Youthful Mt. Vernon squad takes down Shelbyville at Garrett Gymnasium

On three separate occasions in the fourth quarter, Shelbyville got within five points of Mt. Vernon – but never got closer.

Jayla Ash converted in the lane to cut the Marauders’ lead to 36-31 with 1:42 to go but Mt. Vernon hit four straight free throws to secure a hard-fought 40-33 victory Saturday afternoon at William L. Garrett Gymnasium.

Both teams made 13 field goals in a low-scoring affair, but nine of the Marauder makes came from beyond the arc.

The three underclassmen in head coach Julie Shelton’s starting lineup combined to score 36 points to improve the Marauders to 14-5 (3-1 Hoosier Heritage Conference).

Freshman Zoey Wood made a trio of 3s and finished with a game-high 14 points. She also had seven rebounds and four assists.

Fellow freshman Alaya Baxter had 13 points and sophomore Gabby Thomas added nine points all on made 3s.

“That was the most frustrating thing was they were shooting lights out today,” said Shelbyville head coach Becca Hoefler. “And we were not. I think that was maybe one of our worst shooting games this season.”

Shelbyville shot just 29% from the field and was 3 of 15 from beyond the arc.

Maddy Jones led the Golden Bears (10-9, 3-2 HHC) with 10 points and seven rebounds. Ash finished with eight points and five rebounds. Savannah Collins had seven points.

Mt. Vernon missed its first four shots of the game before the underclass trio sank three 3s in just over one minute of playing time.

The Marauders only points of the second quarter came on back-to-back 3s from Wood. Still, Mt. Vernon led 17-13 at halftime.

Another trio of 3s in just over a minute created separation in the third quarter and Baxter added a 3 at the mid-point of the quarter to get Mt. Vernon its largest lead of the game, 29-17.

Shelbyville used a 7-0 run to get within 31-26 early in the fourth quarter before Wood converted a 3-point play with a score in the lane and free throw.

A Collins 3-pointer cut the lead to 34-29 but again Shelbyville could get no closer.

“It just felt like a really off day for us more than anything,” said Hoefler. “I wasn’t upset with our energy or our effort because I felt like it was there. Adjusting mid-game to their shooting was a struggle for us. We didn’t adjust quickly enough in the game.”

Mt. Vernon now stands alone in second place in the HHC standings behind Pendleton Heights (13-6, 5-1 HHC). Shelbyville is now tied with Delta (13-4, 3-2), Greenfield-Central (14-5, 3-2) and Yorktown (11-6, 2-2) for third place.

The win was Shelton’s 395^th career win at Mt. Vernon.

Shelbyville won the junior varsity game 48-18. Melia Cartwright led the Golden Bears with 21 points.

Shelbyville’s next three games are on the road starting Wednesday at Whiteland (5-12).

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