Warriors Open Sectional Play With Win
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
"The last five years, the team that put us out of the state tournament was state runners-up or state champs," NorthWood coach Steve Neff said, referring to Wawasee last season, and Fort Wayne Luers and South Bend St. Joseph's in the prior four years. "That's a good omen for Wawasee. Good luck to them. They've worked hard to get where they're at."[[In-content Ad]]Where Wawasee is, is Friday's semifinal game against 15-6 Lakeland at 6 p.m. at NorthWood High School.
To get past their Northern Lakes Conference mate Tuesday, the Warriors used patient offense and a stingy defense - trademarks of their entire season.
"We're pleased," Wawasee coach Kem Zolman said. "This is step one. Now we get to advance, and the first one is always the hard one."
After losing to Wawasee 59-36 back on Jan. 5 at "The Pit", NorthWood went on a seven-game winning streak. That streak only ended because the top-ranked Warriors were back in town, but that doesn't mean the streak ended without a fight.
"I don't think I really expected anything different, to be honest with you," Zolman said of the hard-fought game with NorthWood. "They were going to come and give their best effort defensively. Lately, they've been doing a real nice job against people."
That Panther defense forced four Wawasee turnovers in the opening three minutes, and helped the underdog take an 11-8 lead into the second quarter.
"Our kids were just wound," Zolman said of the opening minutes of the game. "As far as being scared or anything like that, I don't think that was the case. They just wanted to get out and play. I can't imagine what we would have looked like if we had practiced all week and came out (for our first game) Friday."
Down by three, Wawasee unleashed a 12-0 run to open the second quarter, turning a deficit into a 20-11 lead midway through the quarter. During that scoring spurt, five different Warriors scored a point, illustrating the squad's diversity.
"They've got a very nice ballclub," Neff, a 537-game winner, said. "They have a lot of good athletes on that team. They're a seasoned team that knows what to do when they need to do it."
Following the run, NorthWood did rebound to go into halftime down 23-18.
At the half, it can go without saying that each coach emphasized the point of ball security. In the opening 16 minutes, NorthWood committed 15 turnovers, six more than Wawasee's nine.
"We just didn't throw the ball well or didn't catch it very well," Neff said. "And a little bit of that is Wawasee. We got nervous and didn't look the ball into our hands."
NorthWood did commit just three turnovers in the second half, but Wawasee also cut the miscues down as well, turning the ball over just four times in the second half.
"I'm just really proud of our kids and how they handled things," Zolman said. "They adjusted to some things that had been very successful for (NorthWood) over the course of the first half."
On top of talking about taking care of the ball, each coach also stressed the importance of a fast start to the second half. And Zolman's girls listened.
The Warriors five-point lead quickly ballooned to 29-18 after two three-pointers from senior Kalyn Lantz in the openining minute of the third quarter. The two treys were Lantz's fourth and fifth of the game, leading to her game-high 15 points.
"Kalyn has been one of those stable people for almost four years," Zolman said of his lone senior starter. "Now that she's the main focus, as far as being a senior goes, she's doing what we expect her to. She stepped up huge for us. She hit some big shots."
"We knew the first couple possessions of the second half would be critical," Neff said. "They drained two three-pointers there at the beginning, which kind of changed the complexion right away."
NorthWood would follow Lantz's three-pointers with a 6-0 run of its own, but a 7-0 Wawasee run to close the third gave the Warriors a commanding 36-24 lead going into the fourth.
Being down by 12 points to the Warriors going into the fourth quarter is not where a team wants to be.
"They're a little more patient," Neff said of a Wawasee team with a lead. "Once they got that 10-point lead, they weren't looking for that outside shot. They were moving the ball and working - taking time off the clock. That's a veteran team."
The veteran team connected on 4-of-5 shots in the final quarter, and that one miss from junior Taylor Goshert caught the attention of Zolman from the sideline. After the miss, if a shot wasn't a lay-up, Wawasee wasn't shooting it. With that mentality, Wawasee cruised to the 15-point win.
