The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Chardon tops Madison in girls basketball
Hilltoppers without top two scorers, who have knee injuries
Chardon is down its two top scorers — Hallie Landies and Tori Butala — to seasonending ACL surgeries. But the Hilltoppers are finding a way, including a victory over the host Blue Streaks.
When it comes to sports on any level, sometimes things aren’t going to always go your way.
The successful teams find a way.
No one has to tell the Chardon girls basketball team of that. Losing two top scorers — Hallie Landies and Tori Butala — to season-ending ACL surgeries means the Hilltoppers have had to “find a way” all season.
That was especially true on Jan. 16 when the Hilltoppers struggled through a first half of offensive woes, but turned things around in the second half for a 5133 win over the host Blue Streaks.
When Madison freshman Riley Montagner went coast-to-coast for a buzzerbeating layup, Chardon only held a 25-21 halftime lead.
But a ferocious defensive effort that created 11 turnovers in the third quarter alone allowed Chardon to open a double-digit lead and pull away as the game progressed.
The Hilltoppers found a way.
“They’re great, hardworking kids,” Coach Cullen Harris said, “so it doesn’t surprise me that they were able to rise up and answer the bell, because that’s who they are and that’s what it means to be a Hilltopper. When things don’t go your way, you keep climbing, one ax after another.”
In the first half, Chardon struggled mightily to get any sort of offense going. Seemingly flustered by the defense being played by Madison’s freshmen-laden lineup, the Hilltoppers looked ripe for an upset.
So the Hilltoppers adjusted in the second half, increasing pressure to a full-court, trapping mode and forcing a bevy of turnovers.
After Madison closed within a point at 25-24 on a Jessica Schaffer bucket, Chardon went on a 12-0 run to end the quarter and take a commanding 37-24 lead before Montagner hit a pair of free throws.
Senior Danni McCartney had a huge hand in the run, scoring 10 points in a row during, including a putback off a missed shot, an and-one off a turnover, a trio of free throws and a driving left-hander.
“The halftime speech is what it always is — we’ve got to come out strong and put the game away quickly,” McCartney said. “If we let them back in, it’s going to be a dog fight. Today we showed we could come out strong. If we do that, we can play with all the good teams.”
Anna Pastor hit a driving layup to complete the 12-0 run. It was a 39-26 lead heading to the fourth, and Madison never recovered.
“We did OK against their trap in the first half,” said Madison coach Mike Smith. “But turnovers in the third quarter hurt. A little panic set in when they went on a run. We tried to stop it with some timeouts, but it snowballed on us.”
Montagner had a huge game for Madison with 19 points. Fellow freshman Elizabeth Bottar, the point guard, added five.
Smith said his young team (6-8, 1-6 WRC) was upset with the loss, but added bright days are coming.
“You want to win every game,” he said. “But the key is to keep going and get better one possession at a time, one quarter at a time, one game at a time.
“We’re getting there. We’re going to be a force to be reckoned with down the road.”
Aside from McCartney’s 20-point night, Sam Liechty had nine and Pastor had eight.
Chardon (8-4, 5-2 WRC) won’t be getting Butala and Landies back, but McCartney said the team will continue to work hard and find a way.
“It was certainly disappointing to lose two top scorers of ours,” McCartney said. “It shows the strength of our team and depth of our team that people are stepping into other roles and doing really well in them.”