The Hamilton Southeastern girls basketball team made it back-to-back Sectional 8 championships on Saturday, Feb. 7. The Royals beat host Carmel 50-34. (Richie Hall)
By RICHARD TORRES
For The Reporter
CARMEL – Kayla Stidham’s first bucket flipped the scoreboard in the opening quarter, but the Hamilton Southeastern senior’s second shot early in the second changed the mood.
Up early against Carmel, tied and then behind to start on Saturday, Feb. 7, HSE turned to its senior standouts and wasn’t disappointed during the Sectional 8 championship inside the Eric Clark Activity Center.
Stidham’s layup for her first points put HSE (20-4) ahead 9-8, followed by senior Kennedy Holman’s spinning layup to make it 11-8.
A 3-pointer by sophomore Piper Brinley increased the margin early in the second, then Stidham set her feet from 19-feet, 9-inches for a 3-pointer that sparked a 50-34 win and a sectional championship repeat.
Stidham’s shot put the Royals in control,17-10, and cemented her place in the 1,000-point club, which energized the crowd and emboldened her teammates towards the program’s sixth sectional all-time and first repeat since 2006 and 2007.
“It’s so cool. I’m so appreciative of my teammates. Just them getting me the ball in good spots. I couldn’t have done it without them,” Stidham said. “Doing it on a 3-pointer, the best. That’s what I wanted.”
The milestone was the first of many celebrations for the Royals, who cut down the nets wearing “Back to Back Champs” postgame t-shirts provided by the players’ parents, while coach Brian Satterfield collected his fifth-career sectional title overall (three with the HSE boys).
“The thing about this sectional, if you come in and you have an off night, you’re probably not going to advance,” Satterfield said. “To be able to come away and win this sectional at any time, you always feel pretty proud because whether on the boys’ side or the girls’ side, you know you’re running into quality competition.”
Carmel (10-14) was a worthy opponent.
The Greyhounds gave the Royals fits initially, deadlocking the score, 5-5, and erasing an eight-point deficit, 22-20 to begin the second half.
However, Holman and Stidham showcased why their future plans include heading to Florida and Bowling Green, respectively.
Stidham finished with 15 points, six rebounds and a blocked shot while burying a trio of 3-pointers.
Holman had a game-high 22 points with six rebounds, five assists, a block and three steals, as the Indiana Miss Basketball candidate spearheaded a decisive 12-2 run in the third quarter.
“I think we both know when we need to get a bucket for the team. We can do that, and our team trusts us,” Holman said. “It’s funny because coach talks about it all the time. He thought that offense would be the thing, but defense kind of paved the way.”
The HSE defense surrendered 10 points in the first quarter, but Carmel never surpassed more than nine points in any of the final three frames.
Holman kicked off HSE’s second half run with three points and had two dishes for five more, as Stidham buried another 3-pointer.
Senior Antonette Green, who assisted Stidham’s 1,000th point, collected a pass from Holman and sank a 3-pointer to cap the Royals’ wave.
“They step up in big moments. Kayla, with 1,000 points, is insane. Kennedy already reached that and her having over 20 tonight, they’re both amazing players,” Green said.
The Royals’ championship mindset netted nearly 10 second half turnovers with consistent disruption.
“It’s difficult to win this twice, but I think we put in the work, and this team is so deserving,” Stidham said. “We lost a lot of people from last year, but I think we also gained a lot with the younger kids. They stepped up a lot.”
Brinley had five points, junior Abigail Orme had three and Green added five along with three steals and two assists.
Holman tallied 14 of HSE’s 28 points in the second half. Stidham provided seven.
Carmel senior Sydney Bonds had a team-high 11 points and 12 rebounds.
“HSE is so talented. Their leading scorers have such great ability, and they have great role players around them,” Carmel coach Jessica Darmelio said. “But our kids don’t let up. They play for each other. Wrapping up this first year, there’s nothing more I could have asked for. I’m really excited where we left off.”