While Goshert may have risen Zolman's blood pressure with her missed shot in the lane, it may have been one of the few times she did so. On top of scoring 12 points, Goshert also finished with five rebounds, four assists and a steal. The Ort twins also continued their steady play, with Ashlee Ort finishing with six points, six rebounds, two steals and two assists, while Kylee Ort had eight points, six rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot.
By getting the first postseason game out of the way, Zolman is now looking forward to a more relaxed team.
"It's just knowing there is no tomorrow," he said of the mental approach going into a team's first sectional game. "That alone is pressure enough. Once you get through that, you can take a deep breath. Now we can kind of relax a little bit and go to the next game."
WAWASEE 48, NORTHWOOD 33
N 11 7 6 9 - 33
W 8 15 13 12 - 48
NW - Lehman 1-6 1-2 3, Lechlitner 2-5 0-0 5, Yoder 4-8 0-1 8, Simpson 3-5 1-1 7, Steffen 3-7 1-2 8, Heeter 0-2 0-0 0, Bontrager 0-1 0-0 0, Frantz 0-3 2-2 2. Totals 13-37 5-8 33.
Wawasee - Lantz 5-10 0-2 15, A. Ort 3-5 0-0 6, K. Ort 3-4 2-3 8, McAdams 1-6 1-2 3, Goshert 4-12 2-2 12, Weisser 2-4 0-0 4, Wallace 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-41 5-9 48.
3-point goals - NW 2-9 (Lechlitner, Steffen), Wawasee 7 (Lantz 5, Goshert 2). Team Fouls - NW 17, Wawasee 11. Turnovers - NW 18, Wawasee 13. Rebounds - NW 23 (Steffen 6, Lehman 5), Wawasee 26 (A. Ort 6, K. Ort 6, McAdams 5, Goshert 5). Steals - NW 9 (Lechlitner 3, Lehman 2, Yoder 2), Wawasee 4 (A. Ort 2). Assists - NW 4 (Steffen 2), Wawasee 12 (Goshert 4, K. Ort 3). Blocks - NW 1, Wawasee 2. Records - NW 15-6, Wawasee 19-2.
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"The last five years, the team that put us out of the state tournament was state runners-up or state champs," NorthWood coach Steve Neff said, referring to Wawasee last season, and Fort Wayne Luers and South Bend St. Joseph's in the prior four years. "That's a good omen for Wawasee. Good luck to them. They've worked hard to get where they're at."[[In-content Ad]]Where Wawasee is, is Friday's semifinal game against 15-6 Lakeland at 6 p.m. at NorthWood High School.
To get past their Northern Lakes Conference mate Tuesday, the Warriors used patient offense and a stingy defense - trademarks of their entire season.
"We're pleased," Wawasee coach Kem Zolman said. "This is step one. Now we get to advance, and the first one is always the hard one."
After losing to Wawasee 59-36 back on Jan. 5 at "The Pit", NorthWood went on a seven-game winning streak. That streak only ended because the top-ranked Warriors were back in town, but that doesn't mean the streak ended without a fight.
"I don't think I really expected anything different, to be honest with you," Zolman said of the hard-fought game with NorthWood. "They were going to come and give their best effort defensively. Lately, they've been doing a real nice job against people."
That Panther defense forced four Wawasee turnovers in the opening three minutes, and helped the underdog take an 11-8 lead into the second quarter.
"Our kids were just wound," Zolman said of the opening minutes of the game. "As far as being scared or anything like that, I don't think that was the case. They just wanted to get out and play. I can't imagine what we would have looked like if we had practiced all week and came out (for our first game) Friday."
Down by three, Wawasee unleashed a 12-0 run to open the second quarter, turning a deficit into a 20-11 lead midway through the quarter. During that scoring spurt, five different Warriors scored a point, illustrating the squad's diversity.
"They've got a very nice ballclub," Neff, a 537-game winner, said. "They have a lot of good athletes on that team. They're a seasoned team that knows what to do when they need to do it."
Following the run, NorthWood did rebound to go into halftime down 23-18.
At the half, it can go without saying that each coach emphasized the point of ball security. In the opening 16 minutes, NorthWood committed 15 turnovers, six more than Wawasee's nine.
