ST. CLAIR TWP. — Edgewood High School girls basketball coach Xavier Fugate said as long as Rylie Homan is on the floor, the Cougars are in good shape.
The junior guard scored a game-high 15 points and regulated the final eight minutes with her ball-handling skills as Edgewood staved off a Ross comeback to secure a 47-42 Southwest Ohio Conference victory on Wednesday night at the Cougar Den.
“It’s such a relief knowing that you have Homan on the court,” Fugate said. “She handles the ball well, and she does it with ease.”
After the Cougars (4-4, 2-1 SWOC) led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter, the Rams (4-3, 1-2 SWOC) started to gradually claw their way back.
Ross took its only lead of the game on a Sophie Bowers bucket that made it 29-28 with 2:45 left in the third quarter. That’s around the time Homan started to really control the tempo of the game, which at times had its sloppy moments.
“We all needed to stay calm,” Homan said. “Whenever they score, we tend to lose the ball and have turnover after turnover. We just have to score and get the ball to the right people.”
Freshman Ella Allen scored 12 points for Edgewood, which has now won the last 13 meetings against Ross. The Rams last beat the Cougars 22-21 on Jan. 14, 2016.
“I’m really proud of my team,” Allen said. “We worked together well. This was a good opportunity as a freshman, and I think we played really well against Ross, our rival.”
Ross coach Ben Buehner said the Rams were down six varsity players Wednesday night but noted that he was impressed by the effort from Sierra Loudermilk, a sophomore who stepped in and tied a time-high 11 points with sophomore Lanie Lipps.
“Our motto is anybody at any time,” Buehner said. “We’re trying to put people in the game, and the game is a little fast for them. But no excuses. We’ve got people banged up and trying to play through stuff and trying to get new people involved.
“We did a good job of making (Edgewood) feel uncomfortable during the game,” Buehner added, “but there were some easy ones that we missed.”
Ross shot 1 of 11 from floor in the fourth quarter and gave the ball away nine times. Yet the Rams still didn’t let the Cougars get ahead by more than six points down the stretch.
“I think they were rushing it a bit and feeling a little bit in the moment,” Buehner said. “We get one or two of those a couple times, we have the chance to take the lead. If we get those, it might calm the nerves. But when you miss (shots), that kind of tends to build.”
Fugate said records are always thrown out the window when it comes to going up against an area rival such as Ross.
“Numbers don’t matter when you play them,” Fugate said. “We always go after each other.”
Fugate said his Cougars didn’t get out to the kind of start he had hoped to begin the season, so he’s still looking to find the right mix on the court by giving his younger players some experience.
“We started the season off rusty and not shooting the ball as well,” Fugate said. “At the varsity level it’s huge not having to rush the shots. We’re hoping we are more polished as the season goes on.”
Edgewood junior Maddy Judd and Ross freshman Carmen Bosse each scored eight points.
UP NEXT
Both squads return to action on Monday. Edgewood hosts Badin, while Ross welcomes Taylor.
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