Columbus Christian’s Emma Murray and Hauser’s Adrianna Musillami battle for the ball during a game at Hauser High School.
Tommy Walker | For The Republic
HOPE — Tuesday night was more than a game for the Hauser girls basketball team.
In between the junior varsity and varsity games, there was a moment of silence and prayer for one of their classmates, Jesse Bragg. Emotions were high, but the Jets didn’t have much trouble to get by Columbus Christian with a 73-22 victory.
Bragg, who was a senior at Hauser, was killed in a shooting over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. There were donation buckets at the main entrance of the gym and also at the concussion stands to help cover expenses. Hauser athletics donated all concession and ticket sales from Tuesday’s game to help out the Bragg family. A GoFundMe page has also been created to help out the family.
“It was nice to see our team and our kids and our community to come together for one night and have a moment for a Hauser that passed away this past weekend,” Hauser coach Kyle Shipp said. “The thing that was really touching for me was how unified the school and community has been the last couple days.”
The Jets (3-3) built a 13-0 lead to start the game and then a 27-6 lead after the first quarter. The Crusaders (3-3) couldn’t muster any offense in the second quarter as they were outscored 20-2 in the second quarter and trailed 47-8 at the half. The game went to a running clock in the second half.
Columbus Christian coach Chris Noblitt said turnovers and not getting back on defense quickly after missed shot were the two key points in the loss.
“Most of their points were from us turning the ball over or missing a shot, them getting a rebound and going down the floor,” Noblitt said. “Give them credit, they’re a real good team. They’re going to do a lot of good things this year. Coach Shipp is doing a good job. There’s a lot of talented players. It’s a tough loss, a frustrating loss, but a lot of stuff we can learn from, as well.”
Hauser’s Kyliegh Parrott led all scorers with 23 points, Madelyn Poe had 21 and Norah Berkenstock added 10 to lead the Jets scoring. Sarah Lorimor led the Crusaders with 16 points.
“There were a lot more positives than negatives, for sure,” Shipp said. “There’s lots of positives to draw from this to come back to practice on a quick turnaround.”
The Jets will host Indianapolis Lutheran on Thursday, which will be glow night in honoring another Hauser student Sarah Taylor, who passed away due to cancer two years ago.
Hauser 73, Columbus Christian 22
Columbus Christian;6;2;7;7;—;22
Hauser;27;20;9;17;—;73
Columbus Christian (3-3): . Sarah Lorimor 6 3-5 16, Madi Blair 0 0-0 0, Paige Harden 1 0-1 3, Mariah Holt 0 0-0 0, Lauren Sanders 1 0-0 2, Emma Murray 0 1-2 1, Eva Blair 0 0-0 0. Totals: 8 4-9 22.
Hauser (3-3): Kyliegh Parrott 9 2-5 23, Norah Berkenstock 4 2-2 10, Bella Kilps 1 0-0 3, Adrianna Musillami 2 0-0 4, Kenze Bostic 2 0-0 4, Jaden Sims 1 0-0 2, Sammy Mires 1 0-0 3, Madelyn Poe 9 2-2 21, Braelyn Williams 1 0-0 3. Totals: 30 6-9 73.
3-point goals: Columbus Christian 2 (Lorimor, Harden); Hauser 7 (Parrott 3, Kilps, Poe, Mires, Williams).
