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Covenant girls surge past St. Margaret’s as Maupin reaches milestone

Photo by Ashley Thornton

Emily Maupin had what has become a typical night for Covenant girls basketball with a whopping 28 points and 22 rebounds.

 

But it was an eighth grader, Ella Dalton, who put the Eagles over the edge for a 61-45 victory over St. Margaret’s. Dalton poured in 19 points including a trio of 3-pointers, to give the Eagles a huge spark.

 

“Ella really stepped up for us as an eighth grader, 19 points that’s crazy,” Maupin said. “It was a great team win.”

 

Maupin’s own performance included her 1,000th career board that goes with the 1,000 career points mark that she reached earlier this season. Officials paused the game after Maupin grabbed a board on the defensive end and then went coast-to-coast for a lay-in on the other end in the third quarter. It was her 14th rebound of the night.

 

“She’s a once-in-a-lifetime player, I’ve just got to be honest,” said Covenant coach Rock Watson. “She’s a great competitor, great attitude and it’s just a blessing that I’ve gotten to coach her for her 1,000th rebound and 1,000th point. I’m honored to be her coach.”

 

Maupin scored 20 of her 28 after the break, which along with Dalton’s scoring burst and a strong offensive night from Sarah Meakem (12 points, five assists), was enough to turn a one-point halftime deficit into a decisive win. Maupin appeared set to reach the 1,000-rebound mark in the first half, but a drought for much of the second kept her from getting there before the break.

 

“My coaches after the game were like the time between your 13th rebound and the 14th rebound that you need was like a quarter and a half,” Maupin said. “But I didn’t know.”

 

The Eagles appear to be rounding into form after a rocky start to the season and now sit at 6-5 on the year, and avenged an earlier season loss to St. Margaret’s in overtime back in mid December. The emergence of Dalton for a big night was a well-executed part of the plan.

 

“St. Margaret’s, they’re a tough team because they play a box-and-one or a triangle-and-two which is really tough to go up against because there aren’t many offenses you can run against it,” Watson said. “You have to have that fourth or fifth player they’re giving you make a difference. For us that was Ella…we planned that leading up to this week that ‘hey, you’re going to be the difference’.”

 

The Eagles play Eastern Mennonite Saturday at 3 p.m.

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