The Columbus North girls basketball team turned it around during Saturday’s consolation rounds of the Subway/Columbus North Invitational.
The Bull Dogs edged past Zionsville 67-60 in the first consolation game, and then defeated Westfield 51-41 to finish in fifth place.
“We bounced back after (Friday) night, and knew we had to put in the effort and the energy today that we didn’t have (Friday) night,” North senior Sierra Norman said.
Westfield (9-7) led 4-0 to start the game, but a 12-3 run by North (9-6) gave them a 12-7 lead. The Shamrocks came back to take a 14-12 lead following seven straight points. Kylah Lawson then hit a layup at the buzzer for North to tie it at 14-14 after one.
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It was a back-and-forth battle with neither team leading by more than five points in the second or third quarter. The score was tied 32-32 heading into the fourth, but North began the quarter on a 9-2 run. A Madison White 3 from the left side extended the lead to 44-35 with 3:09 left to play. The Shamrocks converted a triple to cut it to 44-38. That would be as close Westfield got as North sank its free throws to seal the win.
“It’s definitely a boost to know that we competed well today against some really good teams,” White said. “They weren’t just easy teams, but very good teams, so it feels really good. It’s going to boost us moving forward for the rest of the season.”
For North, White finished with 13 points, and Alexa McKinley finished with 10.
In the Bull Dogs’ earlier game against Zionsville, McKinley finished with a team-high 18 points, Norman added 16 and Lauren Barker added 11.
Following the conclusion of the tournament, Norman was named to the All-Tournament Team.
North will have nearly a week to prepare for Conference Indiana foe Terre Haute North. The Bull Dogs will then face Jennings County on Jan. 9 and then take on Bloomington South on Jan. 11 in a matchup that will likely decide the Conference Indiana title.
