By Mike McGraw
Executive Director
THORNTOWN – Crawfordsville’s 57-39 victory Feb. 13 over North Montgomery did more than just advance the Class 3A sixth-ranked Athenians (20-2) into the championship game of Sectional 25 at Western Boone. It may have finally vanquished some very nasty demons.
Crawfordsville has been a very talented squad ever since seniors Mandi Johnson and Lexi Stevens arrived on the scene as freshmen. However, they have never won a sectional title. The reasons have varied, but the result has always been a disappointing ending to otherwise great seasons.
The demons surfaced again early in the fourth quarter of Friday’s game. North Montgomery was playing, arguably, its best game of the season. The Chargers had erased a nine-point halftime deficit and tied the game at 34 with a little over six minutes left to play.
Bad memories were hanging over the gymnasium like an eerie fog. It was, as they say, gut-check time.
It was then the Athenians, and their talented seniors, rose up and to slay far more than their Montgomery County neighbors. The sequence of events is definitely worth relating:
Johnson hit a jumper from the corner to put Crawfordsville back into the lead. Alex Gasaway created a steal and finished with a breakaway layup. Stevens stole the ball and hit two free throws at the other end. Betty Elliot got a steal, and Johnson turned it into two points. Stevens got another steal.
In less than two minutes, Crawfordsville ran off 12 unanswered points, removed all doubt as to the outcome of the game, and dispelled the demons from the premises.
The rest of the game was “The Lexi Stevens Show.” The Athenians’ emotional leader controlled the ball and drained 7 of 8 free throws down the stretch as Crawfordsville turned on the afterburners. It was a 23-5 onslaught over the final six minutes that produced the highly deceptive final score.
Johnson and Stevens combined to score 42 of Crawfordsville’s 57 points. Johnson led all scorers with 28 points on a sizzling 13-of-21 performance from the field. Stevens added 14, nine of them in the final quarter.
Nicole Kingma led the gallant Chargers (10-11) with 10 points.
Crawfordsville, which finished as Sagamore Conference champion at 7-0, had beaten North Montgomery twice earlier in the season: 56-37 in the Sugar Creek Classic on this floor Nov. 22, then again 62-41 at North Montgomery Dec. 19.
The victory sets up a showdown with Danville, a 54-26 winner over Southmont, in the title game.
In the night’s opening semifinal, Danville (10-10) advanced in far less-dramatic fashion as the Warriors downed Southmont 54-26 behind a dominating defensive effort. Danville held the Mounties to just one first-quarter field goal and eight first-half points in building a 15-point cushion at halftime.
The catalyst in that performance was senior point guard Molly Stewart. The 5’1” Stewart was, simply stated, a pest all over the court in the first half. She harassed Southmont ballhandlers, contested outlet passes on every Mounties rebound, ran the offense flawlessly at the Danville end, and generally made life miserable for Southmont.
The Mounties (10-11) did their best to mount a charge in the third quarter, but they simply could not cash in on their opportunities. (Southmont suffered through a dismal shooting performance the entire evening.) The lead was 16 at the end of three stanzas, and Danville capitalized on the necessary defensive risks the Mounties took in the fourth quarter
Liz Scott led Danville with 15 points, while Stewart added 11 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Elizabeth Sparks led Southmont, and all scorers, with 12 markers.
Crawfordsville, which also owns a pair of previous victories over Danville (54-42 at the Zionsville Tournament Dec. 29, then again two weeks later 60-41 at Danville), will be favored by three touchdowns in their third meeting, according to the Sagarin power ratings.
Hoosier Authority spoke with Crawfordsville Coach Darren Haas and with Danville’s Stewart after the games. Their comments are in the video players on this page!
