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Monroe Central pulls away from St. Clairsville

T-L Photo/RICK THORP Monroe Central’s Kalista Friday surveys the action during Monday’s action vs. St. Clairsville.

WOODSFIELD — When crunch time hit Monday night, Monroe Central’s leaders stepped to the fore.

Kalista Friday, Haylynn Hiles and Amy Bettinger topped the Seminoles in scoring. And as the clock wound down in their girls’ basketball tilt against St. Clairsville, each member of the trio chipped in something that contributed to the team’s late surge.

Friday poured in a game-high 29 points as Monroe Central pulled away for a 67-58 Senior Night victory, a triumph that cemented a berth in the OVAC 3A tournament next week.

“It was a hard-fought game,” said Seminoles head coach Troy Baker, who earned career victory No. 201.

“St. Clairsville didn’t quit. We had problems keeping up with them, especially early in the man-to-man. So we tried to mix it up by going into a little bit of zone then came back with the man-to-man there in the fourth when the ball was going in for us.”

At 15-4, the Seminoles will be the No. 4 seed in the 3A field and have the task of facing unbeaten and top-seed Union Local (19-0) next Monday night at “The Hangar.”

The teams have met twice this season.

Bettinger added 15 points and Hiles had 13 as the Seminoles produced a 7-0 run early in the fourth that all but secured the win.

“They got some rebounds and kicked them out for a couple of big shots,” St. C. head coach Stacey Agnew surmised. “Those hurt.”

Agnew, whose squad (10-8) will be playing in the OVAC 4A semifinals at Beaver Local, was referring to two back-to-back 3s made by Hiles and Friday that pushed the Seminoles’ advantage to 56-49 with 6:07 remaining. Hiles hit the front end of a 1-and-1 moments later capping the spurt.

“Their height and physicalness wore us down late in the game, I think,” Agnew said. “They beat on ya. They beat on ya. But, we’ve gotten better. I think we’re starting to come along. We just have to keep pushing.”

The game featured a handful of mini runs, with each team exchanging leads early. The game was tied at 16 after the first quarter before the Red Devils went ahead four — 27-23 — midway through the second behind a 6-0 run fueled by three points from guard Katie Strama, who finished with 13 points.

Monroe Central answered with a 9-2 run to end the half, one that concluded with the hosts on top 32-29.

“We probably should’ve been up 10 or so,” Baker said, referring to some shots he thought his team should’ve converted. “But you have those nights and you just have to keep playing hard. I thought they continued to play hard and that wore on (St. Clairsville) a little bit.”

The Red Devils started the second half strong, with a 10-2 run putting them up 39-34. Macy Malin, who finished with a team-high 17 points, and Alexis Thoburn (13 points) keyed the surge.

Monroe Central answered and eventually tied the game at 43 on a trey by Friday, one four on the night for the sophomore, who continues to mature as an all-around force.

“I keep telling people all the time to watch her play,” Baker said. “She does an awful lot of things out there and makes those around her better.”

Friday’s layup off a missed free throw early in the fourth put the ‘Noles up 50-46. St. C., though, cut its deficit to one with 7:20 left before Monroe Central took control for good.

Both teams hit the road for their next games — Monroe Central at Caldwell on Wednesday and St. C. at Buckeye Local on Thursday.

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