"We just didn't throw the ball well or didn't catch it very well," Neff said. "And a little bit of that is Wawasee. We got nervous and didn't look the ball into our hands."
NorthWood did commit just three turnovers in the second half, but Wawasee also cut the miscues down as well, turning the ball over just four times in the second half.
"I'm just really proud of our kids and how they handled things," Zolman said. "They adjusted to some things that had been very successful for (NorthWood) over the course of the first half."
On top of talking about taking care of the ball, each coach also stressed the importance of a fast start to the second half. And Zolman's girls listened.
The Warriors five-point lead quickly ballooned to 29-18 after two three-pointers from senior Kalyn Lantz in the openining minute of the third quarter. The two treys were Lantz's fourth and fifth of the game, leading to her game-high 15 points.
"Kalyn has been one of those stable people for almost four years," Zolman said of his lone senior starter. "Now that she's the main focus, as far as being a senior goes, she's doing what we expect her to. She stepped up huge for us. She hit some big shots."
"We knew the first couple possessions of the second half would be critical," Neff said. "They drained two three-pointers there at the beginning, which kind of changed the complexion right away."
NorthWood would follow Lantz's three-pointers with a 6-0 run of its own, but a 7-0 Wawasee run to close the third gave the Warriors a commanding 36-24 lead going into the fourth.
Being down by 12 points to the Warriors going into the fourth quarter is not where a team wants to be.
"They're a little more patient," Neff said of a Wawasee team with a lead. "Once they got that 10-point lead, they weren't looking for that outside shot. They were moving the ball and working - taking time off the clock. That's a veteran team."
The veteran team connected on 4-of-5 shots in the final quarter, and that one miss from junior Taylor Goshert caught the attention of Zolman from the sideline. After the miss, if a shot wasn't a lay-up, Wawasee wasn't shooting it. With that mentality, Wawasee cruised to the 15-point win.
While Goshert may have risen Zolman's blood pressure with her missed shot in the lane, it may have been one of the few times she did so. On top of scoring 12 points, Goshert also finished with five rebounds, four assists and a steal. The Ort twins also continued their steady play, with Ashlee Ort finishing with six points, six rebounds, two steals and two assists, while Kylee Ort had eight points, six rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot.
By getting the first postseason game out of the way, Zolman is now looking forward to a more relaxed team.
"It's just knowing there is no tomorrow," he said of the mental approach going into a team's first sectional game. "That alone is pressure enough. Once you get through that, you can take a deep breath. Now we can kind of relax a little bit and go to the next game."
WAWASEE 48, NORTHWOOD 33
N 11 7 6 9 - 33
W 8 15 13 12 - 48
NW - Lehman 1-6 1-2 3, Lechlitner 2-5 0-0 5, Yoder 4-8 0-1 8, Simpson 3-5 1-1 7, Steffen 3-7 1-2 8, Heeter 0-2 0-0 0, Bontrager 0-1 0-0 0, Frantz 0-3 2-2 2. Totals 13-37 5-8 33.
Wawasee - Lantz 5-10 0-2 15, A. Ort 3-5 0-0 6, K. Ort 3-4 2-3 8, McAdams 1-6 1-2 3, Goshert 4-12 2-2 12, Weisser 2-4 0-0 4, Wallace 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-41 5-9 48.
3-point goals - NW 2-9 (Lechlitner, Steffen), Wawasee 7 (Lantz 5, Goshert 2). Team Fouls - NW 17, Wawasee 11. Turnovers - NW 18, Wawasee 13. Rebounds - NW 23 (Steffen 6, Lehman 5), Wawasee 26 (A. Ort 6, K. Ort 6, McAdams 5, Goshert 5). Steals - NW 9 (Lechlitner 3, Lehman 2, Yoder 2), Wawasee 4 (A. Ort 2). Assists - NW 4 (Steffen 2), Wawasee 12 (Goshert 4, K. Ort 3). Blocks - NW 1, Wawasee 2. Records - NW 15-6, Wawasee 19-2.
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