By CRAIG ADKINS
For The Reporter
NOBLESVILLE – Friday, Nov. 14 was quite the special night. The Noblesville Miller girls basketball team, athletic department, and fans celebrated the memory of the biggest Noblesville Millers fan. Miller “super fan” Rickie Woods passed away on June 27.
Attending Miller sports for years, Rickie traveled all over the state supporting Noblesville athletes. His family was presented blankets with the t-shirts Woods collected.
The Millers were able to score consistently, 17 in each quarter, on the way to a 68-51 win.
Noblesville scored first on a C.C. Quigley bucket, but freshmen Zoey Curry tied it 2-2. Norah Vetor swished a three from the top of the key knotting it 5-5.
Heights took its first lead 7-5. There would be three lead changes back-and-forth before Noblesville got up 17-11. Bayleigh Eisele cut it to three (17-14) at the buzzer on a triple.
“This was such a great environment tonight. It was packed and the tribute they made for Rickie was great and I know it was super meaningful to their community,” said Heights coach Erin Trimpe. “To have that many people come out and watch a girls basketball game for our little youngins was a lot. We moved the ball well and we didn’t let the environment rattle us too much.”
Her young team showed the potential they have to win their share of games this season.
“We talked about coming in and they would do one of those things. When you’re young you either play scared or play out of your mind and just go for it,” said Noblesville coach Donna Buckley. “I assumed that’s how they would play and they did. They played well and those freshmen are talented.”
Ally Hutchinson pushed it back to six at 20-14 to start the second and Reece Blanton came off the bench with a three to make it 20-17.
The Millers then took off on a 13-2 run to end the half. Quigley had seven. Hutchinson and Maia Blower each knocked down a three for a 33-19 halftime lead.
“We went into halftime feeling really good being down 14,” Trimpe said. “I thought we did so many good things. We hope as we go through the season that we’re confident and we’re right in it. No matter what the score was, they were in it.”
Blower scored the first eight Miller points in the third, extending the advantage to 41-20.
“Hamilton County is filled with a lot of talent,” added Buckley. “Of our 13, nine are freshmen and sophomores. It’s cool to see this young talent all over the floor. Everybody around here has really special young kids.”
Noblesville outscored the Huskies 17-13 in the third to lead 51-33.
The Miller lead grew to as much as 29 in the fourth with a 66-37 lead.
The Huskies showed grit and went on a 14-2 in the final minutes, thanks to freshmen Riley Suarez and Zoey Curry leading the way.
“She’s [Suarez] real-deal good,” Buckley complemented. “She’s capable of doing all kinds of things. The kid can hit threes. She’s got a mid-range and she can drive and pull down offensive rebounds. That kid can score from any place on the floor.”
The Millers shared and moved the ball around well. They had 19 assists on 26 made field goals.
“Our kids did share the basketball,” Buckley said. “They did a great job of creating opportunities for their teammates. I also think we did a great job of rebounding. We had a ton of offensive boards.”
Noblesville made 10 of their 28 from long range and outrebounded Heights 45-29 (20 offensively).
“Noblesville’s experienced, physical and they’re so good and they don’t make a lot of mistakes,” Trimpe added. “You give them 20 offensive rebounds, it just makes it tough to stick with them.”
Hamilton Heights (2-1) visits 2A No. 7 Lapel (5-0) on Nov. 18.
The Huskies had three in double figures by Suarez (17) Eisele (13) and Curry (10).
Noblesville (3-0) hosts Brownsburg (2-1) on Nov. 19.
The Millers were paced by Hutchinson and Quigley each with 19, while Blower scored a career-high 18.
