Clovers fall as Rox mount late run

ROCKVILLE -- It was a blistering cold, snowy Wednesday night, but the Cloverdale girls persisted on and travelled to Rockville. After a long battle with the Rox, they fell late and lost 43-34.

The game was postponed from Tuesday to Wednesday due to uncooperative weather conditions.

CHS (4-11, 0-3 West Central) came in strong and stayed with the Rox (4-9, 0-3 Wabash River) for three and a half quarters. The lead went back and forth, with both teams getting good offense and defense.

"I thought we reacted well. We responded well and slowly built up a lead," CHS head coach Matthew Langdon said. "I thought we put ourselves in a good position, but with two to three minutes left in the (first) half, I thought we got a little tired and let a possible 12- to 14-point lead get down to five."

The game came down to who got the momentum at the right time. It started off in the hands of the Clovers but ended with the Rox, which made the difference.

CHS started out with aggressive play in the first quarter. They pounded the ball inside and junior Taylor Clark had six early points. One, of which, was a well-executed, left-handed hook shot. It ended with the Clovers having an eight-point lead.

The second quarter started out well for Cloverdale, but a long scoring drought helped Rockville get back into it.

The Clovers still had a comfortable five-point lead at the intermission, but the Rox had confidence.

It was a low scoring first half at 17-12.

It was the second half where Rockville started to heat up. By the end of the third quarter they had cut a five-point halftime deficit to one.

A lot of credit had to be given to Rox sophomore Meagan White. She had 17 points in the second half and 25 total. She also recorded a double double by grabbing 11 rebounds. Six were offensive.

The Clovers started the fourth quarter as planned. They stretched the lead and looked like they might close it out.

It was with 3:52 left in the game that RHS sophomore Morgan Black stole the ball from CHS junior Bailee Stevens and took it in for an easy layup. That is when all the trouble started accumulating for the Clovers.

"At the end of the game when you are down you got to start taking risks. The final score doesn't say how the game went. It was a one or two possession game the whole time," Langdon said.

On the next Rox possession White hit a big three to knot it up at 33 a piece.

RHS then added 10 more points in only two minutes.

The Clovers added one more free throw to their total, but that finished their night.

Down the stretch Rockville just out-maneuvered Cloverdale. White was the deciding factor with her efficient scoring abilities.

CHS fought long and hard and Stevens gave it all she had, bringing energy and big plays. She finished the night with a double double scoring 16 and grabbing 11 rebounds. She also committed just three turnovers.

It was a tough loss for Cloverdale on an evening in which they played well for much of the game.

The ball movement was a big portion of that. CHS limited itself to only six turnovers through the first three quarters, also hitting the big shots it needed.

"I think it's why this loss really hurts," Langdon said, "We did put ourselves in a position to win. In the fourth quarter we found ourselves able to put it away, but when you don't finish and let a good team like (Rockville) hang around that's what happens."

Cloverdale has five tough opponents left and Langdon believes that if they can play four quarters they should win.

The Clovers' next matchup will be against county rival North Putnam on Friday Night when they will look to spoil the Cougars' homecoming.

Individual scoring
Cloverdale (34): Stevens 4-15 8-10, 16, Clark 3-7 4-6, 10, Hamm 2-6 0-0, 5, Combs 1-8 0-0, 2, Worthington 0-1 1-2, 1, Dorsett 0-2 0-0, 0, Helterbrand 0-2 0-0, 0. Totals: 10-38 13-18.
Rockville (43): White 10-26 2-2, 25, Black 1-8 3-6, 5, Boardman 1-6 1-3, 3, Bullington 1-6 0-0, 3, Gordon 1-6 0-0 3, Fellows 1-4 0-0, 2, Lear 1-8 0-0, 2. Totals: 17-64 6-11.