Wildcats, Flyers advance to district

ST. MARYS - Minster pulled away from Parkway for a 57-23 win, while Marion Local came from behind to nip Lima Central Catholic 51-48 in a pair of girls Division IV Sectional finals Saturday at St. Marys.

Minster and Marion's wins set up a rematch between the Midwest Athletic Conference rivals in the district semifinals Thursday at Wapakoneta High School with a 6:15 p.m. tip-off.

During the regular season, Brooke Homan's late bucket gave Marion Local a 33-32 win over Minster at the Hangar.

"It's probably going to be another typical Marion-Minster game," Marion Local coach Beth Streib said. "We have to come ready to play for 32 minutes because it's going to be another dogfight."
Minster 57, Parkway 23

Parkway's bid to upset the third-seeded Wildcats came unraveled early in the second quarter. The Panthers had an open look at a 3-pointer that would have tied the game at the 7-minute mark of the second quarter.

The shot caromed off the back of the rim. Minster got the rebound and proceeded to score the next 12 points. The Wildcats finished the first half on a 19-2 run to take a 30-10 lead at halftime.

"That's been the story of our season. Too many spells where we can't score and don't make the shots," Parkway coach Dan Williamson said. "Our girls battled. We didn't back down. Minster was just a better team tonight."

Minster's full-court pressure defense began to pay dividends in the second and third quarters. Steals and turnovers helped kick-start a Wildcat offense that was suffering shooting woes.

"I thought we were real sluggish in the first quarter," Minster coach Mike Wiss said. "I didn't like us too much. It just didn't seem like us. In the second quarter, our defense got us going."

With some second-chance points and dominant post play, Minster closed out the third quarter with a 12-3 run to take a 44-15 lead and put the game out of reach.

"We didn't shoot the ball really well from the outside," Wiss added. "Inside, Ella Mescher and Dana Prenger did some really nice things for us, keeping the ball alive and getting a couple offensive boards."

For Parkway, 28 turnovers were key.

"I thought we handled Minster's pressure early, but it just wears you down," Williamson said. "And as you get tired, you make mental mistakes. You miss a pass by six inches, they're stealing it and going the other way."

Eleven different Wildcats scored in the game led by Ivy Wolf with 14 points. Minster, the two-time defending state champions, roll into the district semifinals with an 18-5 record.

"It's the first tournament game, I get that," Wiss said. "Some people say Minster has been on some big floors the last could years, but a lot of these girls haven't, only a couple that have, so this is a new experience. I'm proud of them for the way they fought tonight, and we'll see what the next one brings."

Parkway ends its season at 7-17.

"We got to the sectional championship, and we did a lot of good things," Williamson concluded. "I'm just super of proud of this senior class. With this being my first year, they really bought in to what I was asking them to do. I hope this is the start of turning the Parkway girls basketball program around."
Marion Local 51, LCC 48

Marion Local and Lima Central Catholic exchanged blows all night with neither team able to establish the upper hand.

After five lead changes midway through the second quarter, the Thunderbirds went on a 10-1 run late in the second half to take a 24-18 lead.

Trailing by four points at halftime, the Flyers opened the second half with eight unanswered points to take a 28-24 lead. LCC answered with a 10-point run of its own, punctuated by 3-point shots from Mary Mulcahy and Sophia Santaguida for a 34-28 lead.

The T-Birds still held a six-point lead early in the fourth quarter before Marion started to chip away - mostly at the foul line. The Flyers were penetrating, getting fouled and cashing in.

"In the second half, we wanted to try and get the ball inside and attack the paint with our guards," Streib said. "At times, early in the game, we took quick shots where we didn't get any ball reversal, so the big adjustment was getting better shots on offense."

Alana Pohlman and Heidi Rethman combined to hit five of six free throws to tie the game at 42 with 5:44 left to play.

Rethman added four more free throws to give the Flyers a 48-45 lead. LCC freshman Olivia Stolly tied the game with a trey at the other end, but Pohlman rebuilt the Marion three-point margin with a bucket and one of two free throws with 14 seconds left.

LCC had a chance to tie, but an open 3-point shot from the left corner just missed the mark at the buzzer.

"They (LCC) came ready to play and they played hard," Streib added. "Obviously we didn't play our best game, but somehow we figured it out in the end."

Pohlman and Stolly shared high-scoring honors with 24 each. Rethman added 13 for the Flyers.

Marion moves on with a 20-4 record, while the seventh-seeded Thunderbirds finish at 13-9.