Shelby Rodgers had quite the homecoming.

Rodgers netted eight 3-pointers and scored a career-high 35 points in her first return to Ellwood City Lincoln since her freshman season.

Rodgers was 13 of 17 from the floor to go along with six steals and five assists. The Lady ’Canes’ senior guard played for the Lady Wolverines and then transferred to New Castle before her sophomore year.

“She had a little bit of incentive,” New Castle coach Luann Grybowski said. “I’ve actually been waiting for (the scoring spree) to happen.

“She hasn’t shot exceptionally well in the first half of the year. This was a breakout night for her and I hope it continues.”

Rodgers has 794 career markers.

The 91 points are the most for the Lady ’Canes since Dec. 6, 2001 when they rolled to an 84-50 victory over Neshannock.

New Castle got off to a strong start, opening a 29-17 buffer after one. Grybowski wasn’t pleased with the defensive effort though.

“We didn’t start very well,” she said. “We scored a lot but gave up too many.”

Ellwood City (0-4, 4-11) trailed 50-26 at half during the Section 3-AAA loss. The Lady Wolverines managed just eight points in the second half, including two points in the third quarter.

“They started out with a 6-0 lead and never looked back,” Lady Wolverines coach Bill Gottuso said. “We got a lesson on how the game is supposed to be played.

“Rodgers got a nice welcome back. They are a well coached team and a team that should do very well the rest of the season and go deep into the playoffs.”

LaShauna Brothers and Kaylynn Waters each scored 15 points for New Castle (4-1, 12-1). JaNia McPhatter and Christina Talbert each scored 10.

Brothers pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds, while Waters contributed five assists, five steals and four rebounds. Talbert registered six steals and four assists and McPhatter added five boards.

Michelle Nocera led Ellwood City with 12.

New Castle committed just 12 turnovers, including just one in the second half. The Lady Wolverines turned it over 42 times. The Lady ’Canes were 33 of 62 from the floor, compared to 9 of 25 for Ellwood City.

New Castle returns to action at 8:30 p.m. tomorrow when it competes in the Geneva Shootout against Mount Lebanon. The Lady Blue Devils (14-0) are the top-ranked team in the WPIAL in Class AAAA according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The team is coached by Dori Anderson, who won WPIAL and PIAA titles while at Blackhawk.

“They’re a very good basketball team,” Grybowski said. “I don’t know if it’s one of her best teams but she plays a lot of kids.

“They pressure full-court man and it’s a well coached Dori Anderson team. I think it’s going to show us where we are. Are we one of the better teams? I think we can be; we’ll see how mature our young kids are.”