NORTH CRAWFORD - Things did not go as planned for the North Crawford girls basketball team this past Friday. The Trojans took part in the Iowa-Grant Invitational, and did not appear to have fully awoken from their Christmas slumber against the hosting Panthers. 

With a final score of 65-25, it marked the worst loss of the season for the young Trojan squad. 

“We’re continuing to search for the right chemistry out there on the court,” said head coach Michael DiPadova after the game. “Iowa-Grant did a nice job with ball rotation and hitting their shots. They played aggressively right out of the gate, and we were never able to recover.” 

The high-powered Panther offense also featured a record-breaking performance from senior Livvy Liddicoat, who surpassed her school’s scoring title with over fourteen hundred points, and is well on her way to smashing the girls state high school scoring record. 

The Trojans were led by junior guard Angie Herfel, who provided 11 points and five steals, while sophomore Sarah Hanson and junior Kloee Chamberlain each contributed six points in the loss. 

In their follow-up contest against the Juda Panthers, the Trojans showed more of the defensive hustle that has been a trademark of their season. While scoring was not in the cards, the North Crawford girls once again responded with a much-improved second half. After missing their first seven shots and falling behind early, the Trojans would rally with a burst of buckets to pull them back into a gritty 19-15 battle. 

Seemingly unable to shake out of their holiday blues, however, the Trojans fell victim to some late three-point shooting, and the scrappy Panthers would eventually pull away for a 44-22 victory. 

Herfel and Chamberlain continued to be bright spots on the offensive end, scoring nine and seven points, respectively. Chamberlain added eight rebounds to match her season average, and senior Emily Hanson chipped-in seven rebounds of her own. 

Getting the most from her minutes, new senior Hannah Kemp provided a well-rounded stat sheet with one point, five rebounds, two steals, and one blocked shot. 

With seven of their first nine games having been played on the road, the team is excited to finally have a slate of home scheduling on the horizon. On Monday, January 6 the Trojans will host Seneca, and both programs will be wearing t-shirts to jointly raise awareness for suicide prevention. Later that same week, DeSoto comes to town on Thursday, January 9.