By ERIKA PICKLES
Vigilant/Argus

EDWARDSBURG – Edwardsburg girls’ basketball coach Nicole Cartwright knew it was going to be a tough night for her team.

The Eddies had not one, but two strikes against them as they hosted Brandywine for a Lakeland Conference game Friday.

Not only did they face an undefeated Bobcat team, but Edwardsburg only has seven girls total on the squad, something Cartwright said is a tough challenge.

Brandywine improved its record to 10-0 on the season with a 45-27 win over the Eddies, who fall to 5-6 overall.

The win added another notch to the record book for the Bobcats.

“I wish we had a bench, but we don’t. Brandywine has outstanding ball pressure and we knew a tough challenge was coming,” Cartwright said.

Despite the loss, she was more than pleased with the effort her girls put forth.

“We’re seven strong. The girls don’t give up, no matter how far behind we get.”

The Bobcats held the Eddies to just 12 points in the first half alone, taking an 11-4 lead after the first and entering halftime ahead 25-12.

Brandywine again held Edwardsburg to low scoring in the third, allowing their opponent to score only six points.

Sophomore Carlie Newman dished out eight of the Bobcats’ 10 points in the period to push the advantage to 35-18 entering the fourth. Newman had a game-high 14 points on the night.

“Carlie had a big quarter for us in the third. She’s tough. But I was pleased with the entire team effort we showed tonight. All of the girls pitched in and contributed to the win and I’m very pleased with the effort,” Brandywine head coach Josh Hood said.

The Lady ‘Cats only outscored the Eddies by one point in the fourth, 10-9, but the lead throughout the entire game was enough to seal the win.

Edwardsburg’s Rachel Vite was the second leading scoring on the night, pumping in 12 points for her team.

“Rachel’s a tough player, probably one of the toughest girls I’ve seen in the conference. We can always count on her to do big things for us. Unfortunartely we faced a very tough Brandywine team tonight and we just have to learn from this and move on. We’re taking it one game at a time right now,” Cartwright added.

Other top scorers for Brandywine were Morgan Smallwood with nine and Nicole Newman and Lauren Leonard, who each had seven points.

Brandywine will face Coloma for another Lakeland Conference match Thursday evening. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m.

BRANDYWINE 45
Carlie Newman 5 3-5 14; Nicole Newman 2 1-2 7; Micaela Greer 0 0-0 0; Mackenzie Shelton 1 0-0 2; Kelsey Prestly 0 0-0 0; Morgan Smallwood 4 1-2 9; Teila Smith 2 0-0 4; Lauren Leonard 3 1-2 7; Madison Pellow 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 18 6-11 45
EDWARDSBURG 27
Rachel Vite 6 0-4 12; Leslie Boyles 0 1-1 1; Emily Kozinski 3 0-0 6; Sarah D’Amico 0 0-0 0; Ashley Streb 2 0-0 4; Mariah Murphy 2 0-0 4; Jill Blough 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 13 1-5 27

Brandywine 11 25 35 45
Edwardsburg 4 12 18 27
3-point baskets: Brandywine 3 (C. Newman 1, N. Newman 2), Edwardsburg 0. Total fouls: Brandywine 11, Edwardsburg 9. Fouled out: None.
Varsity records: Brandywine 10-0, 6-0 Lakeland; Edwardsburg 5-6, 3-2 Lakeland