Junior Catelyn Radeck shined brightest for MCS with a double-double performance. She had team highs in scoring with 17 points and in rebounds with 14.
“We played really hard,” the 6-foot center said. “I think we executed our plays well. We deserve that win.”
And they earned it. The youthful Eagles (3-6) looked more like a veteran group of players in the first half, cruising to a 25-10 lead at the break, but the Broncos applied the full-court press in the third quarter and turned Todjrea Watts loose with the ball.
Watts scored 11 of her game-high 18 points in the third period which brought the Broncos all the way back to within one point of the Eagles headed into the final frame.
Trevonnie Sorrell-Johnson scored the first bucket of the fourth period to give Jefferson its first lead of the game. But it was short-lived as MCS’s lone senior Brittany Moore scored a few seconds later to put her team back on top to stay.
“I was really proud of the way we came out to play,” MCS coach Jennifer Horner said. “We were missing one of our top players and another one played hurt, but we played solid defense and took our time on offense in the first half.
“We had a goal of reaching 50 points and we made that goal,” she added.
The Eagles got their last six points in the final 13 seconds of the game thanks to some clutch free-throw shooting. Holding a 44-40 lead, Radeck hit the front end of two free throws. Alyssa Walton then did the same for MCS after the Jefferson coach was assessed a technical foul with 11 seconds remaining.
Jefferson’s Erin Hicks was then charged with a flagrant foul and ejected from the game. Rachel Spahr’s basket on the foul counted and she hit the bonus shot. She then hit the first of her two free throws for the flagrant foul for the final margin.
“We had a big hole to climb out of in the first half,” Jefferson coach Brenda Winston said. “It took a lot of energy in the third quarter to come back and it just wore us down. We had too many turnovers because of it.”
Hicks must serve a two-game suspension for being ejected. Sorrell-Johnson added 15 points for the Broncos (0-8).
Moore scored 11 points for Middletown Christian including three 3-pointers.
The Eagles will return to action by hosting Norwood on Jan. 4.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2852 or sweaver@coxohio.com.
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