SPARTA — The Highland Scots (1-1, 1-0 MOAC) got off on the right foot, grabbing an early 10-2 lead, then fought back their Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference rival Ridgedale Rockets, to get a 48-44 win in conference basketball action on Tuesday.
“Compared to last game, we started off a lot better,” said Highland coach Galen Chapman, “which was nice. We hit a few shots there and that helps everybody’s confidence. We were moving pretty well on offense.”
After the way the Scots started in their last game against Centerburg, they did not want a repeat performance.
“I think we came out real strong,” said Highland post player Maddison Belcher. “We were really fired up after the Centerburg game, so we were ready for a win. We kind of fell back in the second quarter, but we picked it back up. We’re a strong team.”
Payton Denman dropped in six of her eight points in the first quarter to help the Scots pull ahead. The offense is something that the Scots have been working on.
“We’ve been working on moving the ball and making better passes,” said Highland guard Shanay Gibson, who hit a 3-pointer in that first quarter, along with a two-point bucket. “I think we did well at that and working the ball in.”
It looked for a moment like the Scots were going to run away and hide but that was not to be.
Kelby Marshall led the charge back for the Rockets, hitting a 3-pointer and a pair of 2’s in the second. She led all scorers with 13 points. Teammate Hannah Ratterman added a pair of field goals to help the Rockets grab a 26-25 halftime lead.
