Whiteland girls hold off Franklin Central

<p>Whiteland’s girls basketball team is still learning to play without graduated Indiana All-Star Mackenzie Blazek, but the Warriors took a huge step in that direction Friday during their home opener against Franklin Central.</p><p>The Warriors used a dominant defense to build a 14-point lead, then staved off a furious Golden Flashes rally to claim a 60-56 nonconference victory over a potential sectional opponent.</p><p>“This was a sectional-type atmosphere,” Whiteland coach Kyle Shipp said. “We had a great crowd, and we played poised.”</p><p>Whiteland (1-1) forced Franklin Central, which was playing in its season opener, into 23 turnovers with its tight defense, and the Warriors committed just nine turnovers themselves. Last season, Blazek usually dominated the box score, but Friday’s stat sheet was much more balanced. Toni Joyner led Whiteland with 18 points, while Megan Harlow and Natalie Stuck added 15 points apiece.</p><p>Harlow (5-foot-9) and Joyner (5-11) each grabbed seven rebounds, helping Whiteland hang tough on the glass against a taller Franklin Central lineup that included 6-1 Amelia Magyar and 6-foot Rachel Loobie. The Flashes outrebounded the Warriors 35-28, but Whiteland largely kept Franklin Central off the offensive glass.</p><p>After falling behind 17-10, Whiteland scored 11 straight points at the end of the first and beginning of the second quarter to take the lead for good. The Warriors held the Flashes to just 16 points in the second and third quarters combined.</p><p>“We sped them up a little bit, and it caused them to be frantic,” Shipp said of Whiteland’s defense. “When we scored, we were able to set our defense.”</p><p>Whiteland appeared to be in control when its lead swelled to 44-30 with 11.5 seconds left in the third quarter, but Franklin Central rallied. The Flashes cut the lead to 59-56 with 15 seconds to go on an Magyar basket.</p><p>On the ensuing inbounds pass, the Flashes fouled Stuck with 5.3 seconds remaining. She missed the first free throw but hit the second to seal the win.</p><p>“That run at the end of the first quarter really keyed us,” Shipp said. “We need to work on our end-of-game situations a little bit, but we were more comfortable on offense than we were in the opener (a 33-32 loss at Greenfield-Central).”</p><p>Whiteland hit 20 of 27 free throws overall, good for 74.1 percent. Franklin Central attempted only nine free throws and hit just four. The Warriors’ Taylor Klenner hit all six of her free-throw attempts and scored eight points overall.</p><p>Franklin Central’s Loobie led everyone with 22 points and 13 rebounds, but she scored 10 of those points in the first quarter and only three in the fourth period.</p><p>Whiteland plays at Greenwood on Tuesday in the first round of the Johnson County tournament.</p>