Northridge Snaps Warsaw's Win StreakMIDDLEBURY – It's too early to know for sure if Saturday night's girls basketball clash between Warsaw and Northridge was the Northern Lakes Conference championship game. It certainly had the feel of a title tilt, however, and Chances are it'll go a long way in deciding the league winner. In a game that featured 10 lead changes and seven ties, with neither team ever leading by more than five points, the host Lady Raiders pulled out a 47-43 win and snapped the Lady Tigers’ 10-game win streak. Northridge, winners of seven in a row now, improved to 19-1 overall and 4-0 in the NLC standings, while Warsaw fell to 15-2 and 1-1. “That was two really good teams, and we came up on the short end tonight,” said Warsaw coach Michelle Harter. “I told the girls that this by no means defines our season, it just lets us know what we need to do to get better and to be stronger. “I thought tonight the officiating played a big part in what happened, but that's where we know when we're on the road you're going to get those kinds of things and you have to come out strong and finish shots even if you're getting bumped. I thought the girls did a good job of staying in the game. We talked about Northridge going on runs, and that we would have a run. Those are the types of things that happen down the stretch.” Warsaw was whistled for 13 fouls in the game, while the hosts were called for nine fouls. The Lady Tigers were 3 of 4 at the free throw line Saturday night, all in the first half, while the Lady Raiders made 10 of 13 charity tosses, including all seven they took in the fourth quarter. Getting nine points from senior Dayton Groninger and five from classmate Madi Graham, Warsaw led 14-11 after one quarter of play. Northridge led 22-20 at halftime. “A big part of it was nerves,” said Harter. “In the first half we were just freaking out a little bit. I talked to them about that at halftime, and I told the girls ‘we just need to relax, take a deep breath, slow ourselves down, read what the defense is doing, and then look to attack that way. “Give Northridge credit, they played good defense, they did some really nice things. But part of it was just us speeding ourselves up at times.” The Lady Tigers led 30-29 after three quarters of play, and Northridge outscored Warsaw 18-13 in the final frame. Groninger scored a game-high 22 points for Warsaw, while Graham finished with 15. Seniors Page Desenberg and Mariah Rivera, and sophomore Kacy Bragg, scored two points each in the loss. Seniors Marci Miller and Kelsey Brickner scored 15 and 14 points, respectively, in the win. Junior Brooke McKinley finished with 12 points. Entering competition Saturday night, there were three teams undefeated in NLC play. With their win over Warsaw and Wawasee's win over NorthWood, the Lady Raiders stand alone atop the conference standings. NorthWood is 3-1 in league play, while Elkhart Memorial and Wawasee are 2-1 and Warsaw is 1-1. Plymouth, Goshen and Concord have at least three NLC losses each. The Lady Tigers have five games remaining in the regular season, all of which are against league foes. Warsaw plays at Memorial Wednesday, hosts Goshen on Saturday and then entertains Wawasee on Jan. 19. The Lady Tigers play their final two games before the sectional on the road, going to Concord on Jan. 21 and NorthWood on Jan. 26. The Lady Raiders, who could meet Warsaw in Class 4A Sectional 4 action, play at DeKalb Tuesday and close their regular season with NLC games against NorthWood, Memorial and Plymouth. “I think this game will make us better,” Harter said of Saturday's heavyweight battle with Northridge. “This was a great atmosphere for us to come out and play in front of a crowd against a really good team. This was a good experience for us to get us prepared down the stretch and to go into the sectional.”
