South Warren uses fast start to advance in district tournament
Published 11:16 pm Monday, February 24, 2025
South Warren junior McLaine Hudson (11) puts up a shot while Greenwood junior Ava Morrison (30) defends during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren senior Jenna Lindsey (3) puts up a shot while Greenwood junior Ava Morrison (30) defends during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren senior Ashley Overbay (21) looks to pass while Greenwood freshman Molly Spidel (15) and Greenwood eighth grader Anzlee Hendrix (1) defend during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren junior McLaine Hudson (11) looks to drive past Greenwood eighth grader Anzlee Hendrix (1) during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren freshman Jooniper Strow (12) makes a steal while Greenwood freshman Molly Spidel (15) looks on during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren freshman Jooniper Strow (12) drives past Greenwood senior Gracyn Nealon (11) during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren senior Jenna Lindsey (3) has a shot blocked by Greenwood senior Gracyn Nealon (11) during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren junior Catherine Calvert (23) puts up a shot during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren junior McLaine Hudson (11) puts up a shot over Greenwood senior Savannah White (5) during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
Greenwood freshman Molly Spidel (15) puts up a shot while South Warren sophomore Averi Fugate (40) defends during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
Greenwood freshman Molly Spidel (15) looks to pass while South Warren senior Ashley Overbay (21) defends during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
Greenwood eighth grader Anzlee Hendrix (1) drives to the basket while South Warren senior Jenna Lindsey (3) defends during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
Greenwood freshman Molly Spidel (15) is guarded by South Warren junior Catherine Calvert (23) and South Warren freshman Jooniper Strow (12) during South Warren’s 56-41 win over Greenwood in the girls 14th District Tournament on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Bowling Green High School.
The South Warren girls’ basketball team made a strong first impression in the District 14 Tournament opener, using a fast start to set the tone in a 56-41 win over Greenwood on Monday at Bowling Green High School.
South Warren (15-13) built a double-digit lead in the opening minutes and never looked back with a strong defensive effort, advancing to Thursday’s district title game and earning a spot in next week’s Region 4 Tournament at E.A. Diddle Arena.
“Our girls came out and executed the defensive game plan to perfection,” South Warren coach Lane Embry said. “We really talked to them about how you are going to want to get stops and I felt like they were really, really hungry to get stops tonight. We fed off our defense and made big plays when we needed to.”
The two teams split a pair of hard-fought battles during the regular season, but like last year’s District 14 tournament opener — when the Spartans rolled to a 66-39 victory over Greenwood — South Warren seized the early momentum and never let up.
South Warren jumped out to an 11-1 lead just over four minutes in as Greenwood struggled to get going. The Lady Gators made one field goal in the first — a putback in the final 33 seconds of the quarter by Ava Morrison — and trailed 22-9 by halftime.
“It felt really good to get on the right foot early on,” South Warren junior McLaine Hudson said. “We’ve kind of struggled in the beginning of games — being the first to punch instead of being punched. I think that we came out and we punched first tonight.”
South Warren maintained a double-digit lead for all of the second half, with the margin increasing to as many as 20 in the final minutes. Hudson, who finished with a game-high 31 points, scored 13 out of 14 points for the Spartans at one point in the second half to help South Warren maintain a comfortable advantage.
“She had a look in her eye tonight,” Embry said. “The first time she came off the floor when she went back on I was like, ‘OK, I think it is time for her to go,’ and she did. I’m proud of her for stepping up in that spot.”
Jooniper Strow added 10 points, joining Hudson as South Warren’s only double-digit scorers in the win.
Anzlee Hendrix led Greenwood with 12 points, while Molly Spidel added 10 points.
“We had the first two plays on offense wide open and we overthrew it out of bounds, so I think it was nerves,” Greenwood coach Terrance Williams said. “We had four free throws early. We hit one out of four. I think it was nerves. Then you are just trying to climb an uphill battle from that point.
“McLaine was McLaine. She was McLaine all day long. When you’ve got a girl like that, they just continuously pound on you and pound on you and not let you get back in the game.”
Greenwood ends the season 11-18, missing the Region 4 Tournament for the second straight season. The Lady Gators ended the season with eight straight losses and were 3-12 after a win over South Warren on Jan. 24.
“We are really young,” Williams said. “We start an eighth grader at point guard. We start a freshman at shooting guard. We bring an eighth grader off the bench. We are going to be young next year for sure, but it is promising to know we are young and going to get better.
“I feel bad for my seniors. We are going to lose three good ones.”
The Spartans advance to face Bowling Green for the district title at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Bowling Green High School. Bowling Green advanced after Warren Central forfeited. The Lady Dragons had not played since Jan. 31 due to injuries and illnesses and finish the season 0-17.
Bowling Green beat South Warren twice in the regular season, with a 44-28 win on Jan. 31 the Spartans’ last loss.
“In this district and in this region if you are the same team tomorrow that you were today you are getting behind because everybody gets better as the year goes on,” Embry said. “I know Bowling Green has a really good team. They play great defense. We are going to have to sit down and figure out a few things we can do to work against them. We are just happy tonight to get this win and move on. Now we’d love to cut down the nets on Thursday.”
SWHS 11 11 17 17 — 56
GHS 3 6 12 20 — 41
SW — Hudson 31, Strow 10, Lindsey 8, Calvert 3, Fugate 3, Overbay 1.
GHS — Hendrix 12, Spidel 10, White 9, Morrison 6, Tandy 3, Nealon 1.
