Eighth grade girls’ basketball sets tone with three-game win streak
By Kayleigh Rahn
Tuesday, Oct. 29
Seventh Grade
EP-13; SJO-20
The seventh grade girls’ basketball team dropped one at home against St. Joe.
Only two Hornets found the bottom of the net in the 13-20 loss. Lizzy Powell posted a consistent nine points, and Marissa Boyer added three.
The seventh grade had a hard time getting the offense started, said Coach Beth Pugh.
“Defensively I thought we did a good job, but we need to be more aggressive on the offensive end of the court,” Pugh added.
Eighth Grade
EP-24; SJO-19
The eighth grade girls faced a bit of reorganization without one of their top scorers and point guard Ella Boyer; however, the girls adjusted well and walked away with a 24-19 W over St. Joe.
Izzy Wilcox put up eight points for East Prairie, and Claire Meyer added six. Molly Macaulay and Harley Woodard had three each, and Mia Hausmann and Marley Good contributed two each.
“The eighth grade came away with a good win against SJO,” Pugh said. “This was their first game without Ella Boyer our point guard. I thought Mia Hausmann, Izzy Wilcox, and Marley Good worked together well to fill those shoes.”
Wednesday, Oct. 30
Seventh Grade
EP-40; ALAH-15
The seventh grade girls stepped up with a huge effort to defeat Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond 40-15.
“The seventh grade played much more aggressive on both offense and defense,” Pugh said. “I was really happy to see them play with much more energy.”
Boyer led all with 11 points, Powell posted 10 points, and Sydney Moss added nine. Emily Czerwonka had six points, and Catie Gibson and Rachael Jones added two each.
Eighth Grade
EP-25; ALAH 28
The eighth grade lost a close one to ALAH 25-28.
Meyer had 10 points, and Hausmann added six. Wilcox posted five points, including one from behind the arc, and Woodard hit four.
“We had many opportunities in both the first and second half,” Pugh said. “We just need to take advantage of those and stay focused on defense. Even though we lost I am pleased with our effort.”
Monday, Nov. 5
Seventh Grade
EP-27; St. Matt-18
The seventh graders stayed aggressive and the effort paid off in a 27-18 win over St. Matthew.
“It was good to see the seventh grade stay aggressive to the basket,” Pugh said.
Powell had eight points, Zoey Thomason added six, and Czerwonka had five. Gibson and Lauren Woods posted two points each, and Jones and Addyson Ring added one each.
Eighth Grade
EP-36; St. Matt-35
The eighth graders put the hometown crowd on the edge of their seats in a come-from-behind 36-35 overtime win against St. Matthew.
“We made some adjustments on offense and talked how we needed to play more aggressive on defense in the second half,” Pugh said.
Ella Boyer made a statement with a 15-point game, while Woodard and Meyer added reinforcement with eight points each. Wilcox had three points, and Macaulay added two.
Tuesday, Nov. 6
Seventh Grade
EP-14; Mayo-26
The seventh grade fell 14-26 to a very talented and aggressive Paris Mayo team, Pugh said.
Thomason had 11 points for the Hornets, while Boyer added two, and Moss posted one.
Eighth Grade
EP-23; Mayo-20
It was a team effort that boosted the eighth grade girls past Paris-Mayo for a 23-20 win.
Boyer put together 11 points, and Meyer added five. Macaulay tallied four, Hausmann had two, and Marley Good added one.
“The eighth grade gave a great team effort and beat a very talented and aggressive Paris Mayo team,” Pugh said.
Thursday, Nov. 8
Seventh Grade
EP-19; VG-3
The seventh grade girls kept the Villa Grove Blue Devils off the board until the fourth quarter in the 19-3 win.
Moss led the Hornets with seven points, and Thomason added six. Czerwonka, Woods, and Ring had two points each.
Eighth Grade
EP-33;VG-11
The eighth graders continued a three-game winning streak with a 33-11 win against Villa Grove.
Boyer led with 16 points, her third straight double-digit effort, and Meyer posted four points. Woodard, Wilcox, and Good added three points each. Hailey Downs had two points, and Natalie Veach and Macaulay had one each.
“Both the seventh and eighth grade played good defense to force Villa Grove to turn the ball over, which we converted into points,” Pugh said.