NAPPANEE — Winning the opening game of Class 3A Sectional 21 at NorthWood High School Tuesday night, the Whitko girls basketball team withstood multiple runs by West Noble. In the tight ballgame, Whitko’s 33-26 lead with 4:22 left in the third seemed comfortable, as did its 43-39 advantage with 4:26 to play. However, the pesky West Noble Lady Chargers (11-10) kept coming at the Whitko Lady Wildcats (15-6), forcing overtime, but eventually succumbed, 49-46. “I knew from the moment we drew West Noble that it was going to be a war,” Whitko coach Brandon Bradley said. “That’s how they play, and you could say that about any of the teams in our sectional. They play as hard as they possibly can, as physical as the possibly can. They just get after it.” Whitko advanced to Friday’s 6 p.m. semifinal against Lakeland (9-11), which received a first-round bye. Making the game a little harder to win than it should have been was Whitko’s 26 turnovers to West Noble’s 11. Four of those Whitko turnovers came on its first six possessions, which put it into a 5-0 hole. The Lady Wildcats eventually got it together, taking a 25-24 lead into the half, but Bradley wasn’t too impressed with their first-half play. “Honestly, I thought the first half was one of the worst we’ve played all year,” he said. “(At halftime), I asked them if it was nerves or were they tired from playing three games at the end of last week. They said, ‘Nerves. All the way.’ Hopefully that won’t be a factor on Friday night. Hopefully we’re through that.” Freshman Aly Reiff certainly didn’t play nervous in her first sectional game, recording 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Making her performance even more impressive was the fact she remained eligible despite picking up her fourth foul midway through the third quarter. Along with the Reiff’s production, fellow freshman Brianna Cumberland had 11 points, senior Kelly Reiff had nine, including a buzzer-beating trey to end the third quarter, and sophomore Jennifer Reiff put up eight. And although she netted just two points, 6-foot-1 senior center Jordan Hall did have 15 rebounds, many coming off pure hustle. “Lately, Jordan has really bought in and been a true senior leader,” Bradley said. “I think she believes,” he added. “When we finished our game Saturday against Adams Central, we kind of reflected in the locker room about Senior Day. I started talking to them about their opportunity this week, to win the school’s first sectional. She was sitting there shaking, trembling after a game on Senior Day. I asked, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ and she said, ‘I’m just so excited. I want this.’ That’s as much emotion as she’s shown with us. I think she will do whatever it takes to help us win.” West Noble senior guard Kelsie Peterson also wanted to continue her prep career, but was hounded by the Whitko defense. Despite her game-high 19 points, it took Peterson 26 shots to reach that total, as nothing came easy. “We had prepped for her,” Bradley said. “We’ve played good guards, but she’s a little different. She’s extremely athletic and very strong. She also has that wiley senior mindset, where she knows how to use screens the right way and get you caught. The nice thing was, she got most of her points going to the rim or at the free throw line. She didn’t get into a rhythm from the perimeter.” Peterson did hit two free throws with 34 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime, but that was her final total as Whitko outscored West Noble 6-1 in the extra four-minute period, handing the Lady Chargers their fifth-straight loss.
