North Harrison’s Lilly Hatton (center) looks to shoot against Charlestown on Saturday at North Harrison High School. (Photo by David Lee Hartlage, Special to The Courier-Journal) Nov. 12, 2016
RAMSEY, Ind. — North Harrison coach Missy Voyles knew Charlestown couldn’t match up with 6-foot-1 sophomore Lilly Hatton.
She was right.
Hatton, one of the top post players in Southern Indiana, scored 20 of her high-game 24 points in the first half as the host Lady Cats cruised past Charlestown 80-36 Saturday night.
Class 3A second-ranked North Harrison (4-0, 2-0 Mid-Southern) led just 19-7 early in the first quarter, and it took the Lady Cats nearly two minutes to score a point in the second period. Hatton then ignited a 12-0 run with the first six points of the rally on a layup, an eight-footer and a couple of free throws.
GALLERY: North Harrison vs. Charlestown
“We knew we had a major size advantage with her,” Voyles said. “Lilly’s a load and she’s hard to handle. But we’re not a one-man team. I’ve got five solid people, and I’ve got a couple of good role-players coming off the bench.”
After two baskets from Stevi Burns and a layup from Emma Nokes, North Harrison led 31-7 and the rout was on. Hatton finished with 11 points in the first quarter and then let off the gas, scoring just four more in the second half.
In all, Voyles said the Lady Cats played much better than during Friday night’s 56-40 win over Eastern.
“We were more focused,” she said. “We played with more intensity. We weren’t as passive (with the lead).
“As we go along, I think we’re getting better. I think we showed we were better today than we were yesterday.”
In the second half, plenty more Lady Cats got involved offensively as 11 players scored. Cali Nolot added 11 points for North Harrison. Freshman Peyton Crace led Charlestown (1-1, 0-1) with 12 points. The young Pirates don’t have a senior. Freshmen accounted for 24 of Charlestown’s 36 points.
CHARLESTOWN 5 8 9 14 – 36
NORTH HARRISON 19 20 20 21 – 80
Charlestown (1-1): Gagnon 2, Watson 8, Crace 12, Biscardi 4, Harvey 9, Matthews 1.
North Harrison (4-0): Rennirt 7, Terrell 3, Kondovski 6, Hatton 24, Hinton 3, Nolot 11, Nokes 9, Shelton 6, Chiquito 1, Burns 8, Robertson 2.
3-point goals: Watson, Harvey, Kondovski, Hinton, Nolot, Nokes, Shelton 2.
