Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
GOSHEN - There may not be a nonconference game this year with larger ramifications to the Northern Lakes Conference.
Northridge, ranked No. 8 in Class 3A, had been widely considered one of the top two teams in the NLC, while NorthWood was thought of as, at best, fourth in the conference. However, that all changed Monday night in the opener of the Goshen Holiday Tournament as the Panthers pulled off a 60-49 upset over the Raiders with some sophomore help.
That sophomore was Charlie Roeder, who scored all of his 14 points in a see-saw first half that gave NorthWood plenty of confidence heading into the second half with a 29-25 lead.
"Roeder really got us off to a great start and that was important," NorthWood head coach Dan Gunn said. "The start of the game often dictates the outcome. It put us in a good position even though it was a long way from the end."
At the end of the first quarter, the score was tied 16-16, but NorthWood led most of the first eight minutes and showed no intimidation to the Raiders. Roeder scored six points in the quarter, but Northridge's Aaron Thomas was the big scorer with 12 points and two rebounds. However, he scored only one more basket the rest of the game and ended with 14 points.
"We were just kind of soft on him," Gunn said. "I thought we needed to body up on him just a little bit more. Eric Zell and Chad Martin did a better job after (the first quarter)."
The middle two quarters went back and forth as both teams jockeyed for the upper hand. Roeder scored eight points in the second quarter for NorthWood, and Northridge scored only nine points total in that quarter as the Panthers opened up a four-point halftime advantage.
In the third quarter, Northridge's Kevin Weirich woke up with his team's first eight points as the Raiders went on an 8-2 run to open the second half and take a 33-31 lead. However, NorthWood stayed calm and rebuilt the lead to four points, 42-38, heading into the fourth period.
In the fourth quarter, the Panthers took over. Leading 42-40, NorthWood began a 12-2 run as Zell connected on a three-point play to get the ball rolling. As Northridge settled for more outside shots, the Panthers began to take over by making 10-of-15 free throws in the final quarter.
Bobby Brown had a quiet 14 points to tie Roeder for the team high in scoring. Zell had eight points and six rebounds for the Panthers.
Kevin Weirich had a game high 16 points and also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists for Northridge.
One key factor came at the free throw line where NorthWood was 15 of 24 and Northridge attempted just three shots, making none. The Panthers had only seven turnovers, 10 fewer than the Raiders.
"We had a great first quarter, a good second quarter," Gunn said. "I thought we played a complete game tonight."
Goshen 47, Wawasee 42
In the second game of the doubleheader Monday night, Goshen and Wawasee matched up for the right to play NorthWood in the championship game. The Warriors fell behind by double digits and dug out of the hole before losing 47-42.
Goshen jumped out to a 13-8 lead at the end of the first quarter as Jon Swartz scored six points. The Redskins continued to extend the lead in the second quarter and into the early stages of the third quarter, taking a 31-20 advantage two minutes into the third period.
However, Wawasee ended the quarter with an 11-2 run to get to 33-31 with eight minutes to play. The Warriors outscored the Redskins 13-6 in the period.
Wawasee never took the lead in the fourth quarter but got as close as one point before Goshen began to make its free throws down the stretch to win by five.
Wawasee shot just 40 percent from the floor and is averaging just 39 points as a team over the last two games. Brody Stipp scored 14 points and had seven rebounds to lead the Warriors in both statistics.
"In the first half, we didn't have any semblance of an offense or a defense or anything on the boards," Wawasee head coach Jerry Davis said. "For about 14 minutes in the second half we did the kinds of things that we needed to do, but until this group realizes that this is a 32-minute game, then we're not going to get any better."
Wawasee (1-6) will meet Northridge (6-1) in the consolation game at 6:30 p.m.
NorthWood (5-1) will face Goshen (5-2) for the championship at 8 p.m. It will be NorthWood's first time in the championship game since 1991 when the Panthers defeated Northridge 50-49.
