Pioneers hold off Lady Railers
42-40
Senior Mia Clark joins the 1,000 point club
[January 31, 2026]
It turned out to be a great Central State Eight showdown on
Friday night in Normal between the Lincoln Lady Railers and the
University High Pioneers.
Lincoln trailed 28-13 at halftime but put up a valiant effort in the
second half. Lincoln would fight til the end, losing 42-40 to a good
Pioneers team.
Lincoln senior Mia Clark also reached the elite milestone of 1,000
career points on Friday night. Clark needed ten points to reach
1,000 when the game started. In the first quarter, it went 1,2,3 for
Clark. First a single free throw, followed by a reverse layup for
two points and then a corner three right by the Pioneers bench with
two minutes on the clock. Early in the second quarter, Clark hit two
free throws and then left fans hanging in anticipation for the
moment. With 6:47 on the clock in the third quarter, Clark stepped
to the free throw line with her team trailing 31-15. She swished
both free throws, hitting 1000 points.
The game was stopped momentarily for Clark to soak it all in. As the
gym erupted in applause, Clark’s teammates gathered around her and
fellow senior Mesa McCloud gave her a big hug. The U-High announcer
congratulated Clark while the entire gymnasium, opposing players and
coaches included, all clapped in appreciation of this elite
achievement. The Lady Railers still had a job to do but this was
definitely a moment worth celebrating. Congratulations, Mia Rose!
First quarter
From the tip-off it was evident these two teams were ready to
elevate their game in front of a Friday night crowd and the energy
was high. The Pioneers struck first with a 2-0 lead and they never
let Lincoln in front in the first quarter. Clark’s free throw was
Lincoln’s first entry into the scorebook. After Grace Bivin’s first
bucket the lead was trimmed to 4-3. Clark’s layup made it 6-5 but in
a matter of seconds the Pioneers lead was 11-5. Clark made a three
to close the gap but the Pioneers answered with a bucket. Lily
Holmes made one free throw with 1:35 left to set the score at 13-9.
Second quarter
Clark’s two free throws to start the second quarter made the score
13-11. But the rest of the quarter was pretty dismal for Lincoln
offensively. Lincoln’s only other basket finally came from Paisley
Holmes at the 2:10 mark. She stole the ball and ran with it, leaving
the other nine players chasing her dust. When halftime hit, the Lady
Railers were down 28-13 and it really looked like the Pioneers could
run away with this one.
Third quarter
Lincoln comes out of the locker room ready to go in the third
quarter. Bivin sinks Lincoln’s first bucket off the nice inbounds
pass from Mesa McCloud. Then it was Clark’s two free throws to put
her in the 1,000th point club. Next it was time to really get down
to business. Bivin and Clark chipped away at the lead at the free
throw line and then it was Mia with a three to hush the rowdy U-High
crowd. Clark’s three was at the 1:44 mark and the lead was getting
smaller. Credit McCloud with the nice assist. U-High was in front
33-25 but the Lady Railers were showing new life. Thirty seconds
later Bivin would sink two free throws and Lincoln was making moves.
And keeping with that thought, it was Lily Holmes driving baseline
just under the minute mark and using the backboard to toss in two
points. She trimmed the lead to 34-30. Lily tossed in five points in
the third quarter to go along with six each from Clark and Bivin.
Fourth quarter
U-High had possession to start the fourth quarter, but Lincoln kept
them from scoring. As soon as Bivin got a chance, she scored for
Lincoln and the Lady Railers were coming on strong, 34-32 the score.
Bivin’s bucket came off the really nice lob pass in the lane from
Paisley Holmes. But with 6:06 on the clock, one of the Pioneers
sensational freshman hit a three right by the student section and
when the referee blew the whistle for a foul, that crowd really
erupted. Haylie Hoffman is the freshman’s name and that shot was a
game changer for U-High. It definitely lit a fire under the rest of
the team. And she made the extra point.
Bivin came right back with another bucket and she is without a doubt
just one of Lincoln’s sensational freshmen. She has already improved
a ton this season on the Varsity court and has so much potential.
After Clark hit a three at the 4:12 mark, Lincoln was just down a
point, 38-37 the score.
By the time the 3:05 mark rolled around it was Bivin again. This
time she got the pass in the lane from Clark but missed the bucket.
Luckily she got her own rebound and put it up and in for the lead.
Finally, Lincoln was in front 39-38. That basket also got her a pat
on the back from her senior, Clark.
Fast forward to 38.0 seconds left in the game and Lincoln is still
clinging to that one point lead. The excitement in the gym is
building. These two teams have battled hard all night long. Then the
ball finds its way into the hands of Hoffman and oops, she did it
again. She’s on the wing and she’s gonna release that ball and run
backwards as she watches it glide through the net. The freshman put
her team back on top, 41-39. That one was a dagger.
[to top of second column] |
Senior Mia Clark is Lincoln's newest member of the 1,000
point club. Photo by Teena Lowery
Mia Clark is surrounded by her mom, Sarah, and her grandpa,
Mac, near the free throw line where she made her 1,000th point.
Photo by Teena Lowery
Bivin will get a chance at the free throw line with 16.5 seconds
left and she will hit nothing but net on the first one and the
second one, well it’s going to bounce from side to side in the rim
and back out. U-High holds on to a 41-40 lead and with Lincoln
forced to foul that lead turns into 42-40 with 8.2 seconds left. It
just happened to be another freshman, Evelyn Seifert, who made the
last free throw for U-High.
Lincoln did have one more opportunity for a tie or the win, but
Grace Schneider’s last second drive to the lane was met with
opposition.
It was a heartbreaking 42-40 loss and there were tears after the
game.
Both teams missed seven free throws in the game. Both teams missed
some 3s. Both teams missed some layups. Both teams had turnovers
they wish they had not committed. But both teams fought hard until
the very end and played exceptional defense. And the tears just
prove the passion these girls have for the game. It was an excellent
CS8 matchup and looking towards the future, these two teams offer a
lot to keep fans excited. They are both young and hungry.
Leading Lincoln in scoring versus U-High was senior Mia Clark with
17 points but freshman Grace Bivin had another fantastic game in the
paint with 15 points.
U-High was led by two freshmen in scoring. Haylie Hoffman had 14
points and Evelyn Seifert had 13 points.
And with that, Lincoln did win the JV game in overtime.
The final score was 59-54 with Emma Hutchison knocking down 20
points and Sage Gilbert hitting 16 points. Grey Gilbert tossed in 11
points.
The two teams were tied at 51 at the end of regulation. Lincoln’s
overtime points came from Elizabeth Chen and the Gilbert sisters.
The Lincoln JV team now has a 15-1 record this season.
The Lincoln Varsity squad falls to 16-8 overall and 5-3 in the CS8.
Normal U-High improves to 13-12 overall and 6-2 in the CS8.
Lincoln will play at Champaign Central today. The JV game will
tip-off at 1:00 p.m. and the Varsity will follow.
Varsity scoring
Lincoln 40
Clark 17
Bivin 15
L. Holmes 6
P. Holmes 2
U-High 42
Hoffman 14
Seifert 13
Matejka 7
Schroeder 4
Bennett 4
JV scoring
Lincoln 59
Hutchison 20
S. Gilbert 16
G. Gilbert 11
E. Schneider 6
Short 4
Chen 2
U-High 54
Sweeney 20
Roehm 12
Kasten 11
Wheelwright 7
Barke 2
Bennett 2
[Teena Lowery] |
