The Lady Owls found themselves fighting most of the night to hang on to their one loss record in the battle against the Chickasha. The Lady Owls held the lead most of the night, but the Lady Chicks hung around until the buzzer sounded, with Elgin prevailing 46-44.
Sophomore Jentry Holt led the Lady Owls with 15 points, while Sophomore Kaitlin Holmgren added 10, and Junior Samantha Grubb 7. Early in the contest, Elgin could not capitalize on chances inside the paint, with several lay ups and short jumpers falling by the wayside. Grubb got the Owls rolling with two hard fought drives in the paint to add a quick 4 points. The game was an aggressive defensive battle with several possession changes due to pressure coming from both teams’ presses. Sophomore Ally Short drills a 3 late in the 1st quarter to give the Lady Owls a two point lead, but the Lady Chicks are able to tie it up with :20 seconds left in the 1st quarter. Chickasha’s Hamilton kept the Lady Chicks in the hunt inside, hitting several short jumpers. Elgin found themselves trailing, but not for long, as Holt scores quickly on a jump shot to pull within 2 then capitalizes on a turnover, tying up the game. In the final seconds of the 1st half, Holmgren scores to give the Lady Owls a 21-19 lead at half.
Second half action opens up with Holt making a 3 from the perimeter, and the Lady Owls soon find themselves with a 7 point lead. However, the Chickasha kept fighting back, with Clift and Golightly bringing their team within three. However, Jolly capitalizes on a drive and a trip to the line, bringing the Owls’ lead back to 5, with Senior Zoe Cummins extending the lead to 8 on a jumper. The Lady Owls controlled most of the 4th quarter, but the Golightly brings the Lady Chicks within 1 with :43 seconds remaining. However, Sophomore Holmgren extended the lead back to 3 with :33 seconds left, clinching 2 valuable free throws. Jolly then seals the deal, extending the lead to 4 at the line. The Lady Owls will open up play after the holidays at the Chisolm Trail tournament in Duncan.
Elgin’s varsity boys competed fiercely against a very athletic Chickasha team, losing 37-74. The game was a tale of two halves, with the Owls exchanging lead honors with the Chicks the whole first half. Junior Jeremiah Johnson led the Owls in the first half with several aggressive drives, giving the Owls the early lead in the 1st quarter. Senior JR Vaughn then increased the lead to 13-11 with a valuable 3. However, the offense of Chickasha’s Sylvester and Golightly kept the Chicks within striking distance, tying up the game at the end of the 1st quarter. To start the 2nd quarter, Vaughn drills another 3 to give the Owls the lead once again, but Elgin turnovers allowed the Chicks to go into locker room with a 10 point lead at half.
The Chicks soon extended their lead in the 3rd quarter, with the Owls unable to effectively break Chickasha’s press. The Owls continued to fight, however, with Sophomore Zach Martini hitting two inside shots against a big defense. Chickasha soon increased their lead to 20 with the offensive play of Golightly and Dufur, who had 15 points apiece by the end of the 3rd quarter. The Owls were unable to catch the Chicks, falling 37-74. The Owls scoring was balanced, with Sophomore Zach Martini scoring 9, Senior Tripp Rankin scoring 8, Junior Jeremiah Johnson scoring 8, and Senior JR Vaughn adding 8 as well. The Owls will also be traveling to Duncan for the Chisolm Trail Tournament as well.