GIRLS BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS Rayen collapses in 2nd half

Medina Buckeye erased a 14-point deficit to win the regional semifinal game.
BARBERTON -- Minutes after Tuesday's loss to Medina Buckeye, Rayen High girls basketball coach Holly Seimetz shook her head and sighed.
"We should've stopped at halftime," Seimetz said. "Then, we would have been fine."
Rayen's loss wasn't complicated. Nice start, bad finish.
The Tigers, who led 29-17 at halftime, lost their energy in the second half, falling to the Bucks, 56-47, in a Division II regional semifinal at Barberton High School.
"They came out in the third quarter and attacked us," Seimetz said. "We played very poor defense and they just took it to us.
"I'm not sure what happened. I don't know if we lost our confidence or what," Seimetz said. "We just stood around and watched."
The third quarter started well enough for Rayen. Sophomore guard Kenysha Tennant scored the first basket in the opening seconds to give the Tigers a 31-17 lead.
Then the bottom fell out.
The Bucks finished the quarter with a 14-2 run to cut the deficit to two. And when things started going downhill for Rayen, they didn't stop.
"When they're having fun, they're a fun team to watch," Buckeye coach Connie Rummell said of Rayen. "I think in the second half, they stopped having fun. They started arguing with each other."
Rayen senior Taniesha Holland had 17 points, seven rebounds, seven steals and three assists in the first half, but was a non-factor in the second.
Rummell put guard Sam Vraja on Holland in the second half to shadow her and, despite a size and quickness mismatch, Vraja did a solid job.
"We just wanted to get [Holland] to give up the ball," Rummell said. "In the first half, she was picking off our dribble and once she gets in the open court, she's fun to watch.
"Actually, I sort of just turned away," Rummell said. "I didn't want to watch."
Holland did not score in the third quarter as the Tigers shot 2 of 11 with seven turnovers.
"We're not just a one-player team," Seimetz said. "Someone else needed to step up."
The fourth quarter was more of the same for Rayen, as the Bucks tied the game at 38 with six minutes left and never looked back.
Buckeye hit 12 of 15 free throws in the final period to close the door.
Kayleigh Keller had 16 points to lead four Bucks in double figures. Jocelyn Joyce had 13 points, Serena Farage had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Lauren Kruse had 11 points.
Buckeye (18-6) advanced to play Lake Catholic in the regional semifinal. The Cougars defeated Navarre Fairless 31-29 in the first game.
"If you take away the chemistry on this team, we're below average," Rummell said. "We just don't give up."
Holland led the Tigers with 23 points, 10 rebounds, eight steals and four assists. Freshman Brittany Taylor added nine points and seven rebounds, while Danielle Liggens had eight rebounds -- seven in the first half.
It was a sad end to an otherwise sensational season for the Tigers (19-5), who won their first district title in school history last Saturday.
"It was a good season, but when you win the district, you've got to follow it up," Seimetz said. "You can't just be happy with that. I don't think this team was out of our league."
It was also the last season for Seimetz, who will likely have to quit coaching because she is the assistant principal at the school. She said she'll miss coaching, but she didn't spend a lot of time Tuesday thinking about it.
"I see the kids all day at school, so it's not a problem," she said. "I'm sure we'll all rehash this on the bus and at school. It's one of those coulda, shoulda, woulda situations.
"But it's over. It's done. There's no more to be said."