Carlisle improves to 9-1 after 47-31 win

Indians keep focus on improving as they await rematch with Madison.

Carlisle's Alexis Murphy looks for an open teammate as Preble Shawnee's Sidney Brown guards during Saturday's game at Carlisle. Contributed PHOTO BY Martin Wheeler

wheeler Carlisle's Alexis Murphy looks for an open teammate as Preble Shawnee's Sidney Brown guards during Saturday's game at Carlisle. Contributed PHOTO BY Martin Wheeler

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1:30 AM Sunday, January 8, 2012

By Rick Cassano

Staff Writer

CARLISLE — The halfway point of the regular season brought Carlisle High School’s girls basketball team to a good, though not great, place.

The Indians improved to 9-1 with Saturday afternoon’s 47-31 victory over visiting Preble Shawnee, getting 23 points from Alexis Murphy and 10 from Jessica Allen.

The record shines. But the lone blemish, a 57-29 loss at Madison on Dec. 17, is keeping Carlisle out of first place in the Southwestern Buckeye League Buckeye Division.

Are the Indians (5-1 in league play) good enough to win when the Mohawks come to their court? They’ll find out Jan. 21.

“We don’t prepare for Madison every day, but we think about them every single day,” Allen said. “We want that revenge.”

Carlisle coach Randy Glover is intent on keeping his players focused on their day-by-day march. The Indians have four more games before Madison.

“I’m happy with our players,” Glover said. “I wish we were 10-0, but I’m not going to dwell on it. We have to keep working hard and improving. Life’s not easy. You’re going to have to go out and fight for good things.

“I love our four seniors, but it doesn’t stop with them,” he continued. “We’re trying to build a program, and we’re not where we want to be yet.”

Glover said his squad is getting better at pushing the ball inside. Murphy can hit from anywhere, but Carlisle must improve its down-low scoring — primarily the senior trio of Allen, Allyson Campbell and Allison Sturgis — to beat top-level opponents.

“People seem to think we center our offense on (Murphy),” Allen said. “She’s a great player. She deserves to be where she is. But she’s just one of us. We’re all part of the offense.”

The Indians got off to a sluggish start against Shawnee. Sidney Brown’s jumper brought the Arrows within 16-14 with 6:06 left in the second period.

The visitors marked two points in the next 13 minutes, falling behind 40-16. Glover noted that Carlisle’s last game was Dec. 28.

“It took us a while to knock some of that rust off,” he said. “In the second and third quarters, we really started playing defense the way we’re capable of playing it.”

Murphy sank four treys and scored all 10 of the Indians’ third-quarter points. The senior guard has 1,049 career points and is bearing down on Heather (Imfeld) Conger’s program-record total of 1,144.

Murphy also had five steals, four boards and three assists. Morgan Thomas contributed five points, seven rebounds and four assists, Campbell chipped in six points, four caroms and three steals, and Allen grabbed six boards.

Shawnee shot poorly most of the day and committed 26 turnovers, slipping to 1-10 overall and 1-5 in the SWBL Buckeye.

“It was really our inability to shoot the basketball. That sums it up in an unpleasant nutshell,” Arrows coach Joe Webster said. “They have to understand there’s more than one half of a court. The good part is, they don’t quit.”

Shawnee is fighting through injuries. Its leading scorer (Courtney Lakes) is trying to return from an ankle injury and played briefly Saturday.

Brown, Adrianna Moore and Leah Mertz led the Arrows with seven points apiece. Kaela Mertz had six points and nine rebounds.

“We play a half of decent ball and then a half that’s not so good,” Webster said. “There’s no rhyme or reason to that other than substitutions. If I can’t get everybody healthy, it’ll continue to be just like this.”

Shawnee returns to action at home Monday against Tri-County North. Carlisle visits National Trail on Tuesday.

Murphy leads Indians to victory

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