WESTFIELD — The Mt. Vernon Marauders are on a bit of a roll.
They sit at No. 14 in Class 4A and have won six in a row after Wednesday night’s 39-34 win at Westfield. The Marauders’ only loss is to undefeated, defending state champion, No. 1-ranked Warren Central.
All of that is why Julie Shelton continues to be tough on her team.
“I’m pretty tough on these girls,” Shelton said after leaving the winning locker room. “But I’m tough on them because I see the potential in this group, and I think they can reach it.”
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The Marauders raced out to a 5-0 lead as the game started behind two baskets by sophomore Lexi Shelton. But the Shamrocks found their footing, and for the next 28 minutes it was a back and forth affair. Both teams only scored 14 total points in the middle two quarters, potentially due to a strategic decision by Shelton.
“We were pressing them and running at the start of the game,” Shelton said. “But I didn’t think we’d have the gas to do that the entire game, so we kind of packed it in those middle two quarters until we could turn it on full throttle.”
The game was potentially slipping away from the Marauders at the end of third quarter, as the Shamrocks had taken the lead and looked to be the more energetic squad. But super-sub Maddie Swingle served as a spark, stealing an errant pass and taking it to the basket, scoring, and getting fouled with three seconds left in the quarter to maintain the Marauders’ one-point advantage.
That energized the Marauders, who scored the first five points of the third quarter behind a 3-pointer by Abby Worley and a rebound put-back by Shelton. Shelton would finish the game with a team-high 11 points, while Worley had nine points on three 3-point shots.
For coach Shelton, everyone contributing is a great sign.
“I think everyone who played tonight had a good, but not great, game,” Shelton said. “If we can have everyone playing at that baseline level going forward then we can only get better.”
The game wasn’t over yet, however, as Westfield slowly chipped away and cut the Marauder lead to one with 1:15 remaining.
Swingle calmly buried a baseline jumper and the Shamrocks wouldn’t threaten again.
The victory improves the Marauders record to 7-1 on the year. Their next game is a big one, as they will travel to Pendleton Heights for the Marauders’ first Hoosier Heritage Conference match-up of the year on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. The Arabians are already 4-0 in conference play.
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#14 Mt. Vernon 39, Westfield 34
MV;13;7;7;12;-;39
WHS;12;7;7;8;-;34
Mt. Vernon (7-1) – Shelton 5 0-0 11, Worley 3 0-0 9, Perry 2 1-2 7, Swingle 3 0-1 6, Hartle 1 2-2 4, Freeman 1 0-1 2, Hasseld 0 0-2 0. Totals: 15 3-8 39.
Westfield (7-2) – Crockett 3 2-4 11, Henson 5 0-0 10, Shipley 2 1-2 5, Eldredge 1 2-4 4, DeCraene 1 0-0 2, Dimond 0 2-2 2. Totals: 12 7-12 34.
3-pointers: Mt. Vernon 6 (Worley 3, Perry 2, Shelton 1), Westfield 3 (Crockett 3). Rebounds: Mt. Vernon 27 (Swingle 9, Hartle 7, Worley 5, Freeman, Shipley 2, Perry, Shelton 1), Westfield 19 (Crockett 7, DeCraene, Henson 3, Eldredge, Pentecost, Shipley 2).
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