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Franklin
Monroe senior Haley Gray hits for two of her 10 points
Thursday against
Mississinawa Valley. The Jets won the Cross County
Conference game by a 46-35, in a
game that was much closer than the
score indicates. CNO photos by Dylan Knoop
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Jets survive
scare in the Hangar
By George Starks
PITSBURG- Trailing 13-4 at the end of the first quarter, the
Mississinawa Valley Blackhawks looked like they had no business on the
floor with Franklin Monroe Thursday in Cross County Conference action.
Then, the lights were turned on and on the strength of solid defense
and some outstanding offense; the Hawks put on a scoring clinic,
outscoring the Jets 17-7, taking a one point lead at the break, 21-20.
“We stopped playing defense in the second quarter said FM coach Gavin
Spitler.
“I was feeling good at halftime,” said Hawks coach Todd Murphy.
That good feeling was soon gone and in the end the Jets pulled out a
46-35 victory.
“When you give up 17 points in a quarter and allow 18 in the other
three quarters combined, that tells you what kind of defense you were
playing,” Spitler remarked. We literally stopped playing defense. They
were cutting across our chest and back dooring us. They did whatever
they wanted to do in that second quarter.”
Trailing by nine after one, the Hawks started to chip away. With 5:14
left in the half, MV had went on a 9-2 run, closing the deficit to two
at 15-13.
The Hawks got their first lead with 2:12 remaining on a steal and a
lay-up by Maddie Murphy, giving the visitors a 19-18 advantage.
Mississinawa Valley would take a three point lead a few minutes later
but that would be trimmed to a point at the break.
“We talked about getting back to team defense at half-time and we gave
up six points in the third and eight in the fourth, so it did get
better.”
Despite allowing the Hawks just six third quarter points, the Jet
offense struggled at times in the frame and FM could only muster a slim
31-27 advantage with eight minutes left to play.”
“We didn’t come out and play well in the second half but we were never
out of this game,” said Murphy. “We got off to a slow start tonight and
that hurt us. If we would have started the game the way we should have,
it might have been a different ending.”
Mississinawa got the final stanza started off with a trey from Nicolle
Scholl, closing to within a point at 31-30, with 6:56 remaining.
The Jets would respond on a deuce from Haley Gray and that would be
backed up by a bucket from Claire Neiswander with 4:27 showing giving
the Jets a 35-30 bulge.
Murphy would hit two from the line closing to a 35-32 count but that
would be as close as the Hawks would get as Franklin Monroe would open
things up at 40-32 with 2:37 left to play.
“We survived this game,” said Spitler. “We took a whole quarter of
defense off tonight and you can’t afford to do that. We got lucky in
the second quarter because they could have scored a lot more. We let
them hang around and it almost got us. We had them where we wanted them
at the end of the first quarter but we never put them away.”
Taylor Robbins led the way with 22 while Gray added 10 in support.
Murphy netted a dozen for the Hawks.
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MV's
Nicole Scholl scored nine in a losing effort for the Lady Blackhawks.
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