Ohio (1-4) hosted Ohio Christian (4-5) Tuesday morning for Education Day. Local grade school students packed the Convo and brought the energy Ohio needed to bring home a much-needed win. The energy was something Ohio coach Bob Boldon felt the team needed and enjoyed throughout the event while bringing home a 97-37 victory.
“One of the challenges was the kids being here for lunchtime,” Boldon said. “So many kids rely on their school lunch being a big part of the day. I get a call almost consecutively from Tim Albin, Jeff Boals and Sue Ellen Miller, and they all say, ‘Hey, aren’t you paying for pizzas for the kids? What can we do to help?’ I think that just epitomizes what this town is about, what this university is about.”
The Trailblazers came out with a nice intensity and put the pressure on the Bobcats early, forcing four turnovers in the first minute of play. Sophomore Bailey Tabeling opened the scoring for the Bobcats with a 3-pointer, giving Ohio an early 3-2 lead.
Ohio dominated the glass early, gathering seven offensive rebounds and six second-chance points. Sophomore Monica Williams has a good start with a couple of strong layups, which coupled well with freshman Gigi Bower’s handful of early points. Ohio’s lead extended to six at 18-12 as the first quarter ended.
The second quarter was the same with the Bobcats holding a steady lead. They used good passing and a relentless defense that caused numerous turnovers. The Bobcats would pull to a 13-point lead with help from a 4-0 run by senior Kennedi Watkins to bring the lead to 30-17.
Boldon implemented a half-court trap on defense, which caused a massive number of turnovers and Ohio took full advantage with 15 points off turnovers in the first half.
Ohio ended the half on a 10-0 run and gave it a 25-point halftime lead.
The Bobcats brought the energy right back out of the locker room and kept the run going by being physical and attacking the basket while still sprinkling in the long ball.
The run finally concluded at 27-0 on a 3-point basket by the Trailblazers, however, Ohio had already jumped out to a 61-22 lead at the time of the basket.
Bower kept her career day going in the third with two more threes, which gave Ohio a 77-25 lead heading into the final quarter.
Every Ohio player scored Tuesday afternoon with an excellent effort on both the offensive and defensive sides in a 97-37 victory.
“It was a win that we needed,” Boldon said. “I will be the first to tell you that we needed to win this game and how I’m proud of the fashion in which we got it done. We’ve got a little adversity early and we really came out and made the proper adjustments to do what we need to do.”
