In a game that saw a number of runs by both teams, Warsaw's varsity girls basketball team just ran out of time against Elkhart Memorial Friday night.
Slow starts to each half led to the finish for the Lady Tigers, as they fell 48-38 to the Crimson Chargers in the semifinal round of Class 4A Sectional 4 at Warsaw Community High School."I knew we'd come out and be nervous," said first-year Warsaw coach Michelle Harter. "It was about weathering the storm. We got great shots in the first half, they just didn't fall. We got down early, but we battled back. We could have hung our heads, but they battled. As a coach, that's all you can ask for."
The Lady Tigers dug themselves a 12-2 hole early in the game, but a 12-0 run, one that was capped by a rebound and bucket from junior frontliner Sarah Shilling, gave Warsaw a 14-12 lead.
The two Northern Lakes Conference schools eventually went into the locker room at halfitme deadlocked at 16.
"Elkhart Memorial played Tuesday, and I think they were a little looser than we were," said Harter, whose team drew a bye in the six-team sectional, while Memorial beat city rival Central 65-31 Tuesday. "We only have four girls that have sectional experience. We got down early, but we started hitting some shots and did some nice things. That was a great run in the second quarter. We got down 12-2, and then we outscored them 14-4 to tie it at halftime. I'm proud of the way the girls battled."
As if it were a heavyweight boxing match, Memorial tried delivering the knockout punch early in the third quarter, opening the second half with an 8-0 run, but again the Lady Tigers fought back.
A three-pointer by junior Kelci Freds cut Memorial's lead to five, 24-19, and when Shilling scored the first two points of the fourth quarter, Warsaw was only down two, 28-26, with 7:24 to play in the game.
"The way these kids battled back, that says a lot about the character they have and how much they believe in each other," said Harter.
After the Crimson Chargers built what seemed like another comfortable lead, 41-34, with 1:02 remaining in the game, Freds hit a three-pointer to again make things interesting.
Memorial, however, outscored the Lady Tigers 7-1 down the stretch and advanced to tonight's 7:30 p.m. sectional championship game.
The Crimson Chargers, who improved to 19-3 on the season, will play Northridge (8-13). The Raiders defeated Concord (9-13) 45-44 in overtime in Friday's second semifinal game.
The Lady Tigers, who lost 47-41 at Memorial in the final game of the regular season, finished their season with a 13-8 record.
Though the sectional loss stings, Harter said she was excited about the possibilities for her team next year.
The Lady Tigers have just two seniors on the roster, Liz Tat and Alex Glenn.
"I'm very excited about next year," said Harter. "The improvement we made from Day 1 to the end of the year, I'm very excited about next year. This team is so unselfish. That makes coaching them so enjoyable. We only lose two senioirs, but they led by experience, and they're going to be big shoes to fill."
Glenn finished the game with nine points and five rebounds, while Tat chipped in with six points and five rebounds.
Shilling led the Tigers with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Freds chipped in with seven points, five assists, three rebounds and a pair of steals.
"Sarah did a great job," said Harter. "We asked her to score, and we asked her to block out, and we asked her to play great defense, which she did."
Harter said Memorial's Akyah Taylor had nearly a dozen offensive rebounds when the teams battled a week ago. Friday night, Taylor had just three offensive rebounds, though she did end up with 10 rebounds total in the win to go with nine points.
Jada Buggs also score nine points for Memorial.
Lead the way for the Crimson Chargers was standout freshman Brionna Barnett, who scored a game-high 24 points.
"Their freshman guard is a great player," Harter said of Barnett. "She's a very capable shooter and we lost her a couple times. She's played a full season of varsity basketball, she's not really a freshman anymore. She's a great player. She plays very smart and is saavy."
A key stat in the game for Memorial was its advantage at the free throw line. The Crimson Chargers were 17 of 27 at the charity stripe, while the Lady Tigers were 6 of 8.
"We didn't get some of the calls in the post that Memorial did," said Harter. "We usually get to the free throw line 20 times a game. That was a big difference in this game."
