Exhilarating. Competitive. Special. Electrifying.

These are just some of the words GRC basketball players use to describe the Clark and Montgomery County rivalry.

GRC first faced Moco in 1964. They still continue to play in the same district and region, causing them to face each other at least twice a year.

Sophomore Maleaha Bell even compares this match-up to the Kentucky vs. Louisville rivalry. “Clark and MoCo both have great fan bases and when they are about to play, everyone knows about it,” she says.

For more than 50 years, fans have packed the stands to watch this game – regardless of whether it is home or away. This year was no exception.

“It is a very exciting game; the student section was the biggest it has been in years,” says sophomore Jordan Graham.

His teammate, Ben Jackson, says he believes the large crowd affects the atmosphere of the game. “You feel a rush of emotions seeing and hearing all the fans,” says Jackson.

Regardless of how enthusiastic the crowd may be, the teams always have one focus – the game. “It is easy to get over hyped and lose focus in a rivalry game, so that’s when we have to remember to just play the game,” says sophomore Jasmine Flowers.

Agreeing with her teammate, Bell says, “It is a little nerve-racking at first. Everyone is giving 110 percent all the time because it is a rival game, but once we start playing, the nerves go away.”

This appears to be true as the Lady Cards, currently ranked at 16 in the state, defeated the Indians twice in a two-week time span.

They outscored their opponent by 49 at home and 44 away. “These wins are some of the most important because they give you insight to how you will do in tournament play,” says senior Elizabeth Hardiman.

The Cardinal basketball team is also following in this success as they scored two wins against the Indians as well.

Junior Will Philpot attributes this success to the style of basketball Coach Josh Cook’s Cards play. “Even though it’s a district game with a different environment, we still play our normal game,” he says.

“We played and executed the whole game,” adds junior Martravious Hooten. “These are big wins that mean so much to the team as we enter tournament play,” he says.

Both boys and girls will play in Paris for the district tournament. District games are the week of Feb. 20.

If the teams advance to the 10th Region tournament, the boys will play in Mason County and the girls in Harrison County the following week.