by

Richie Hall

Sports Editor

Hamilton County Reporter

Friday’s girls basketball game at the Tiger Den was about as big as a game could get: Two undefeated teams playing their Hoosier Crossroads Conference opener.

Fishers hosted Westfield, and the game was hard-fought for the entire 32 minutes. But the Tigers used two big runs to take control, eventually winning 51-40. Fishers remains unbeaten at 6-0, while the Shamrocks are now 4-1.

Westfield got the first point of the game on a free throw by Ava Henson. The Tigers scored six straight points to go ahead 6-1, with Lydia Stullken scoring off a steal by Audra Emmerson, then Katie Burton and Tamia Perryman both made jump shots. Westfield quickly tied the game up after Shipley made a free throw, Gigi Eldredge hit a jumper, and Jade Shipley made a layin.

But after a quick timeout, Fishers turned it up, scoring 12 unanswered points in a run that stretched into the second period. Kaitlynn Feagan got hot, making a 3-pointer, then hitting another ‘3’ while getting fouled. Feagan made the subsequent free throw to convert a rare four-point play.

“That’s what I continue to be impressed by with us, is that on any given night, we can have any kid step up,” said Tigers coach Lauren Vail. “And tonight, Kaitlynn Feagan hit some big shots for us. It’s fun when you have that many kids that can contribute.”

Burton’s 3-pointer finished the run and put the Tigers ahead 18-6. Regan Dimond got Westfield going in the second with her own ‘3,’ and that helped the ‘Rocks to stay close through the period. Fishers led 22-13 at halftime.

Alyssa Crockett opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer, brining Westfield within 22-16. The ‘Rocks then got as close as 24-20, after Henson scored on a putback and Eldredge made a lay-in.

But the Tigers embarked on their second big run of the game, outscoring Westfield 12-2 to take a 36-22 lead. Burton, who scored on a layin earlier in the quarter, contributed six points to the run, while Feagan drained another 3.

“I feel like all night Westfield had runs in them,” said Vail. “We would hit a big shot and then they would hit a big shot. We would hit a big shot and they would hit a big shot. I feel like we did get a couple of times where we could get out and run in transition and that really broke it open for us.”

“I think they shot the ball incredibly well,” said Shamrocks coach Ginny Smith of Fishers. “We were out of sync. That match-up zone certainly gave us some problems. Not something we see every day or play against every day. Those Fishers kids, they just play so hard. Now our kids played hard too, we just didn’t do some of the little things down the stretch.”

Westfield continued to battle, but Fishers kept its double-digit lead for the entire fourth quarter. Perryman and Burton both had 3-pointers during the period. Burton led all scorers with 21 points – and she’s only a sophomore.

“I have to remind myself sometimes that they’re still young, and many of them playing in their first varsity season,” said Vail. But those young players are off to a great start.
“I’m really proud of just the way they carry themselves and the great teammates that they are,” said Vail.

Feagan, a junior, finished with 10 points. Perryman, Lydia Stullken and Cierra Tolbert all pulled five rebounds.

As for Westfield, Henson scored 11 points to lead the ‘Rocks. Crockett scored 10 and pulled seven rebounds, with Henson and Eldredge both collecting six.

“I felt like second half, we picked up and tried to get some stuff going for us offensively through our defense,” said Smith. “And still, it was just a struggle for us. All in all, that’s a pretty good lesson learned for us. It gives us a good idea about things that we need to get better at. And we’re just going to get back in the gym. That’s what we’re going to do, get better at some stuff.”

Westfield will go back on the road tonight, traveling to Kokomo.

“So we’ll turn around tomorrow, have a little bit of time to get in the gym,” said Smith. “We’ll get our film work done, some prep work and get on a bus and head over to Kokomo tomorrow night and see what happens.”

Fishers, meanwhile, is off until Tuesday, when it plays its second HCC game of the season at Zionsville.

“We’ll regroup tomorrow morning, get ready for Zionsville,” said Vail.