Photo by Travis David | Sullivan guard Katherine Sarver makes a move towards the hoop Friday night against Northview. Sarver scored 13 points in the Lady Arrows' win.

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BY TRAVIS DAVID

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SULLIVAN — After a 4-0 start to the season it’s been a bumpy ride for the Sullivan girls basketball team. The Lady Arrows dropped four straight games which included a buzzer beater and a running clock setback. The latter came in Wednesday’s matchup against sectional opponent and Class 2A No. 1 ranked South Knox.

But Friday night was a new opportunity for the Arrows.

And they got back on track with a 51-40 victory over Western Indiana Conference rival Northview.

“It did feel good to get back in the win column,” Lady Arrows’ coach Vance Edmondson said. “We’ve obviously been struggling and it was such a short turnaround (from the South Knox game) and we didn’t have much time to get ready for Northview tonight. But I am proud of the way the girls bounced back and I thought they really battled tonight.”

Sullivan scored the first points Friday night and never relinquished the lead. Talented freshman Rigley Goodman drove to the right wing, made an impressive cross-court pass to Avari Kelley who found the bottom of the net within the first 45 seconds of the night. 

Sullivan led 10-6 after the first eight minutes of play and carried a 21-15 lead into the locker room at the break.

The Lady Arrows were able to build and maintain Friday night’s lead largely in part with Katherine Sarver. The junior guard set the tone for the Sullivan offense by attacking the Knights’ defense, early and often. The junior guard tallied eight of her team-high 13 points in the first half and her aggressiveness created offense for other teammates.

“She saw a shot go in early and she just kind of fed off of that,” Edmondson said of his guard. “She pushed the envelope for us tonight and that was for sure key. But she also did an amazing job on their point guard tonight. She was great for us on both ends of the floor.”

Northview made enough plays to keep within striking distance throughout the game. But midway through the third period, the Arrows were able to push the lead to double digits thanks to a 7-0 run in the span of 90 seconds. 

It was Sarver setting the tone once again. The dynamic guard came up with a steal near midcourt and found Goodman on the wing for a triple. Goodman’s shot pushed the lead to 31-22. All McKinney capped the run by knocking down a pair of freebies for a 33-22 lead with 2:35 left in the third. 

The Knights were unable to close the gap any closer than eight points the rest of the way.

McKinney also played a key role in the Arrows’ double-digit lead. The savvy guard banked home a triple from the wing and made good on a baseline jumper in the third period as well. McKinney scored seven of her 12 points in the third period despite playing with three fouls.

“Ally played smart tonight, especially in the second half,” the Arrows’ coach said. “And she still played aggressively defensively.”

McKinney picked up two fouls within the opening four minutes of the game and was forced to the bench for most of the half. She picked up a third foul early in the third but was left in the game and never committed another foul.

Goodman added 10 points in the win while handing out three assists, while Jacie Wilson added eight points and nine rebounds. Wilson also came away with four steals — all in the first half.

Kelley (6) and Destiny Gaines (2) rounded out the scoring for Sullivan.

Carlee Schrader led the Knights with a game-high 20 points in the loss.

Sullivan (5-4, 2-2) travels to WIC foe North Putnam next Friday.

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