Sophie Sloneker scored 14 points and Katie Sloneker added 11 on Thursday night as Monroe topped visiting Franklin 46-32.
“It’s all a team effort,” said Sophie Sloneker, a sophomore guard. “You’re thinking to yourself, ‘Wow, Monroe hasn’t had a winning season in who knows how long, and we’re 5-0.’ When you build that program and have that team come together, it’s really exciting, and you just get there. You get to the top.”
The Hornets used hard-nosed man-to-man defense and a tenacious performance on the glass to overpower the Wildcats, who slipped to 1-5 overall and 1-2 in the SWBL.
PHOTOS: Nick Graham’s gallery from the game
Jahsalyn Robinson had eight points and nine rebounds for Monroe. The Sloneker twins evenly split 12 boards.
“Right now, we’re really playing well as a team,” Hornets coach Chad Allen said. “Coaches say that all the time, but when you watch us play, everybody’s rotating properly, everybody’s crashing the boards, and you don’t know which person is going to be guarding you.
“Our calling card is defense, and you could see it. We really harp on our rotations. We want to pressure, and sometimes you’re going to get beat with pressure, so there’s got to be someone waiting.”
Monroe trailed 13-10 early in the second period, then ran off nine straight points (six by Sophie Sloneker) and played with the lead the rest of the way.
“We started out pretty slow, but we really pushed the ball in the second and third quarters,” Sloneker said. “Once we get ahead, it’s no mercy. We just jump on them with two feet.
“I’d say the key to our team is our defense and our hustle. When we get on the boards, we take over the game. If we get those rebounds, we’re set.”
Franklin got 14 points from Layne Ferrell. The 6-foot-1 sophomore guard entered the contest as the SWBL’s leading scorer with a 23.6 average.
“We depend on Layne too much,” Wildcats coach Leah Sams said. “A lot of things were better in this game, but we’re still struggling to piece together aspects of our team. When teams shut down Layne, we need to have others step up. We need to hit our people that are open in the corners when they’re collapsing on us. It’s just a scoring thing.”
Robinson, Karley Gescuk and Katie Sloneker did the bulk of the Hornets’ defensive work against Ferrell, who piled up a school-record 39 points last week against Waynesville.
“They’re all just salivating saying, ‘Let me guard her, let me guard her,’ ” Allen said. “Knowing that she’s the best player, they wanted that challenge. Layne is such a good player. Anytime you can hold her under 25, you’ve done something.”
Morgan Stidham tossed in eight points for Franklin, and Ferrell and Emma Bicknell added four rebounds apiece. Gescuk scored six points for Monroe.
“They’re solid,” Sams said of the Hornets. “They’re tall, they play good defense, and they rebound.”
The Wildcats are on a five-game losing streak after opening the campaign with a win over Valley View. Sams said her squad is tired after playing six games in 15 days.
“The team that came out and played Valley View, I haven’t seen since,” said Sams, noting that Franklin only has two returning varsity players (Ferrell and Stidham) this season. “We’re trying to learn on the fly, and we don’t have much experience on the varsity level. I’m playing mostly freshmen and sophomores. We’ll keep working on the fundamentals.”
Both teams resume SWBL play Saturday. The Wildcats will host Oakwood, while Monroe will be on the road to face defending Southwestern champion Bellbrook.
“We’ll see what happens Saturday at Bellbrook because we know they’re a really good team. That’ll be our bar right now,” Allen said. “You’ve got to take these baby steps. From nothing a couple years ago to a few wins last year, and now we’re trying to be competitive in every game.”
Franklin 11-6-5-10—32
Monroe 8-16-11-11—46
FRANKLIN (1-5, 1-2 SWBL Southwestern): Emma Bicknell 2 0 4, Morgan Stidham 4 0 8, Skyler Weir 1 1 3, Layne Ferrell 4 6 14, Emily Newton 1 1 3. Totals: 12-8-32
MONROE (5-0, 5-0 SWBL Southwestern): Sophie Sloneker 5 4 14, Karley Gescuk 3 0 6, Jahsalyn Robinson 3 1 8, Maddy Wehry 1 1 3, Erica Thompson 2 0 4, Katie Sloneker 3 3 11. Totals: 17-9-46
3-pointers: M 3 (K. Sloneker 2, Robinson)
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