By Duncan Nixon
Correspondent
It was senior night at Fluvanna High on Jan.31 and the Fluvanna girls basketball team was hosting nearby Monticello High. Appropriately, the Flucos were led by senior Ikeena Spruill. She had 14 points, with 11 in the decisive second half.
The game started slowly for the Flucos. In the first quarter, they were getting decent shots, but they were not going in. The Mustangs led 12-7 at the end of the quarter. The Fluco defense tightened up in the second quarter causing turn-overs and making steals. Some shots started going in. Five Flucos scored a basket with sophomore Sophia Brennan nailing a three-point shot. The Mustangs had an extremely hard time dealing with the quicker Flucos. They only scored four points in the quarter. On the last play of the half, Spruill grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back in for the first Fluco lead of the game. The half time score was 18-16. It looked like the fans would be witnessing a close contest. That would not be the case.
In the third quarter, Fluco coach Josh McElheny put his team in an aggressive full court zone press. The Mustangs could not handle it. The Flucos exploited their superior quickness and they continued to force turn-overs and make steals. Several of the steals led to easy break-away baskets. The Flucos blew the game open, finishing the quarter with a 12 point advantage. The Flucos outscored the Mustangs 12-2 in the quarter. In the second and third quarters the Flucos scored 23 to 6 for Monticello. In the third quarter, Spruill scored six and sophomore Sienna Brennan had four including a three-point basket. The fourth quarter was just as one-sided and the Flucos coasted to a 40-20 win. In addition to Spruill’s scoring Sienna Brennan added eleven including two three-point shots.
The Fluco girls have only three games left. On Feb. 4 they hosted Albemarle High. On Feb. 7 they are at Orange County and on Feb. 11 they host Charlottesville. Coach McElheny’s squad may not have broken .500 this year, but the future is bright. Spruill and forward Carly Brown were the only seniors on the team, and a number of sophomores were serious contributors this year. In addition to the Brennans, Krysteon Shelton and Ameyah Agee contributed impressive quickness, and each scored four points in this win.
