Mader leads Tipp past Greenville

It was a first half that Tippecanoe girls basketball players and coaches would just soon forget.

Fortunately for the Red Devils, they controlled the final nine minutes of the game and pulled away from Greenville 56-46 last week in a Miami Valley League matchup at Pat Wampler Gymnasium.

Tipp freshman Abbi Mader had another strong game with 27 points while Mady Turner added 11 and Emily Aselage scored nine in the win. Tipp was 17-20 from the free throw line, including 8-8 from Turner and 6-6 from Mader.

“That was a lot of fun, and it was a good experience to come back from being down and things didn’t go our way in the first half,” Tipp coach Julian Grasso said. “Greenville played awesome and was really prepared for the game. They shared the ball well and stayed calm for the game.”

Greenville led 11-7 after the opening period with Megan Lind setting the pace for the Green Wave with the first six points of the game as Greenville led 6-0 before Tipp could get on the scoreboard.

The second period was much of the same as Greenville continued to stay a step ahead of the Red Devils. They led 21-12 with 4:15 left in the half when Turner scored five consecutive points for Tipp. Lind scored twice in the final minute to allow Greenville to keep the lead at halftime 28-24.

“Their guards did what their coach asked them to do,” Grasso said of Greenville in the first half. “They are organized and have a plan on what they want to do.”

Tipp finally caught Greenville in the third period and took their first lead when Mader scored on a three-point play, and a five-point stretch in the final 1:32 of the quarter gave Tipp a 42-37 lead headed to the fourth. The Red Devils would not relinquish the lead the rest of the night.

Mader continues to shine as a freshman for the Red Devils and Grasso has the highest regards for the Tipp newcomer.

“I have her as the Player of the Year in the MVL and she showed that again tonight,” Grasso said. “I use the quote ‘when I needed you the most, you did your best’. Our team needed Abbi to make some plays, and she did that.”

The tournament draw was held Sunday afternoon and you can find that info in this week’s edition. For now, it is a trip to the #1 seed in the Division 3 Southwest District tonight as Tipp goes to Carroll, then hosts Sidney on Saturday for the regular season finale and Senior Day.