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Team
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CCC
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ALL
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Franklin Monroe
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11-0
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15-5
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Covington
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10-1
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20-4
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Tri-Village
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9-2
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16-5
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Arcanum
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8-3
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17-4
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Mississinawa Valley
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7-4
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10-11
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Twin Valley South
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6-5
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9-11
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National Trail
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4-6
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7-11
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Bradford
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3-8
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7-11
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Ansonia
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3-8
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4-15
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Bethel
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2-7
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5-12
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Tri-County North
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1-9
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3-15
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Newton
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0-10
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0-19
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January 24, 2005 – COVINGTON
By Rob Kiser - Piqua Daily Call
For Franklin Monroe girls, it was a big win that put them in drivers seat for the Cross County Conference title.
For the Covington girls, it was great testament to the team's character and a great learning experience for the young team.
And when it came to the atmosphere, both teams came out winners in the Lady Jets 43-38 victory in a battle of Cross County Conference unbeatens. The two teams played in front of a loud, near capacity crowd at Covington High School Monday night in a makeup game from last Thursday.
"Wouldn't it be great if every girls game was like this (the loud crowd)," Franklin Monroe coach Ned Gray said.
Covington coach Chris Besecker agreed. "That was what Ned (Gray) and I talked about before the game," Besecker said. "This was great for the girls."
And while it didn't start out that way, the game lived up to its billing. After Franklin Monroe led by as many 15 points in the first half, Covington got back within four in the third quarter and two in the closing minutes of the game.
With the Lady Jets clinging to a 38-36 lead with 2:11 remaining in the game, Franklin Monroe hit five of six free throws to seal the victory.
Mara Howell and Courtney Oswalt were 2-for-2, while Dana Halderman made one of two.
"We are shooting 66 percent for the year," Gray said. "We had three girls go to the line who are all shooting over 70 percent. So, that helps."
Covington coach Chris Besecker was proud of his team's comeback.
"We learned some things," Besecker said. "Our young kids need to be more aggressive. They can't come out pie-eyed just because it is a big game. And we showed the great character this team has."
The first half was controlled by FM from the start.
Abby Davenport opened the game with a three and the Jets jumped out to a 7-0 lead and it never got any closer. The Jets defense forced the Lady Buccs into a four-for-23 shooting performance in the opening two quarters to open a 24-9 lead at the break.
"I thought the first half we did a great job on defense," Gray said.
Besecker saw signs of life near the end of the half.
"I thought we finally settled down midway through the second quarter and started to play defense like we can," Besecker said. "After that, I thought we played good defense."
While a comeback seemed unlikely, things quickly swung 180 degrees after the break.
With Andrea Meyer hitting two big threes and Michelle Meyer scoring 21 points in the second half, it took everything the Lady Jets had to hold off the charging Lady Buccs.
"We didn't score the first couple possessions of the third quarter," Gray said. "And those are shots we normally make. Then they hit a couple baskets and everything just sort of swung."
Andrea Meyer hit her second three of the quarter to get Covington within 26-22 with 1:41 remaining in the third quarter. After FM started to pull away, Michelle Meyer hit a three from 25-feet as the quarter came to a close to get the Lady Buccs within 31-25.
Michelle Meyer continued to show why she is the CCC's best player in the fourth quarter, scoring all 13 Covington points.
"She is a good player," Gray said. "I thought Courtney Oswalt and Dana Halderman did a good job on her. There were a couple times where we lost her."
Whether it was hitting NBA threes, posting up inside and scoring or drawing fouls and converting at the line, the junior did everything possible to keep Covington in the game.
She was 4-for-6 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the line in the fourth quarter alone.
"She (Michelle Meyer) stepped up big time," Besecker said. "She did what she had to do to get us back in the game. Andrea Meyer hit some big threes. We just need the other girls to step up."
Michelle Meyer had a game-high 26 points and seven rebounds for the Lady Buccs. Andrea Meyer added eight points, while Caitlin Sargent had six rebounds and Chelsea Tebbe added five.
Elaina Kakatolis had a double-double for FM with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Davenport had 13 points and five rebounds.
Covington was 13 of 40 from the floor for 33 percent and seven of 12 from the line for 58 percent. Franklin Monroe was 17 of 41 from the floor for 41 percent and seven of 12 from the line for 58 percent.
Covington won the battle of the boards 23-22, but had 17 turnovers to Franklin Monroe's 13.
The Lady Buccs play at Newton Thursday.
BOXSCORE
Franklin Monroe (43)
Howell 1-2-4, Davenport 5-1-13, Oswalt 1-2-4, Kakatolis 6-0-12, Post 2-0-4, Halderman 1-2-4, Spitler 1-0-2. Totals: 17-7-43.
Covington (38)
Kuharik 0-0-0, Johnson 0-0-0, M. Meyer 8-7-26, Sargent 1-0-2, Christian 0-0-0, Tebbe 1-0-2, A. Meyer 3-0-8, Barhorst 0-0-0. Totals: 13-7-38.
3-point field goals ˜ Franklin Monroe: Davenport (2). Covington: M. Meyer (3), A. Meyer (2).
Score by quarters
Franklin Monroe......12......24......31......43
Covington...................5........9......25.......38
Records: Franklin Monroe 11-4 (8-0), Covington 13-3 (8-1).
Reserve score: Covington 48, Franklin Monroe 41, OT.
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