North Montgomery will be the place to be in Montgomery County on Friday night as Crawfordsville and North Montgomery girls and boys hoops will square off in a county girl/boy double-header. The girls will take the court at 6 pm with the boys to follow as county bragging rights and county chase points will be on the line.
Girls to have re-match from Sugar Creek Classic thriller
Back on Nov. 19 Crawfordsville and North Montgomery met up in the consolation game of the Sugar Creek Classic. As per usual when the two county rivals square off, it was a close game for a full four quarters. In the end it was the Athenians who pulled out a 32-28 win over the Chargers. Now on their home court, the Chargers will have a chance at redemption.
Overall it’s been a struggle for both teams this year as Crawfordsville comes into the game with a record of 3-9 (0-3 SAC) while the Chargers hold a mark of 2-10 (1-1 SAC) and have lost seven straight. Despite the losing streak, North Montgomery’s offense looks as if it’s headed in the right direction. Before their loss on Tuesday to No. 12 ranked West Lafayette, the Chargers had scored 30+ points in three straight games including scoring 40 against SAC rival Tr-West.
The underclassman duo of Sophomore Piper Ramey and freshman Macee Norman have proved to be a bright spot for the Chargers. Ramey is a double-double machine while Norman provides the Chargers with another player who isn’t afraid to go inside and play physical.
For the Athenians they’ve had eight days to rest since their last game last Thursday against Parke Heritage. Like the Chargers, CHS has seen its offense improve in their last two games as they’ve scored 52 (win over Attica) and 41 in the loss to Parke Heritage.
Junior Taylor Abston has led the team all season playing nearly 30 minutes a game and is averaging 11.2 points while grabbing 9.4 rebounds and blocking 2.8 shots a game.
On offense Cville isn’t afraid to fire it from long range as they attempt just over 12 threes per game. In their win over Attica, CHS drilled 11 treys as they showed off their shooting ability.
On Friday Crawfordsville will be looking for its third straight win over the Chargers dating back to last years sectional victory. Will the Athenians make it three straight? Or will the host Chargers extract some revenge? Regardless expect another good county matchup.
Expect another physical game for the boys
The boys game between the Chargers and the Athenians always provides excitement. While Crawfordsville has dominated the rivalry the last 5-6 years winning the last nine matchups over the Chargers, North Montgomery certainly has given CHS all they can handle. Flashback to last seasons Sugar Creek Classic where CHS escaped with a three-point overtime win in a 45-42 thriller.
This season the Chargers have gotten off to a 1-3 start in their first four games, however the last two games, their offense hasn’t been the problem as they’ve scored 56 points (win over Speedway) and 50 points in a loss to Seeger. In their first two games the Chargers scored just 55 total points so the team looks to be turning a corner in the scoring department.
Sophomore Kelby Harwood leads the team with 11 points per game and dishes out four assists. Sharpshooters Jarrod Kirsch (8.8 pts) and Colton Zachary (7.5 pts) are two other scoring options for the Chargers as well as Mikale Willis (5.0 pts). It’s well known that North Montgomery loves to play a physical style of defense. The Chargers pride themselves on that side of the ball.
For Crawfordsville they enter the game with a 2-3 record. They hope to have the return of senior guard Cale Coursey who not only is their best all-around player, but provides leadership and communication on the floor. Coursey has missed the last two games after suffering an ankle injury against Lebanon back on Dec. 2. In the first three games of the year Coursey was averaging 14.3 points per game. In his absence, players like Alec Saidian (10.4 pts), Drake Burris (9.8 pts), Ethan McLemore (9.2 pts), and Tyson Fuller (6.2 pts) have all stepped up. CHS is still looking to find it’s groove as every player but Coursey played mostly JV a season ago.
It’s also worth noting with both of these games that if Crawfordsville is able to come away with a sweep of the Chargers, they will take a two-point lead in the county chase standings over Southmont. Heading into Friday night Southmont has 24 Chase Points to Cville’s 22 while the Chargers have four.
You can catch a live broadcast of both games from North Montgomery on WIMC Thunder 103.9 with Codey Emerson and Jared McMurry beginning at 5:40.
