NEW PALESTINE — To say Friday night’s win meant a lot to the New Palestine girls basketball team would be an understatement.
It meant the Dragons took control of the Hoosier Heritage Conference traveling trophy, it meant that they kept their chances at a share of the HHC title alive, but most importantly it showed that the Dragons who went 3-4 in the conference last season have begun to believe in themselves.
At home, New Palestine (10-9, 5-1) gave Pendleton Heights (11-7, 6-1) their first conference loss of the season 52-48. With a win over Yorktown later in the season, the Dragons would earn a share of the HHC title.
“Honestly, it means a lot to be where we are in the conference right now. What means the most is that these girls believe in themselves now. Ever since we got on a role in the conference, our goal has been to get to the top and the girls to believe that they can compete with the best,” New Palestine head coach Craig Moore said. “It’s all about effort and hustle, and they did that tonight. They believed in themselves, had confidence, and shot with confidence. I’m just so proud of them.”
In a 9-7 game, the Dragons ended the first quarter with back-to-back baskets and carried that momentum over into the second period.
Three straight Kenna Tweedy points pushed the lead to 12 before Vivian Miller gave the Dragons their biggest lead of the half, 29-14 late in the quarter.
The Dragons defense forced, unofficially, 15 turnovers in the first half to spark the big lead, and even though she finished the night with 21 points, made things difficult for the Arabians leading scorer Kaycie Warfel.
“Warfel is a heck of a player, and we knew that we had to stop her. We just put a box-and-one (defense) in two days ago and I thought they executed it really well,” Moore said. “It’s not an easy defense to run, so they did a great job.”
Back-to-back Miller and Allie Blum 3s pushed the New Palestine lead to 17 early in the third quarter before the Arabians made their charge back.
A pair of Adah Hupfer layups and a Warfel three-point play began a 10-0 Pendleton Heights run to make things 35-28.
But the Dragons mainstay on the offensive end all night — Miller — was there to end the run.
A basket and free throw put the Dragons back ahead by double digits and after another short Pendleton Heights streak, another Miller basket helped the Dragons stay ahead 42-36 entering the fourth quarter.
The Dragons senior point guard scored nine third-quarter points and finished with a game-high 25 points before fouling out midway through the fourth quarter.
“Viv played with a ton of confidence and from a point guard that’s what you want. We followed her lead,” Moore said. “She did a great job of getting to the rim and controlling the tempo for us.”
Up 44-39 when she fouled out, the Dragons were able to do enough to escape with the win.
The Arabians got as close as three after a Hupfer putback with 27 seconds left, but after forcing a turnover on the ensuing inbounds pass, two missed shots kept the Dragons ahead.
After another missed game-tying shot, Tweedy and Blum each knocked down free throws to seal the win.
The Dragons play at home at 7:30 p.m. against Waldron next Thursday.
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New Palestine 52, Pendleton Heights 48
Pendleton Heights;7;9;20;12;—;48
New Palestine;14;15;13;10;—;52
Pendleton Heights (11-7, 6-1): Kaycie Warfel 8 5-6 21 Adah Hupfer 6 0-2 13, Olivia Jones 3 0-5 7, Skylar Baldwin 2 0-0 6, Makayla Morrison 0 1-2 1, Mamie Trout 0 0-0 0, Emma Roberts 0 0-0 0, Brea Perry 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 6-15 48.
New Palestine (10-9, 5-1): Allie Blum 3 5-7 12, Vivian Miller 9 5-6 25, Sadey Hughbanks 1 2-4 5, Kylee Beranek 2 0-0 4, Kendra Moore 0 2-2 2, Kenna Tweedy 1 2-4 4, Ella Holman 0 0-0 0. Totals: 16 16-23 52.
3-point goals: Pendleton Heights 4 (Baldwin 2, Jones, Hupfer); New Palestine 4 (Miller 2, Blum, Hughbanks).
