After taking a 17-16 lead going into the second quarter, the Notre Dame Pandas began to ramp up their defensive intensity.
This culminated in a dominating second quarter in which they outscored Dixie 21-9. The Pandas rode this momentum to a 62-52 victory Wednesday night.
“We focus on defense. That’s our M.O. If we focus on that area and do things the way we’ve been trained, then good things happen,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Kes Murphy. “When we play together, we talk, our hands, all that stuff that we train every day, we execute and we’re disciplined, then we’re really good. That’s all that it came down to we just got super tough defensively.”
After knocking down multiple 3-pointers in the first quarter, Dixie was held to just three the rest of the game and shot under 40%.
“We came in super focused, due to the fact that Dixie has had our number for the past couple of years,” said Murphy. “So our kids had a great practice yesterday, dialed in and when we’re focused and we execute our stuff, we’re really good.”
Although Notre Dame has allowed just three fewer points per game than last season, Murphy believes the strides on the defensive side have been what has taken his team to the next level.
“We spend a lot of time on defense. There’s a lot. It’s super technical,” said Murphy. “So when we have kids come into the program, it takes them a while to figure it out, but once they do it becomes habit, and it’s beautiful to watch.”
On the other side, Dixie has made major strides offensively. Just a few weeks ago against Simon Kenton, Dixie turned the ball over more than 25 times. Tonight? Just seven.
“We took care of the ball a lot better,” said Dixie Head Coach Joel Steczynski. “Our offense is starting to flow and we are piecing some things together and really trying to see what’s working best.”
Trailing by 16 going into the fourth quarter, Dixie kept hanging around with Jalynn Brooks burying a three to cut the lead to 10 with 3:14 remaining. Their comeback attempt ultimately fell short, but the Lady Colonels are learning to play together.
“We have these small pieces that we’re finding success with and we just need to piece those together a little bit quicker,” said Steczynski. “Against a team that’s traditionally holding teams down to a pretty low number offensively that success we had gives us something to be encouraged about.”
Bella Crawford led the Colonels with 17 points, Avery Moore adding 11 points to go with six rebounds.
Reverting to the Notre Dame side, the Pandas had three different players score in double-digits, led by Emma Holtzapfel with 15, all of her points coming from the 3-point line. Maya Lawrie added 14 as she knocked down 6-of-8 from the free throw line and Sophia Gibson chipped in 13 to go with 14 rebounds and three blocked shots.
The Pandas knocked down eight 3-pointers while also outscoring Dixie in the paint. Their offense creates open driving lanes while still being able to kick out for three-pointers.
“We share the ball really well. We’ve got a sophomore coming in and probably getting the most shots on the team. And despite other kids being juniors and seniors, they’re all for it,” said Murphy. “We share the ball because ultimately we’re not about individual glory. Our kids have a good sense of what it takes to be a good solid team and play for each other.”
Notre Dame will face Russell Saturday at 6:15 p.m. in the Simpson’s Tree Service/H+W Sports Classic at Franklin County, while Dixie will head to Ryle Friday at 6 p.m.
Pandas 62, Colonels 52
Notre Dame -17-21-15-9 -62
Dixie Heights -16-9-12-15 -52
Scoring
Notre Dame (62): Emma Holtzapfel 15, Maya Lawrie 14, Sophia Gibson 13, Kate Resing 9, Ryan Burden 5, Sofia Durstock 3, Riley Eberhard 2, Amelia Stallard 1
Dixie Heights (52): Bella Crawford 17, Avery Moore 11, Abby Thelin 9, Jordan Puitz 5, Catherine Buddenberg 5, Brooks 5
Game Stats
3-Pointers Made: Notre Dame 8/22, Dixie 6/17
Free Throws: Notre Dame 12/18, Dixie 8/9
Fouls: Notre Dame 10, Dixie Heights 14
Records: Notre Dame 11-2, Dixie Heights 5-7