ARCANUM – The Arcanum Lady Trojans used a fast start and timely plays down the stretch to fend off a late Legacy Christian rally, earning a 44-41 non-conference victory Monday night.
“It was a battle,” said Arcanum coach Abbey Moore. “It could have very easily gone one way or the other, but I am glad we came out on top. We can take some confidence from this, but we have to get motivated and get ready to work tomorrow.”
Arcanum bolted out to a 16-6 first-quarter lead behind 10 points from Caroline Long, who also went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line.
“Caroline was highly motivated today, and that is the Caroline we have to have on the floor,” Moore said. “If we have that kind of Caroline, we’re going to be liking where we’re at at the end of the season.”
Legacy Christian responded in the second quarter, outscoring the Lady Trojans 19-13 to trim the deficit to 29-25 at halftime. Matty Noe paced Arcanum in the period with eight points, including a 3-pointer, while Adalyn Paul also knocked down a triple and Long added a basket.
The Lady Trojans rebuilt their cushion in the third quarter, winning the frame 10-7. Josie Schwartz scored five points, including a 3-pointer and two free throws, Avery Leeper hit a trey, and Long added another bucket as Arcanum took a 39-32 lead into the fourth.
Legacy Christian erased the seven-point deficit in the opening three minutes of the final quarter. A Long free throw gave Arcanum a 40-39 edge at the 4:02 mark, but a Legacy breakaway layup at 2:48 put the visitors in front 41-40 — their first lead of the night.
“They knocked down some shots,” Moore said. “We responded, we overcame that adversity when they knocked down those shots.”
The turning point came with 49 seconds remaining when Noe drilled a clutch 3-pointer to give Arcanum a 43-41 lead. Long sealed the win with a free throw in the closing moments.
“That fourth quarter was about more than just scoring points,” Moore said. “Matty came up with a big one, and defensively we took over and were able to grit out that win today.”
The Monday night matchup was a late addition to both teams’ 2025-26 schedules.
“We just put this game on the calendar a week before Christmas, so we didn’t know we were going to be playing each other for very long,” Moore noted. “Mark is a great coach and does a great job. I go way back with him — he has coached a lot of great, talented players. Their two guards are quick, and they are going to do a lot of good things this year.”
BOX SCORE:
ARCANUM 44, LEGACY CHRISTIAN 41
ARCANUM – C. Long 16, M. Noe 12, A. Paul 5, J. Schwartz 5, A. Leeper 3, C. Hein 2 – TOTALS 11 6-10 5 43
LEGACY CHRISTIAN – L. Drye 11, G. Breeding 10, A. Allport 9, M. Kinnison 3, A. Combs 2, A. Sweeney 2, L. Charles 2, M. Frueauf 2 – TOTALS 11 4-7 5 41
3-POINTERS
Arcanum 5 (M. Noe 2, A. Paul 1, J. Schwartz 1, A. Leeper 1)
Legacy Christian 5 (G. Breeding 2, A. Allport 1, L. Drye 1, M. Kennison 1)
SCORE by QUARTERS
16-13-10-05 44 Arcanum
06-19-07-09 41 Legacy Christian
