March 28, 2024

Nodaway Valley girls drub Clarke in perfect start to 2022

This one was never in doubt from the start.

Nodaway Valley sprinted to a 20-0 lead before Clarke got on the board and the Wolverines (9-3, 5-1 in Pride of Iowa Conference) careened farther to an easy 73-18 win Monday, Jan. 10 on their home court in non-conference girls’ basketball action.

Senior guard Maddax DeVault scored on five 3-pointers in the first quarter and scored 30 points in the first half. In the second half, sophomore Lindsey Davis was the one scoring the points. She finished with 14 points, 11 of them coming after halftime, including two 3-pointers.

“We knew we had to come out quick. We knew we can’t look over anybody and knew they’d be physical. We did, and that gave us momentum for the rest of the game,” Davis said. “At halftime I was shooting and it felt good. I knew I could come out, shoot some 3s, score some points. We all had a lot of energy and it was just fun to play.”

Nearly everyone on Nodaway Valley’s roster got into the game at some point. The spread was 49-9 at halftime and 65-15 after three quarters. Nodaway Valley’s other double digit scorer was Bella Hogan, who scored 13.

Madisyn McCoy scored six points to lead the Lady Indians.

Beating Mount Ayr and Lenox

Nodaway Valley toppled Mount Ayr 50-30 on Tuesday, Jan. 4 in the Iowa Wolves High School Showcase at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

The Wolverines outscored the Raiderettes 16-4 in the second quarter, which proved to be decisive stretch.

Davis and DeVault had 17 points each on the night and went a combined 6-of-12 from beyond the arc. Junior forward Annika Nelson reined in eight rebounds, including five offensive boards. Senior guard Maddie Stewart scored 10 for Mount Ayr.

“This was a good opportunity. They put on a good event and it was fun. Mount Ayr played a good game and always plays hard,” Eisbach said of the Wolves’ event. “It’s definitely a cool experience for the kids and it’s a place every team’s trying to get to at the end of the season.”

That win led into a close game with Lenox Friday that the Wolverines were able to pull out, 51-39.

DeVault scored 18 with Madison Fry adding in a career-high 15, which included crucial 3-pointers in the third quarter that helped the hometown purple-and-white pull away.

“We started finding more girls open as the game went on,” Fry said. “If we took the ball in there were other people open we just tried to make the extra pass and find the open girl.”

Nelson’s 11 boards in the win also proved crucial.

“I felt like I just got up really high,” Nelson said. “Having everyone here, the adrenaline just gets going, you get up and it makes everything feel better. The little things help and we just keep scoring.”

Caleb Nelson

Caleb Nelson

Caleb Nelson has served as News Editor of the Adair County Free Press and Fontanelle Observer since Oct. 2017. He and his wife Kilee live in Greenfield. In Greenfield and the greater Adair County area, he values the opportunity to tell peoples' stories, enjoys playing guitar, following all levels of sports, and being a part of his local church.