Daily Reporter staff reports
Cougars finish off regular season strong
With the state tournament still to be played, the Greenfield-Central girls basketball team concluded its best regular season in recent memory with a 51-39 win Thursday against Greenwood.
The Cougars are 17-6 and will face Mt. Vernon (19-2) in the Class 4A Sectional 9 quarterfinal at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Fortville.
Greenfield-Central won 16 games in 2009-10 and 2007-08. The 1986-87 squad set a program record with 21 wins.
Against Greenwood (10-12) Thursday, the visiting Cougars took a 20-12 halftime advantage on 13 points from Katie Helgason.
Greenfield-Central led 33-25 entering the fourth quarter.
Holly Hoopingarner scored 27 points for Greenwood on 7-of-25 shooting from the field and 11 free throws.
“(Hoopingarner) is a Junior All-Star without a doubt, and one of the best players we play against all year, but one girl can’t beat a team,” Greenfield-Central coach Doug Laker said. “We had balanced scoring, and we have great kids who share the basketball.
“We wanted to make Holly work to get the ball, get in the gaps and make her shoot over the top of us. She scored a lot, but she took a large volume of shots to get there.”
Maddie Wise had 15 points in the second half for the Cougars and finished with a game-high 18 points.
Helgason tallied 15 points. Shelby Oldham (seven points) and Regan Lewis (five points) also contributed.
The Cougars won the JV game 46-25 behind Brittany Wheeler’s 16 points.
Royals finish slate with victory at Centerville
The Eastern Hancock girls basketball team visited Centerville on Thursday and grabbed a 51-44 win against the common Class 2A Sectional 41 foe.
The Royals, who led 28-16 at halftime, are off until next Friday’s sectional semifinals at Cambridge City Lincoln, where they’ll face the Knightstown-Union County winner.
Emiley Carlton had 17 points and seven rebounds for the Royals (13-9). Kaysi Gilbert had eight points and five rebounds. Hope Spaulding (seven points) and Shelby Mourey (six points and five steals) added to the win.
Eastern Hancock has held six straight opponents under 48 points.
Centerville (4-16) will take on Cambridge City in another Sectional 41 first-round game Wednesday.
In the JV game, Megan Mench had 10 points in the Royals’ 49-35 win.
Adam Wire of the Franklin Daily Journal contributed to this report.
