McClain wins instant classic against Hillsboro

HILLSBORO — Sometimes a rivalry game surpasses the expected battle that everyone anticipates, and Saturday afternoon at the Hillsboro High School Gymnasium, expectations were exceeded by the game the McClain Lady Tigers and Hillsboro Lady Indians played with first place in the Frontier Athletic Conference at stake. 

McClain and Hillsboro both entered the game with undefeated records in conference play, and each team had just one overall loss thus far in the 2024-25 season. The game had high expectations of being a hard-nosed battle between conference and Highland County rivals, and for the many fans in attendance, the two teams didn’t disappoint, as the first meeting between the two teams went to McClain as they battled to a 51-49 victory. 

The win was also the 11th win of the season for the Lady Tigers, improving to 11-1 overall and 5-0 in the FAC. Hillsboro now stands at 7-2 overall and 4-2 in the FAC. 

“My girls played their absolute hearts out,” McClain head coach Shania Massie said. “They fought against adversity, and that's something that we've been doing great at so far this year. I couldn't ask for their effort any more than what they gave out tonight.

“It’s great to go 11-1 before we go here on Christmas break, but that just tells us something that we're going to have a huge target on our back coming up the second round of the FAC play, and not just FAC, but every other opponent that we have. Other than that, I think my girls gave it their all tonight, and I could not be more proud of what they gave.”

The game came down to the final eight minutes, as McClain opened the fourth frame with a five-point lead at 36-31, but the final result was far from complete, as HHS tied the game in the early stages of the fourth quarter with Tylee Davis going full court for a layup and Kyra Boyd knocking down a 3-pointer at the 7:25 mark for a tied score of 36, as Boyd led the Lady Indians with 14 points for the game.

The Lady Indians took the lead with points off a McClain turnover as Davis landed two points with another layup for a 38-36 advantage with 7:13, forcing McClain to call a timeout. Davis finished the game with 10 points. 

McClain settled down and made a 3-pointer with 6:52 on the clock off a perfect shot by Brie Cummins, only to see Hillsboro take back the momentum with a Boyd scoring two points in transition as Davis stole the ball and found Boyd. From there, Peighton Bledsoe added two points for Hillsboro off a steal and a fast break basket. Next were two free throws made by Davis, putting the Lady Indians ahead by a 44-39 score with 4:57 left in regulation. 

After that 6-0 run, it was now time for the Lady Tigers to take their turn with the momentum, starting with a put-back basket by Anna Eikenberry, followed by a huge 3-pointer from Paisley Pryor — who had an outstanding first half where she put up 20 points in the first two frames — tying the game at 44. Pryor led all scorers with 23 points, and Eikenberry totaled 12 points. 

“We went on a run, and then we were already in some foul trouble and a couple other fouls, and put some kids on the bench that we needed in the game, which made it a little bit difficult for us to play what we wanted to play in the last couple minutes of the game,” Hillsboro head coach Heather Storer said. “It just comes down to execution. I think Greenfield executed their game plan a little bit better, and I think we we had a little bit more to go. I think we needed to execute a little bit better, and honestly, I think if we outrebounded them, I think we would have won the basketball game.”

After two points by Hillsboro’s Dinah Ames for them to regain the lead, Eikenberry made it a 46-46 score with 3:12 on the clock after making a basket in the paint. 

Boyd brought the Lady Indians back in front with 2:26 left in the fourth, and Eikenberry answered with a made free throw at the 2:06 mark of the quarter after she was fouled. 

Following a timeout and foul, Davis pushed Hillsboro’s lead to two points with a converted free throw, and with the crowd continuing to make as much noise as the Hillsboro Gym could handle — each school had very proud and loud student sections — McClain scored four points in less than 30 seconds of game time with a layup by Eikenberry, tying the score at 49 with 59 seconds left in the fourth. 

Then came a steal, foul and two made pressure-packed free throws by Katie Cook with 27.5 on the scoreboard for what became the final 51-49 score, as those were the only two points she scored in the game.  

“I was so proud of her for fighting that adversity,” Massie said. “This gym was shaking. They did not want her to make those. She stepped up, she blocked it all out, and she gave it her all. She sank both of them, and that's what makes us a great team right there, fighting for that adversity, making big shots when they’re needed.”

Hillsboro had a couple of opportunities to tie the score, but the Lady Tigers’ defense didn’t allow any more points to be scored, or for HHS to have an open shot in the final seconds, to seal the important FAC win. 

As exciting as the final eight minutes were, the entire 32 minutes of the game were played at the same intensity, starting with both teams being tied at 16 points apiece after the first quarter with Kobie Miles of Hillsboro having five of those points in the first with a 3-pointer and two-point basket. There were also four points scored by Bledsoe, three made free throws from Ella Jordan and two points each by Davis and Ames. 

On the visitors’ side, the first quarter saw the start to one of the best first halves of girls high school basketball this season, as Pryor scored 11 of her 20 points of the first half in the opening quarter with three 3-pointers and two free throws. 

MHS also had there points from Eikenberry in the first and two points from Brenna Wright. 

“It’s disappointing that we got a little bit of a slow start,” Storer said. “I know we were tied in the first quarter, but I thought we got a slow start. We let their best players go off in the first half, and that slowed our momentum a little bit, and then it always felt like we were on the defensive side. That’s not how I like to play. 

“I applaud the girls’ fight — that’s the first thing I said in the locker room — but execution when it mattered wasn't great. We didn't shoot real well, and it’s a tough, tough, tough loss.”

The second quarter saw MHS outscore Hillsboro 12-10, putting the Lady Tigers ahead 28-26 at halftime. 

The score was tied at 18 at one point in the second frame, but after the teams exchanged baskets, Jordan lifted HHS in front at 24-22 with 2:36 left in the second. MHS came back with a response of six consecutive points with three points from Pryor and a 3-pointer with .31 seconds on the clock by Larah Henson. HHS made it the two-point differential with the final basket of the quarter from Bledsoe. 

In the third, McClain outscored Hillsboro 8-5 as the two defenses took over for a bit of the game, though Henson hit a 3-pointer in the frame for MHS and Boyd also had a trey in the third quarter. 

More final scoring totals for McClain included Henson (seven), Wright (four), Cummins (three) and Cook (two). Final totals for HHS were Bledsoe (eight), Miles (eight), Jordan (five) and Ames (four). 

Hillsboro and McClain will meet again on Saturday, Feb. 1 in Greenfield at McClain Gym with a scheduled 1:30 p.m. tip-off. 

Next for Hillsboro is a game Saturday, Dec. 28 in non-conference play against the North Adams Lady Green Devils at NAHS at 6 p.m. 

McClain plays again Wednesday, Jan. 8 at home in non-conference action against Logan Elm at 7 p.m. 

BOX SCORE
MHS    16 12 08 15 — 51
HHS    16 10 05 18 — 49 

MCCLAIN (51) — L.Henson 0 (2) 1-2 7, K.Cook 0 (0) 2-2 2, P.Pryor 4 (4) 3-6 23, B.Cummins 0 (1) 0-0 3, B.Wright 2 (0) 0-0 4, A.Eikenberry 5 (0) 2-3 12. TOTALS: 11 (7) 8-13 51. 

HILLSBORO (49) — P.Bledsoe 4 (0) 0-0 8, K.Miles 1 (2) 0-0 8, E.Jordan 1 (0) 3-3 5, T.Davis 3 (0) 4-7 10, D.Ames 2 (0) 0-0 4, K.Boyd 4 (2) 0-0 14. TOTALS: 15 (4) 7-10 49. 

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