SOUTH WHITLEY -ÊAfter a first quarter that had more turnovers than points scored, Oak Hill's girls basketball team stepped up to score 22 points in the second quarter to defeat Whitko 59-40 in a Three Rivers Conference matchup Wednesday night.

After taking possession from the tip-off, Whitko did something that would be indicative of the quarter -Êturned the ball over. The game then remained scoreless until 6:48 in the quarter when Oak Hill's Andrea Monroe netted the first basket of the night.

Although the score was 8-6 in Oak Hill's favor at the end of the quarter, the Wildcats and Eagles had combined more turnovers than points with 16.

However, Oak Hill fired up and had a nearly perfect second quarter. The Eagles were 6-of-9 shooting with three three-pointers. They also connected on 6 of 8 free throws to total 22 points in the second stanza.

"Shots started going in for us in the second," said Oak Hill coach Marc Planck. "We also hit three three-pointers, and that didn't hurt, either."

While Oak Hill flourished in the second, Whitko fizzled, scoring just eight points in the quarter. The Wildcats hit just 2 of 5 free throws and connected on 3-of-13 shooting.

"They really burned us in the second quarter," said Whitko coach Mike Sands. "We just couldn't hit any shots."

As the teams took the halftime break, Oak Hill held a 30-14 lead.

The Eagles outscored the Whitko 13-9 in the third quarter to build a 43-23 lead, but Whitko did not throw in the towel.

In the break before the fourth quarter, Sands tried to get his team fired up.

"Defense!" Sands told his team. "We need to get in there, get in their faces and take the ball away. If something is going to happen, it needs to happen now!"

That speech gave the Wildcats the spark they needed to start the fourth quarter. Whitko forced a turnover on Oak Hill's first possession of the fourth that led to a Nici Nestel basket with 7:27 on the clock. Four seconds later, the Wildcats forced another Oak Hill turnover that led to a basket by Monica Sands. Five seconds after that, Whitko forced Oak Hill into another turnover that led to an Aly Frantz basket. With 6:49 left in the quarter, Oak Hill turned the ball over again, and Nestel capitalized for another Whitko basket.

In just 1:30, the Wildcats had clawed their way back into the game, decreasing Oak Hill's lead from 20 points to 12.

Although the Wildcats outscored the Eagles 17-16 in the final stanza, Whitko was unable to overcome the deficit, and Oak Hill went home with the 59-40 win.

"We need to play four full quarters like we did the fourth," said Sands. "We need to hustle the whole game.

"Maybe we've lost heart or something. Whatever it is, we can't seem to get it back. The girls work hard in practice, but they just don't seem to bring it to the game. We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

The Wildcats are 2-5 overall and 0-3 in the TRC.

OAK HILL 59, WHITKO 40

Oak Hill 8 22 13 16 - 59

Whitko 6 8 9 17 - 40

Whitko FG FT R S Pts.

*Walter 3-7 0-0 2 3 6

*Frantz 2-15 0-0 3 1 4

*Metzger 2-5 2-3 6 1 6

*Nestel 6-14 0-0 12 0 12

*Sands 5-14 1-2 13 0 11

Menck 0-1 0-0 1 1 0

Badskey 0-3 1-2 0 1 1

Cripe 0-3 0-0 0 1 0

Totals 18-63 4-7 23 7 40

Oak Hill FG FT R S Pts.

*Key 4-8 4-4 1 2 14

*Vandemark 1-3 2-2 6 3 5

*Baumbaugh 2-6 0-0 2 2 5

*Berry 2-5 4-4 1 0 8

*Monroe 8-16 2-4 9 2 20

Buroker 0-0 1-2 1 1 1

Beverly 2-2 1-4 2 1 5

Shrontz 0-0 1-2 2 0 1

Rickner 0-2 0-0 0 0 0

Totals 13-42 15-22 24 9 59

Three-point goals -ÊWhitko 0-4 (Walter 0-1, Frantz 0-1, Cripe 0-2), Oak Hill 6-10 (Key 2-3, Vandemark 1-2, Baumbaugh 1-1, Monroe 2-3). Turnovers -ÊWhitko 22, Oak Hill 25. Total Fouls -ÊWhitko 19, Oak Hill 12. Fouled Out -ÊSands.

JV Score -ÊWHITKO 44, OAK HILL 33

Whitko leaders -ÊAngela Trump 10, Janelle Kelley 4, Jennifer Wendel 5, Christa Badskey 9, Renee Jersey 3, Andrea Smith 3, Marla Rowland 2, Melissa Cripe 8.

Oak Hill leaders -ÊP. Binnion 4, K. Kreig 5, B. Mitchell 4, L. Hiple 10, C. Shafer 4, M. Templin 6. [[In-content Ad]]