Rushville didn’t show much sympathy for Seymour’s girls basketball team in its return to competition last Saturday afternoon.

In their first game in 16 days, the Owls looked understandably sluggish while turning the ball over six times in the contest’s first four minutes. Rushville, meanwhile, was red hot during those same opening minutes, draining four 3-pointers and constructing an early 14-2 lead that propelled the Lions to a 54-47 victory.

“That 14-2 start got us,” Seymour coach Jason Longmeier said. “I thought we did a better job in the second half, but now we’ve got to turn the page and get ready for next Tuesday.”

Longmeier’s team (5-6) was forced to shut down temporarily due to quarantine protocols related to the coronavirus. The Owls last game was Dec. 17.

After enduring a prolonged period without competition, Seymour now faces a busy scheduled that, if it holds, calls for four games in an eight-day span. Next is Tuesday at Scottsburg.

“We were not quarantining for close contact. We had sick kids,” said Longmeier. “We had a great week of practice. If we weren’t ready, we wouldn’t have played this game.”

Rushville led by as many as 19 points in the first half before the Owls found their footing.

Seymour closed the half with a modest 5-2 run, then added an 8-2 burst to start the second half and narrow Rushville’s lead to 41-31.

The Lions were able to keep the Owls at arm’s length, however, and didn’t allow their lead to go under double digits until the final minutes of the game.

“The most frustrating thing was, offensively, there were some things that we didn’t let develop,” Longmeier said. “We got in a big hurry. Defensively, we were slow to their (3-point) shooters. We overhelped and overcommitted and allowed kickouts.”

Rushville launched 23 3-pointers against the Owls, making eight.

For Seymour, junior center Grace Schrader had a monster game, scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, and provided the impetus for the Owls’ best offensive stretches.

Schrader scored six points during the 8-2 run to start the third quarter. She later scored nine straight to close the deficit to seven late in the fourth quarter.

Grace Meyer followed Schrader with 10 points and six rebounds, including a 3-pointer. Alyssa Perry added 7 points, while Kendall Sterling finished with 6 points and 5 rebounds.

Rushville (10-5) extended its winning streak to four and, following Saturday’s win celebrated the 300th victory of head coach Melissa Marlow’s 21-year stint at the school.