A new era for Hillsboro girls basketball began Friday night with the East Clinton Lady Astros gaining a 47-29 win, as first-year head coach Chad Fields saw his team drop the season opener.
Hillsboro, behind some solid defensive play took a 7-6 after the first quarter. However, that was the last lead the Indians would hold.
A second period 12-2 run by the Astros enabled them to overcome the deficit and take a commanding 24-13 lead at the intermission.
After halftime, East Clinton brought full court pressure against HHS --- holding the Indians scoreless for nearly four minutes in the process and extending their lead to 21 points.
A 13-3 advantage in that third stanza basically put the game out of reach at 37-16.
HHS, behind some good fourth quarter shooting by Bryanna Bledsoe, outscored ECHS 13-10 to put the final deficit at 18 points.
Bledsoe, who tallied a team-leading 14 points, was named the WSRW "player of the game."
Coach Fields, despite the defeat, felt his team gave great effort and displayed determination and grit throughout the contest. He added that he saw enough positive aspects to build upon as schedule moves forward.
The Lady Indians will return to action next Wednesday for a second straight home game with Adena.