Lincoln won the 2016 Class 2A Girls Basketball Sectional at Union County with a 64-52 win over Winchester.
LIBERTY, Ind. – Hard work really does have its benefits.
“It’s the most amazing feeling ever knowing that we’ve worked so hard all season,” Lincoln’s Kylei Klein said.
Another Lincoln player offered her thoughts.
“It’s a huge deal,” Kerrigan Neff said.
What they were describing was Lincoln’s first girls basketball sectional championship since 2005, after the Golden Eagles defeated Winchester 64-52 to claim the title of the Class 2A event at Union County on Saturday night.
“All of them did a great job,” Lincoln Head Coach Rob Bills said of his team that won its seventh straight and the 10th in its last 12 contests.
“I’ve really learned a lot from these kids,” an emotional Bills added. “They’ve really made me a whole lot better coach.”
With the sectional crown, their fourth in school history, the Golden Eagles (14-10) advance to the Speedway Regional to face Class 2A No. 3 Covenant Christian (20-5) in the opener next Saturday.
Early Lead
Lincoln was able to get off to a 10-2 advantage to begin the contest.
“I thought if we could good start, we could come up a winner,” Bills said.
The Golden Eagles finished the opening period with a 15-9 lead. They maintained that margin by halftime at 26-20 despite Klein riding the bench with three fouls.
“We were worried about staying even with them on the boards,” Bills said. “That’s the key to our team. I was really proud of our kids for hanging in there. We talked about that all day.”
Lincoln would eventually win the rebounding battle 44-36.
“We just wanted to pack in (our defense) because we knew they were bigger,” said Allie Owens, who had 14 points for Lincoln.
The Golden Eagles were also concerned about Winchester’s top scorer Mariah Roberts, who had just five points in the first half.
“We had to stop No. 12, Mariah,” Owens said.
Roberts eventually got going and led the Falcons with 19 points.
“I’m just so impressed with her resolve and her willingness not to give up,” Bills said of Roberts.
In the second half, the Falcons made a run to close the gap to 31-30 after Becca Neville made a pair of free throws at the 4:51 mark.
Leading by a point, the Golden Eagles had an answer and responded to stay on top 41-35 at the end of third frame.
“We wore them down a little bit and they got in foul trouble,” Bills said.
Another run by the Golden Eagles added to their lead. Seven straight points capped by a basket by Laynie Russell gave Lincoln its largest lead to that point at 52-40 with 4:05 remaining.
Winchester (12-12) cut the deficit again, but the Falcons couldn’t get closer than 54-50 after two more free throws by Neville with 1:44 to play. Lincoln finished off its title with a 10-2 run to start the celebration.
Neff led Lincoln with 16 points and nine rebounds. Russell added a dozen points and Emmie Pugh tossed in 11. Klein and Olivia Davis finished with six points each.
For the Falcons behind Roberts on the scoring list was Neville with 16 points, who added a game-high 18 rebounds. Kira Robinson, the tallest player in the contest at 6-3, scored seven points and grabbed nine rebounds.
Nervous Head Coach
Bills seemed relieved after the game after some initial concerns about his young team’s preparation.
“I was worried that was going to be a problem,” he said of his squad that only has one senior. “They were so loose it was a little aggravating, but you’ve got to let them be who they are.”
That proved to be a good decision because it allowed the Golden Eagles to become champions on Saturday night.
Box Score
LINCOLN (14-10) – Allie Owens 5 3-6 14, Emmie Pugh 4 0-0 10, Kerrigan Neff 3 10-16 16, Kylei Klein 0 6-8 6, Olivia Davis 3 0-0 6, Laynie Russell 4 2-3 12, Hannah Hall 0 0-0 0, Dakota Harrison 0 0-0 0, Brianna Sparks 0 0-0 0, Jessica Harmer 0 0-0 0, Rachel Merida 0 0-0 0, Kami Laymon 0 0-0 0. Team – 19 21-33 64.
WINCHESTER (12-12) – Sierrah Love 0 0-0 0, Kelly Graft 0 0-0 0, Mariah Roberts 9 0-2 19, Liz Pegg 2 0-0 4, Becca Neville 5 6-9 16, Sarah Mallory 2 0-1 4, Kira Robinson 3 1-2 7, Hannah Graft 0 0-0 0, Shelby Miller 0 2-2 2, Autumn Dixon 0 0-0 0, Victoria Pegg 0 0-0 0, Sarah Graft 0 0-0 0. Team – 11 9-16 52.
Lincoln 15 26 41 64
Winchester 9 20 35 52
3-pointers – Lincoln 5 (Pugh 2, Russell 2, Owens 1), Winchester 1 (Roberts 1). Rebounds – Lincoln 44 (Neff 9, Klein 7), Winchester 36 (Neville 18, Robinson 9). Turnovers – Lincoln 22, Winchester 24. Fouls – Lincoln 17, Winchester 26.
Class 2A Speedway Regional Pairings
Lincoln (14-10) vs. Covenant Christian (20-5), 10 a.m.
Triton Central (15-10) vs. Monrovia (15-9), noon.
Championship, 8 p.m.
Sectional Championships by TEC Teams
Winchester (14): 1977, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1999, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013.
Union City (6): 1985, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2016.
Hagerstown (5): 1993, 1994, 1995, 2009, 2015.
Northeastern (5): 1990, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2011.
Tri (5): 1998, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2014.
Lincoln (4): 1983, 2004, 2005, 2016.
Centerville (1): 2012.
Union County (1): 2006.