By Mike McGraw
Executive Director
CRAWFORDSVILLE – It is only mid-November, but if the Nov. 18 contest between 3A No. 6 Crawfordsville and 1A No. 9 Turkey Run is any indication, it is going to be a fantastic girls basketball season.
Crawfordsville won this struggle, 41-40. Had the game lasted one more minute, the result would have been different. Had it lasted two more minutes, it would have been the same.
That is how evenly matched these two teams were.
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Both squads are very talented, yet both were missing a key cog in their arsenals due to injury. Both teams are extremely well-coached, yet both made more than their share of early season mistakes.
The result was a highly entertaining affair that was not settled until the final seconds.
The best way to describe this game is to take a look at the game inside the game.
Crawfordsville (2-0) used a stifling man-to-man press to jump to a quick 5-0 lead. That produced the first adjustment from Turkey Run coach Sam Karr. It resulted in a 7-0 Warrior run, and the battle was on.
At the end of the first eight minutes, Turkey Run (3-1) clung to an 11-10 lead. But the Warriors’ only real interior presence, Adrian Francis, had picked up her second foul with 10 seconds remaining in the quarter.
As the second period began, the objectives for both squads were clear. Crawfordsville coach Darren Haas needed to get his big offensive gun, junior Alex Gasaway, more involved in the action, whereas Turkey Run needed to slow the pace and survive the quarter without Francis.
Once again, both units were successful. Gasaway (a game-high 15 points) netted six points in the period and finished the half leading the Athenians with 10 points. Meanwhile, Turkey Run controlled the tempo and managed to reach intermission trailing only 20-18.
Haas knew the Athenians’ best chance lied in pounding the ball down low to Gasaway and senior Mandi Johnson. Karr, on the other hand, was well aware that the Warriors’ advantage came in the open court.
For most of the third period, Crawfordsville implemented its strategy far better. With two minutes remaining in the quarter, the Athenians had stretched the margin to seven at 33-26.
Lightning strikes quickly, however – especially when it’s wearing powder blue.
It is no accident that Crawfordsville’s last four shots on the quarter were all perimeter jumpers and, fueled mostly by transition baskets, Turkey Run went on an 8-0 run to end the third holding a 34-33 lead.
The chess game intensified in the fourth quarter, and the pace slowed dramatically. Neither team was willing to waste a possession on anything less than a quality shot.
As a result, the final minutes were punctuated by crucial free throws on both sides. It is here that the outcome was decided.
Turkey Run missed several opportunities from the charity stripe, while Crawfordsville – mainly in the person of Johnson – capitalized. For the game, the Warriors were just 13 of 27 from the line, while the Athenians went 9 for 14, three of those in the tense final minute.
Two charity tosses from Johnson with just under 10 seconds to play gave Crawfordsville a 41-37 cushion. Turkey Run, which was led by the 13 points of Chelsea Francis, responded with a 3-pointer in the final seconds but was left with no time to regain possession.
The outcome of this struggle will long be forgotten by tourney time. Nonetheless, those in attendance came away with knowledge of two things.
Crawfordsville is a team that has learned to play in pressure situations. Turkey Run is a legitimate 1A state title threat.
