Patriots bounce back

PONETO — The Patriots recorded assists on 10 of their 12 made baskets in the first half.

They made offense difficult for Southern Wells leading scorer Ashlie Needler.

They even earned a slight edge on the glass, an area that has typically been a weakness.

Jay County High School’s girls basketball team turned in a strong bounce-back effort Saturday night to beat the host Raiders 52-34 ahead of Sunday’s sectional tournament draw.

“Our kids gritted it out,” said JCHS coach Sherri McIntire, whose team was coming off of losses to Bluffton and Delta. (Those teams have a combined record of 33-6.) "They made a run at us in the second half and we held on and stood our ground and then went on a little run ourselves. I was just pleased with the maturity that we were able to do that and have so many people contribute to that."

The Patriots (9-11) locked down the win late in the third quarter after seeing a 14-point halftime lead dwindle to just five as Southern Wells (15-6) put together a 9-0 run. Following a Raider timeout, Jay County narrowly avoided a turnover and Natalie May was able to get the ball to Raylah Newton in the right corner. The junior buried a 3-pointer to start a 7-0 spurt to end the period that put the visitors back in control.

"On that possession we actually had a steal and then dropped it and they picked it up and hit a corner three,” said Southern Wells coach Kyle Penrod. “And that was just crushing. Because if we get a score going the other way it's a big difference."

The lead stayed at nine points or more the rest of the way and JCHS finished with an 11-2 stretch for the 18-point win.

Newton’s key triple was part of a game-high 13-point scoring effort, marking the second time in three games that she has led the Patriots in points.

“I definitely have (been playing with more confidence),” said Newton. “I think it’s just my coaches and teammates that have faith in me and believe in what I can do.”

“That’s such a key in girls basketball and it’s such a key for Raylah Newton to be playing with confidence,” said McIntire. “She’s been shooting the ball extremely well at practice. …

“That was a big key for us ... her hitting that three. It gave us a little breathing room there."

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Jay County girls basketball at Southern Wells (01/25/2025)

Jay County never trailed, scoring the game’s first five points and forcing nine first-quarter turnovers to spark some easy offense en route to a 13-5 lead. All but two of their first-half hoops were assisted as they shared the ball, leading to six players contributing five or more points.

Reaching double figures along with Newton were Hallie Schwieterman with 11 and Natalie Carreno with 10. Elizabeth Brunswick had eight to go along with her team highs of nine rebounds and five assists, and Alexis Sibray and Gabi Petro each notched five.

“That’s showing the character of our kids,” said McIntire. “We’re sharing the basketball and looking for that open person. That’s what we need to do.”

While Needler shared the team-high scoring total of 10 points for the Raiders, that came in under her 13.5 average and with far less efficiency. A 51% shooter from the field this season, Jay County limited her to 3-of-15 (20%).

Carreno was a big part of the success defensively as she came off the bench and had the assignment against Needler in the second half.

"We just shut her down,” said the senior, adding that her job was essentially not to get sealed off in the post. “It was hard. She was a really good player, but I just had to get around her and be straight up, be strong."

And despite Needler’s 17 rebounds, the Patriots were able to post a 37-36 advantage on the glass. Carreno followed Brunswick with seven boards, Schwieterman pulled in six and Sibray grabbed five.

The win put the Patriots in position to claim third place in the conference as both teams entered with two ACAC losses to trail Class 2A No. 7 Bluffton and Woodlan. JCHS can lock up the No. 3 spot with a win at home Tuesday over Heritage (1-17, 0-5 ACAC).