Center Grove uses third-quarter run to push past Seymour

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An 18-2 third-quarter run broke open a five-point game and gave visiting Center Grove a comfortable 51-31 victory over Seymour’s girls basketball team on Saturday afternoon.

The Owls opened the second half with a Grace Schrader layup off a feed by Kendall Sterling to narrow a seven-point deficit to 20-15. That’s when Center Grove’s outside shooters found their range.

Savanna Bischoff and Audrey Annee each made two 3-pointers to power the Trojans’ run over a five-minute stretch. Center Grove’s lead swelled to 38-17 and ended Seymour’s hopes of a win.

“That stretch in the third quarter, we just flat didn’t compete,” Seymour head coach Jason Longmeier said. “We weren’t fighting to get back on defense, we weren’t matching up and we weren’t communicating. It was a frustrating game. Not that we lost, but in the manner that we lost. We continue against good teams to let games get away from us.”

Turnovers made life difficult for the Owls in the first half. Seymour managed just 12 shot attempts due to 14 possession-shortening turnovers. Center Grove took advantage and held a 17-8 lead midway through the second quarter.

However, the Owls used solid defense to hold the Trojans to just three points over the final four minutes of the first half. Seymour whittled the difference to 17-13 on a three-point play by Schrader and a layup by Sterling.

Center Grove (11-8) ultimately found answers in its depth. Ten different players scored at least two points for the Trojans, led by Bischoff’s nine points and Annee’s eight.

Conversely, only four players registered points for Seymour. Brooke Trinkle scored eight in the fourth quarter to finish with a game-high 10 points. Schrader followed with nine. Sterling and Journee Brown ended with six points each.

“We knew this was going to be a tough matchup for us,” Longmeier said. “Defensively, Center Grove is solid.”

Saturday’s loss leveled Seymour’s season record at 9-9 with a challenging schedule looming over the regular season’s final two weeks. Conference games against Jeffersonville and New Albany, a trip to No. 3 Franklin (18-1) and a home date with Charlestown (13-5) await the Owls.

“It’s brutal,” Longmeier said. “On Thursday, we go to Franklin and play one of the top teams in the state. Charlestown is really good. New Albany is going to fight us. We’ve got four games left before the tournament, and we’re going to have to play better than what we’re playing now.”

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