 NORWALK — Sometimes one team is
simply better the other.
And though Perrysburg’s girls were clearly the
underdog in their Division I regional final game
against Toledo Waite, the Yellow Jackets were
playing with the Indians for much of the first half.
Unfortunately for Perrysburg, the rest of the game
was a different story and Waite claimed a 54-31
victory at Norwalk High School Saturday afternoon.
The Yellow Jackets end the season 18-7 overall after
falling in the regional finals for the second
consecutive season. Waite, 23-2 and ranked No. 6 in
the final state poll, advances to the state
semifinals on Friday at Ohio State University.
Perrysburg scratched and clawed its way to a slim
13-12 lead after a basket by Nicole Delas with 5:55
left in the second quarter. But Waite woke up and
went on a 14-2 run, including three straight
3-pointers before halftime to take a 26-15 lead into
the locker room.
“The beginning of the game ... it was exactly what
we hoped for,” Perrysburg coach Todd Sims said. “It
was low-scoring, we were making some shots, and they
were missing some shots. We were right there.
“But they’re such a good team ... They might go
through little lulls like anybody else does but
they’re not going to miss those shots the whole
game.”
The ’Jackets held Ohio Ms. Basketball candidate and
Florida State recruit Natasha Howard scoreless in
the first quarter and to four points in the first
half, when Waite shot just 31 percent (9-of-29) from
the field.
But that changed towards the end of the second
quarter and into the second half, as Howard scored
13 of her game-high 17 points after halftime. Waite
out-scored Perrysburg, 42-18 after the ’Jackets held
their first and only lead in the second quarter.
“I was feeling good,” said Erin Mesker, Perrysburg’s
senior center. “I was feeling if we could just play
like this the rest of the game we had a possibility
of winning. But some teams are just going to be
better than you.”
“The crowd was really loud and everybody was into
it,” said Sims of Perrysburg’s short-lived lead.
“The thing is, it’s so hard to sustain that for 32
minutes against them. Just because of their speed
and their size.”
Perrysburg used a zone defense and was able to limit
the 6-foot-3 Howard and her partner in the post, 6-2
Shanice McNeal, to six points combined in the first
half. But Waite’s guards made Perrysburg pay for
leaving them open on the perimeter, knocking down
four 3-pointers in the first two quarters.
5-9 guard Miriah Haynes scored nine of her 16 points
in the first half to lead the Indians' charge in the
second quarter.
“When we were in the zone we could contain them sort
of, but when they spread us out in man-to-man we
can’t contain them. They’re just too fast,” Sims
said.
Howard finished with a game-high 10 rebounds, four
steals and two blocks. McNeal added eight points and
eight boards for the Indians.
Kelsea Newman was the only Perrysburg player to
reach double-figures in scoring, finishing with 14
points, including four made 3-pointers, while adding
five rebounds. Delas added six points and seven
boards, and Mesker was held to two points but
grabbed seven rebounds for the ’Jackets.
Waite forced Perrysburg into 20 turnovers for the
game while only committing 10 itself. The ’Jackets
struggled against the Indians’ quick and athletic
defense, finishing 10-of-40 (25 percent) from the
field including a 5-of-27 showing from two-point
range.
“I was impressed by Perrysburg when I first saw
them, to be honest with you,” Waite coach Manny May
said. “Anytime you make a run this late in the
season you’ve got to be an outstanding team and buy
into the coaching staff and what they’re giving off.
“They were patient on offense and defense. They were
great on both ends of the floor. So that didn’t
surprise me when they made that run at us early.”
The loss marks the final game of the high school
careers of Perrysburg’s Mesker, Kirsten Goins,
Alyssa Goins, and Lydia Moser.
“It’s been an amazing run. No one ever thought we’d
make it this far. I’ll be honest with you, I’m not
sure that I really thought it. It was kind of my
wildest dream if we could get this far,” said Sims,
who took over for long-time Perrysburg coach Mark
Schrock before the season.
“I’m going to miss them (the seniors). Maybe more as
people than players. They’re great kids,” Sims
added. “We have great kids in Perrysburg and that’s
why I like being here.”
GIRLS
DIVISION I
REGIONAL FINAL
TOLEDO WAITE 54, PERRYSBURG 31
PERRYSBURG
K. Goins, 0-0—0; K. Tudor, 0-0—0; Knight, 1-2—4;
A. Goins, 0-0—0; Matolyak, 0-1-0—3; Moser, 0-0—0;
Treece, 0-2—2; Delas, 3-0—6; Newman, 0-4-2—14;
Mesker, 1-0—2. TOTALS: 5-5-6—31.
TOLEDO WAITE
Combs, 0-1-0—3; Najjar, 0-0—0; Hunt, 1-1-0—5;
Hamdan, 0-0—0; Henry, 0-0—0; Jackson, 0-1-0—3;
Haynes, 4-2-2—16; Craig, 0-0—0; Meyers, 0-0—0;
Howard, 5-1-4—17; McNeal, 4-0—8; Watts, 1-0—2.
TOTALS: 15-6-6—54.
PERRYSBURG 6 9 11 5 —31
TOLEDO WAITE 12 14 15 13 —54 |
