Journal-News.com

HAMILTON — The Ross High School girls basketball team showed some quality depth Saturday afternoon, Nov. 29, and the Rams needed every bit of it.

Butler County rival Badin is dealing with lots of youth and inexperience, yet chopped a 15-point deficit to three in the final 30 seconds before visiting Ross held on for a season-opening 49-44 triumph at Mulcahey Gym.

"I didn't think it was us as much as Badin just catching fire," Ross coach Paul Fernandez said of the shrinking lead. "I don't think they're as poor off as they think they might be. Those kids play hard, and I was really impressed with their post players.

"We really feel like we can put a lot of players out there and not fall off," he added. "We definitely fouled too much, but I thought everybody executed and played well for whatever time they were out there."

Nine of the 11 players who saw action scored for Ross, which played without senior guard Rachael Connaughton, who's sidelined indefinitely with an ankle injury.

Brittany Fernandez collected 12 points on four treys, Morgan Hunley scored eight points and Shelby Richards added seven for the visitors. All three players came off the bench.

"We had a lot of teamwork and kept everybody in it," said Hunley, a senior forward. "I thought both teams played really hard, but it's a good feeling to win. Hopefully we'll be pumped from this game and just keep going."

It was the first Ross victory over Badin in 20 years, halting a 12-game losing streak against the Green-and-White.

Tom Sunderman had mixed emotions about his debut at the Badin helm after watching his troops suffer through a nine-minute scoring drought in the second and third periods, a string of futility that helped Ross rip off 18 straight points.

Freshman Kara Gerbus tallied 14 points and five rebounds for Badin, which committed 26 turnovers (seven more than Ross). Courtney Hubbard chipped in 13 points and five boards, and Katie Maus fired in eight points in the last 4:13.

"We were able to come back because we started playing smarter and more aggressively on offense and defense, and that's what we weren't doing in the second quarter," Sunderman said.

"Overall, we did some satisfying things," he continued. "We had some peaks and valleys, and that's what you expect out of a young team. But I think these girls are going to fight hard all year. We'll be fine in the long run."

Abbie Kallick had five rebounds for RHS, which shot just 31.7 percent from the floor. Badin was 12-of-24 on field goals.

Both teams return to action Tuesday, Ross at home against Reading and Badin at Fairfield.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2194 or rcassano@coxohio.com.