GIRLS' BASKETBALL: Host Rock Creek wins Holiday Classic

Dec. 31—SELLERSBURG — Rock Creek coach Sara Nord believes her freshman center has scary potential, and on Friday, Ahleeyah Brown certainly frightened opposing defenses.

Brown scored 39 points in two games and lifted the host Lions to a Rock Creek Girls Holiday Classic title. She dominated the glass, swatted shots and made some big buckets in the paint as Rock Creek defeated South Central in the opener and Christian Academy of Indiana in the championship game.

"Once that kid realizes how much of a monster that she is, she's going to be that much better," Nord said of Brown.

The Lions(12-2) needed the lift after falling behind by nine points to Christian Academy(5-11) in a rematch of a Dec. 12 meeting where Rock Creek won 48-34.

The Warriors, who defeated Louisville Collegiate in their tournament opener, came out fast and furious in the title game. Showing discipline and patience, Christian Academy passed the ball from Warrior to Warrior before sophomore Alexus Bryant drained a short jumper to extend the lead to 9-3 early in the first quarter.

Rock Creek had trouble getting in rhythm offensively to start the game, but a buzzer-beating triple from sophomore Rylan Byars cut the deficit to 9-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Another Rock Creek freshman, Kelis Dansby, cut the lead to 12-11 when she made a shot through contact, drawing the foul and knocking down the free throw.

The Warriors responded with five quick points from Leah Stevens, as the sophomore scored 42 points in two games Friday.

Another trey from Stevens later in the quarter extended the Christian Academy lead to 21-13, and she made it 10 straight points when she scored a deuce on an offensive rebound. The Warriors took a 26-17 lead into the break.

The Lions roared to start the third quarter, scoring the first four points before Stevens drained another triple. Rock Creek responded with a Brown bucket inside, as she began warming up after a cold first half.

Dansby broke free for a layup in transition to make it a four-point affair. A few minutes later, Brown aggressively drove to the basket for a bucket to bring Rock Creek within a point of the Warriors.

The freshman had to come out of the game after going down with a hard hit while fighting for a loose ball late in the third quarter, but Dansby stepped up and converted another 3-point play after hitting a tough shot in the paint and drawing a foul. Rock Creek finally nudged in front 32-30 at the end of the third quarter.

The Lions led by a point when Brown came back into the game early in the fourth, and she immediately made her presence felt by drawing two fouls inside. After hitting two free throws, Brown scored again in the paint to give the Lions a 39-36 advantage with 3:46 left in the game.

With just over 3 minutes to play, Brown grabbed another offensive rebound and scored to push the lead to 43-38. Dansby and Byars knocked down five big free throws in the final minute, and Rock Creek won 48-38.

"We just play as a team and we have good chemistry," Brown said of her team's play on Friday.

The Lions and Warriors are young with multiple freshmen and sophomores playing big minutes for the squads. Both coaches were pleased with the improvements they saw from their players during the Holiday Classic.

"Every day we talk about getting a little better, getting a little better," Christian Academy coach Carson Casey said. "We always want to be playing our best basketball come tournament time, and I feel like we've shown a ton of growth."

Nord said teaching is the biggest part of the game in the first two months of the season.

"I feel like we're growing and maturing. Each game there's a learning lesson. Win or lose, we're trying to learn because we're really young," she said. "We're getting there slowly but surely, and I'm really proud of them."

Christian Academy will travel to Crothersville on Thursday, while Rock Creek will host Shawe Memorial on Thursday.

ROCK CREEK 48, CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 38

1 2 3 4

Christian Academy 9 17 4 8

Rock Creek 6 11 15 16

CHRISTIAN ACADEMY(5-11): Leah Stevens 18, Alexus Bryan 11, Macy Jackson 6, Addison Jackson 3

ROCK CREEK(12-2): Ahleeyah Brown 19, Rylan Byars 11, Kelis Dansby 10, Chloe Carter 4, Neveah McWilliams 2, Ryleigh Newton 2

Big second half leads Lions to win

South Central(1-10) freshman Gracelynn Bartoszek was a tough matchup for Rock Creek in the first round Friday, as she scored 16 of the Rebels' 21 points going into the break.

Rock Creek(12-2) held onto a 25-21 lead starting the third quarter, but two free throws from Bartoszek tied the game at 28.

A nice feed from Neveah McWilliams set up Ahleeyah Brown for a bucket to put the Lions back on top, but South Central came back with four straight as two more free throws from Bartoszek gave South Central a 32-30 lead with 2:46 to play in the third quarter.

Ryleigh Newton put the Lions back on top for good with a triple, as she ignited a 12-0 Rock Creek run. She ended the third quarter with a buzzer-beating trey to put the Lions ahead 40-32.

Brown capped the run with a tough bucket in the paint, and the lead was too much for South Central to overcome.

A coast-to-coast layup from Kelis Dansby stretched the lead to 47-35, and Rock Creek went on to defeat South Central 53-40. Brown led the way for the Lions with 20 points, as Newton added 12 and Dansby had 8.

Christian Academy takes care of Collegiate

The Christian Academy Warriors(5-11) never trailed in their tournament opener, beating Louisville Collegiate(0-3) 53-32 behind 24 points from Leah Stevens.

Stevens got her scoring going with a triple in the first quarter to extend the Christian Academy lead to 8-1. She followed that up with the next four points for the Warriors including a layup after Macy Jackson stole the ball and found her teammate for an assist.

Jackson increased the Warriors' lead to 14-4 with a jumper early in the second quarter. Teammate Alexus Bryant gave Collegiate trouble with her quickness, as she scored 15 points in the game and slashed through the paint for a second quarter layup to extend the lead to 19-8.

Collegiate fought back and cut the lead to 23-19 at half.

Four free throws over the final minute of the third quarter from Raegan Hodge and Addison Jackson provided the Warriors with a 38-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Christian Academy scored the final 13 points of the contest to cruise to the win.

Warriors coach Carson Casey said Christian Academy didn't play a great second quarter, but she was happy with how they responded in the second half. With a young lineup, closing out games can be tough, but the Warriors were able to meet the challenge, she said.

"We were able to run our offense, be disciplined, take good shots and finish," Casey said. "We were tough and physical and responded well."