by
Richie Hall
Sports Editor
Hamilton County Reporter
Carmel had one goal in mind as the girls basketball Class 4A Sectional 8 championship began Saturday night at Fishers: Let it fly.
The Greyhounds got off to an aggressive start, and that carried them to a third
consecutive sectional title. Carmel, the second-ranked team in 4A, beat Hamilton
Southeastern 68-48 to win Sectional 8 and qualify once again for the Kokomo regional.
The ‘Hounds led 23-6 after the first quarter, with their two sharpshooters leading
the way: Tomi Taiwo drained four 3-pointers in that period alone, while Amy
Dilk threw in three triples.
“We wanted to play a real aggressive, physical game,” said Carmel coach Tod
Windlan. “We told our kids, our good shooters, ‘When you’re open, let it fly and
shoot it with confidence.'”
That confidence carried through into the second quarter, in which the Greyhounds led
33-9 at one point. Reagan Hune added five points in that period, while Taiwo hit
another ‘3,’ bringing her total to five. After receiving a scare from Noblesville in
Friday’s semi-finals, Carmel wasn’t about to let Saturday be a repeat.
“Yesterday, it was a battle for sure, and today we learned our lesson,” said Taiwo.
“We ran over sets again and we figured out what we needed to do to come out with a
win and obviously make it easier for ourselves. And we made our shots.”
The Royals finished the second quarter on a 7-0 run, cutting Carmel’s lead to 33-16
at halftime. Molly Walton helped HSE out with four points, a free throw and a 3-pointer.
But the ‘Hounds opened the second half on an 10-0 run. Taiwo scored seven of those
points, starting with her sixth 3-pointer of the game. She was the game’s leading scorer
with 26 points.
Jasmine McWilliams scored the other three points, on a free throw and a layin.
After that, Carmel continued to roll, enjoying its largest lead of the game in the
third quarter at 51-22.
“That team’s good and we had them down close to 30 at one point,” said
Windlan, who credited assistant coach Craig Brunnemer with a good scouting report.
“We really played well on both ends, and I thought we were the aggressor on both ends.”
The Royals made a push in the fourth quarter, scoring eight unanswered points to
get to with 56-41. Amaya Hamilton scored six points of that run, while Walton’s quick
steal turned into two more points. Southeastern was still within 58-43 with
3:38 left to go, but Carmel wouldn’t allow them to get closer. The Greyhounds scored
their last eight points from the free-throw line, going 8-of-8 in the final three minutes.
“It’s definitely been like a journey, but doing it with the team I have has been
awesome, and being able to play with the seniors that I have has just been great,” said
Blake Smith. She led the way on the boards, with seven rebounds. McWilliams collected
six and Dilk had five.
Dilk also added 18 points and dished out nine assists. She did all this with her knee
wrapped up after hurting it in Friday’s game.
“It was just a tweak,” said Dilk. “I just wanted to be able to play with my team and
I just knew I had to gut it out. That’s why I did it. I’m just proud of my team.”
“Amy’s just a warrior,” said Windlan. “That knee’s swollen and not real good and
stuff. But she just got the heart. She wants to win. Reagan and Tomi, I thought were
outstanding and Jasmine started going to the glass really hard, rebounding for us.”
McWilliams and Hune both finished with 10 points.
Malea Jackson scored 14 points to lead the Royals, while Hamilton added 13 and
Walton scored 12. Walton also pulled five rebounds for HSE, which finished its season
16-8.
Carmel, meanwhile, is now 24-2; that sets a new school record for wins in a
season. Next up is Zionsville, the 10th ranked team in 4A, in the noon semi-final
of the Kokomo regional on Saturday, Feb. 10. The first semi-final will see Fort Wayne
Carroll take on Fort Wayne South.