Switzerland County was a heavy favorite to advance to the Sectional championship game going into Friday night’s semifinal game against Milan; and after the Lady Indians stayed close over the first eight minutes of play; Switzerland County steadily pulled away after that point, cruising to a 52-27 victory.
The Lady Pacers lead by only four, 14-10, at the end of the first quarter; but outscored Milan 11-3 in the second stanza to take control of the game.
Ashley Chase, nursing a sore knee that she reinjured at practice on Monday, looked nearly unstoppable throughout most of the game, finishing with a game-high 20 points in spite of taking several rest breaks and then sitting out the closing minutes of the game.
Switzerland County shot 43-percent from the field in the first half; while Milan struggled at 33-percent. It would get worse for the Lady Indians, as the team managed to shoot just 2-for-31 in the second half for a six percent shooting effort.
Milan finished the game shooting from 16-percent from the floor.
While Milan was missing shot after shot, Switzerland County worked on a number of different lineup looks and player options, all the while continuing to outscore Milan 17-5 in the third period.
The final stanza was left to mop up work for the Lady Pacer reserves, but the subs still managed to outscore Milan 10-9 in the final quarter.
Along with her 20 points, Ashley Chase also pulled down 11 rebounds, had four assists and a blocked shot — not a bad night for playing on one leg.
Brittany Cole finished in double figures in scoring with 11 points; and Ashley Bright finished with eight points and four rebounds. Kodi Driver had seven points and three rebounds; and April Thieman and Courtney Cole both contributed two points.
Providing proof that the game is about more than scoring, senior Holly Jackson had an outstanding game against Milan. She had two points on the night, but pulled down 10 rebounds, dished out five assists, and had three steals to spark her teammates.