MADISON TOWNSHIP — Senior Night came early at Madison.
Natalee Back and Chloe Eberling, the only two seniors on Madison’s roster, combined for 29 points, 16 rebounds, nine assists and 10 steals as the Rams cruised to a 52-37 Ohio Cardinal Conference win over Lexington on Tuesday.
The Rams (6-10, 3-8) avenged a 39-36 loss at Lexington in mid-December thanks in no small part to the dynamic senior duo. Back scored 15 points, swiped eight rebounds, handed out five assists and pocketed six steals. Eberling finished with 14 points, eight boards, four assists and four steals.
“Our two seniors were fantastic tonight,” Madison coach Mike Leeper said. “Not only did they shoot the basketball well, but they were good leaders and communicated with their teammates and calmed the other girls down.”
Madison led 20-18 at the half before taking control in the third. The Rams outscored Lady Lex (7-10, 6-5) 13-4 in the period.
“We’ve been playing pretty good defense lately,” Leeper said. “We’ve been holding teams in the 30s, but we haven’t been able to score. Tonight we put it all together.”
Madison opened the fourth period on a 10-2 run, pushing its lead to 43-24 on Aniyah Monica’s conventional three-point play with 4:07 to play.
“Our seniors played great, but we also got contributions from a lot of the younger girls and not just in the scoring column,” Leeper said. “They were playing good defense and getting out to their shooters. They rebounded and got to loose balls on the floor.
“It was a good battle. Lexington is well-coached and they play hard.”
Lexington made things interesting midway through the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run. Tatum Stover and Makaree Chapman hit back-to-back 3-pointers and a Chapman layup made the score 43-32 with 2:28 remaining. Madison iced it by sinking 9-of-12 free throws in the final two minutes.
Stover and Chapman scored 14 points apiece to lead Lady Lex. Cora Palmer added five, while Ava Brown pulled down 14 rebounds. Stover swiped nine boards and added three assists.
“We didn’t play with enough energy. We came in here kind of flat-footed,” Lexington coach Gabby Stover said. “Madison played very well and … they wanted it more than us tonight.”