LINDEN – The North Montgomery girls basketball team was looking to snap a four-game losing streak on Thursday night as they hosted the Covington Trojans. A 13-point third quarter saw the Chargers take a 28-25 lead into the fourth, however the Trojan defense held them to just four points in the final quarter as the Trojans squeaked out a 34-32 win over North Montgomery.
“We started to force some shots and force some passes a lot more in that fourth quarter,” Coach Ryan Nuppnau said. “I told the girls when we were up five points with about three minutes left that we have to make them work on defense and get a good shot. We just need to understand game management a bit better and be more under control. It’s definitely a good learning experience for us.”
The Chargers (2-5) had a shot to either tie the game or take the lead with just four seconds left in the game but ending up turning the ball over.
“We wanted to get a two there,” Nuppnau said of the last possession. “We had good movement on that play but it was a small miscalculation and we couldn’t capitalize. The game wasn’t won or lost with that singular possession though. There’s a lot of things we can look back on why it didn’t go our way tonight.”
Madi Welch led all scorers in the game with 13 points. Lydia Dugard had nine and Hadley Broadwater recorded eight for the Chargers in the loss. Madison Banta also chipped in two points.
Lilly Hacquet had 12 to lead the Trojans in the win.
North Montgomery started the season 2-0 but due to multiple run ins with COVID-19 and injuries, they have dropped their last five games. Nuppnau isn’t ready to worry yet as he knows his team hasn’t been at full strength for much of the early part of their season.
“All three of our bigs were out tonight due to injury,” he said. “We were playing all guards tonight and different girls are being asked to take on different roles. Three of our girls tonight played the entire game due to our short bench. People may look at our record and say we’re going through a slump; I say we’re just getting stronger because of those different roles that our girls are being put in. That allows them to become more versatile out there when we do have our bigs back.”
The Chargers will play their third game of the week on Saturday as they host Fountain Central.
