North Montgomery girls’ basketball was unstoppable under the direction of the late Terry Bartell.
In his last five seasons, the Chargers won 78 games, and five-straight Class 2A IHSAA Sectional titles, capped by a 76-34 win over Sheridan in the sectional final in 2007.
North Montgomery moved up to 3A the next season, and hasn’t won a sectional title since.
The last sectional title was all about the seniors, Paige Murphy, Kylie Bartell, Lauran Thompson, and Jessica Wiles, who helped the Chargers to four titles each of their four varsity seasons.
“With us being the leaders on his team, we wanted to keep the tradition going and not let our team down,” Thompson told the Journal Review after the game. “This fourth-straight sectional title for us seniors is special.”
The Chargers posted a 21-3 record that season, eventually losing to Jimtown in the regional final. They beat Clinton Central 70-37 in the sectional semifinal, and Wheeler 72-40 in the regional semis.
“This a very special group of seniors who have grown up together playing basketball,” Bartell said.
North Montgomery was led in scoring in the championship game by junior Ashley Buis with 25 points.
Buis is the all-time leading scorer in program history with 1,362 points, and went on to a playing career at Vincennes, Oregon, and Stetson. Her and coach Bartell are both in the Montgomery County Basketball Hall of Fame.
North Montgomery led Jimtown in the final seconds of the regional final, but the Jimmies hit two free throws to win the game 47-46, denying the Chargers their first regional title.
