo in Las Vegas.
“In the first half, I don’t think I was really in the game yet,” Hasler said. “Coach (Brad Hamilton) gave us along pep talk in the locker room, saying that we have to shut them down, this is our game, this is our floor, you need to shut them down. I think that motivated me. I stayed on (Ramey) the whole time.”
Along with Hadley’s 13 points, Hannah Johnson also shared team-high honors with 13.
Hamilton was proud of his team’s balanced effort and for rising to the challenge.
“The defense worked really hard tonight. I gave them a goal to hold them under 40 and they did it,” Hamilton said. “Us denying Ramey got them frustrated. One thing that really stood out to me is that we had 18 offensive rebounds, which gave us a lot of second-chance opportunities.”
Edinburgh assistant coach Jason Burton, who filled in for head coach Amy Schilling, credited the Hauser defense in the second half.
“We knew what we were walking into. Hauser is a really good team and a good conference opponent and always a tough environment to play in,” Burton said. “First half, we held our emotions and had some continuity on offense. I think the defensive pressure got to us a little. We made some uncharacteristic mistakes and got away from some things that were working for us in the first half.”
