Special Weather Statement issued December 4 at 5:17AM EST by NWS Wilmington OH (details ...)
Wind gusts of 40 MPH are possible from this afternoon through Thursday afternoon. Some locally higher gusts of 45 to 50 mph will be possible this evening. These winds may blow around loose or light weight objects such as decorations, in particular inflatable decorations.
A cold front moves through this evening bringing the potential for snow showers. While accumulations will generally be less than an inch, quick bursts of snow will lead to reductions in visibility. In addition, quickly falling temperatures will lead to the potential for slick spots on surfaces. Cold conditions are expected Thursday morning with wind chill values between -5 and 5 degrees.
Today 39° Today 39° chance 15° 15° Tomorrow 27° Tomorrow 27° chance 17° 17° chance
Tuesday, December 17th, 2013

Panthers jump out to big lead

Parkway takes the lead for good with 11-0 run during the first quarter

By Gary R. Rasberry
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard

Parkway's Cami Hellwarth is pressured by a Mississinawa Valley defender during Monday's matchup in Rockford. Hellwarth scored a game-high 15 points in the Panthers' 64-47 win.

ROCKFORD - An 11-0 run in the first quarter gave Parkway the lead and the Lady Panthers never trailed the rest of the way in a 64-47 victory over Mississinawa Valley on Monday night in Rockford.
The BlackHawks took a quick 2-0 lead at the start of the game but the Panthers quickly took control of the game. Parkway scored 11 straight points in just 3 1/2 minutes on buckets from Cami Hellwarth, Lydia Heindel, Kayle Heckler and Sierra Fent.
"We told the the kids we needed to push the ball down the court and we did," said Parkway coach Lynn Hughes. "We got a great lead and I thought we did a great job the rest of the game switching our defenses and throwing them off."
Mississinawa Valley rallied to as close as four points in the second quarter, but every time the BlackHawks threatened, Parkway was able to push the lead back up to a comfortable margin.
In the second half, Parkway continued to keep Mississinawa Valley from getting back into the game, keeping the lead in double digits for most of the third quarter.
Mississinawa Valley made one last rally in the fourth quarter, cutting Parkway's lead to 51-44 with five minutes on the clock and prompting Hughes to call a timeout to get the team back on track. The Panthers took the coach's words to heart, finishing the game on a 13-3 run that pushed the lead up to 20 points at 64-44.
"I thought we handled the pressure and took care of the ball at the end," said Hughes, whose squad had 14 turnovers, five in the fourth quarter. "A couple times, I thought we shot too quick (when) we needed to pull it out. We did a good job handling the ball and making decisions."
It was a balanced scoring night for Parkway. Of the eight players that got playing time, seven scored with four players reaching double figures. Hellwarth scored 15 with Gehron and Fent scoring 12 each while Heindel added 11.
"We had four in double digits and one (Heckler) with nine," said Hughes. "With Raegen (Bransteter) being hurt, we're down to eight players (in the rotation). All eight came in and did a nice job tonight.
"My big concern was we didn't shoot free throws as well as we would have liked," continued Hughes, as the Panthers were 17-of-28 from the charity stripe. "But overall, it was a great team win."
Logan Nelson led the BlackHawks with 12 points while Mackenzie Dirmyer added 11.
Parkway is off until after Christmas when it hosts the Chatt Insurance Holiday Tournament on Dec. 27 and 28. Parkway takes on Delphos Jefferson on Dec. 27 at 4:40 p.m. following the Fairlawn and Lincolnview matchup at 3 p.m. The championship game will take place at 6:20 p.m. on Dec. 28.
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard

Parkway's Kayle Heckler passes around Mississinawa Valley's Victoria Humphries during Monday's game. Heckler had nine points in Parkway's victory over the Blackhawks.

Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard

Parkway's Ashlynn Henderson dribbles the ball up the floor during Monday's game against Mississinawa Valley.

Additional online story on this date
CELINA - Provider of utilities, protector of the public ... caretaker of the dead's final resting place?
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Subscriber and paid stories on this date
No schools in Mercer or Auglaize counties were awarded grants through the state's Straight A Fund.
Ohio's new $250 million education innovation fund is intended to boost student achievement, reduce district spending or allocate a greater share of resources into the classroom.
CELINA - Cody J. Maxwell pleaded not guilty Monday to charges that he robbed the People's Bank Co. last month.
Maxwell, 22, entered his pleas to Mercer County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Ingraham Monday afternoon during an arraignment hearing.
CELINA - Celina school district was awarded a state grant to pay for seven emergency radios.
The radios will allow school personnel to talk directly to Celina police officers in their cruisers and Mercer County Sheriff's Department personnel in an emergency situation such as a school shooting.
FORT RECOVERY - A fire destroyed a small home in rural Fort Recovery early Saturday morning.
Fort Recovery Fire Chief Kim Day said his department was called to 245 Lowry Road about 3:12 a.m. and found the home completely engulfed in flames. No one was injured.
MINSTER - A 40-bed assisted living facility will open next year in the former Hanover Street school.
Members of the Minster Local Schools Board of Education on Monday approved the sale of the building for $300,000 to Commercial and Industrial Leasing Ltd.
Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry
The Auglaize-Mercer County Family YMCA Waves swim teams finished with a strong effort at the Darke County YMCA (DCY) Invitational held Saturday at Greenville.