Lady Cougars get second win beating West Carrollton.

PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL EDGEWOOD 37, WEST CARROLLTON 23

Cougars never trail, snap four-game skid

Coach hopes victory instills confidence in young squad and sparks winning streak.

By Rick Cassano

Staff Writer

Sunday, December 28, 2008

TRENTON - Maybe it is the start of a positive run for Edgewood High School's girls basketball team.

The host Cougars needed a victory and got one Saturday afternoon, Dec. 27, ending their four-game losing streak by handling winless West Carrollton 37-23.

"Anytime we can get a win and make these girls believe they can win, it's huge," Edgewood coach Greg Brown said. "We're youthful, but once they realize the kind of potential they have, we could take off."

The Cougars (2-5) never trailed and led 21-10 at halftime, surviving a nervous stretch of more than seven minutes (mostly in the third quarter) without scoring.

Sarah Schueller collected nine points and eight rebounds for Edgewood. Erin Sharp tallied eight points and 16 boards, while Leanne Williams and Danielle Sorber added seven points apiece.

"That was probably the hardest we've played all season," said Sharp, a 5-foot-11 sophomore forward. "If we mess up on offense, we usually get down, go back on defense and foul. Today, we just played and stayed together the whole way."

It certainly wasn't a great offensive day for the Cougars, who converted just 14-of-58 field goals.

But the Pirates were even worse, shooting 16.7 percent from the field (9-of-54). They also racked up 25 turnovers in falling to 0-6.

"Unfortunately, 9-for-54 is pretty common for us," West Carrollton coach Brian McKnight said. "That was by far the best defense we have played this year. Offensively, we're dealing with a lot of raw talent. We're missing a lot of easy shots."

Brown liked his squad's defensive play as well.

"We were a lot better defensively than we have been," he said. "I thought we defended almost every shot."

Schueller nailed the game's biggest shot, a 3-pointer from the right wing with 1:30 left in the third stanza. That made it 24-16, halting the Cougars' offensive drought and giving them a shot of adrenaline.

"We still missed a ton of easy shots," Brown said. "We could be sitting here 5-2 right now, but we're not. We need to improve our shooting and take better care of the ball."

Sharp turned in a standout performance, especially on the glass. Edgewood's tallest player said there is no secret formula for board success.

"Box out and go after the ball," Sharp said. "That's about it. That's what I try to do."

Keneshia Robinson paced West Carrollton with six points and 12 rebounds. Sam Stewart snared eight boards for the Cougars, who host Lebanon on Monday.

*Middletown Journal*