Sebring wins, but Reserve loses

By ANDY TODOR

sports@vindy.com

ROOTSTOWN

Sebring’s sluggish start seemed to play a vital role in their 47-45 victory over the No. 1 seed Kirtland in the girls Division IV district basketball semifinals on Thursday.

Sebring (14-7) was down 9-0 before scoring the Trojans scored their first point of the game at the midway point of the first quarter.

“We called the timeout and I just told them to take it one possession at a time,” said Sebring coach Sam Mathias. “The nice thing was we didn’t panic.”

Sebring trailed 17-9 at the end of the first quarter, with help from senior Taylor Ward, who scored seven of her 23 points in the quarter.

Ward continued leading the Trojan attack by scoring four more points in the second quarter before Kirtland could get on the board.

“We’ve been working hard on [defense],” said Mathias. “We knew we could be in a game with them, but we just needed to score more points.”

Sebring was down 23-22 at halftime.

Ward picked up er fourth foul with 3:26 left in the third quarter, but that was after she helped the Trojans to a 33-33 tie.

“We’ve played so many times with [Ward] in foul trouble, it was nothing new,” laughed Mathias.

Sebring stepped up on both sides of the ball without Ward in the game, getting big shots from Kayla Maretich and Maggie Householder. Maretich finished with three points, while Householder added eight.

The Trojans were able to hold Kirtland to two points in just over four minutes of play without Ward.

Ward continued her onslaught by knocking down a 3-pointer with 1:27 left in the game, giving the Trojans a 46-40 lead.

“Everyone knows she’s our go-to, but she’s not a selfish kid,” added Mathias. “She knows if it’s not [her] shot, it’s someone else’s shot.

“That’s what makes this a team game,” said Mathias. “And that’s why we’re playing so well right now.”

WESTERN RESERVE-CORNERSTONE

Cornerstone Christian senior Courtney Reese drove the length of the court to hit the go ahead shot with five seconds left in the game to eliminate No. 2 seed Western Reserve, 62-61.

“You got to make your foul shots down the stretch,” said Western Reserve coach Josh Scott.

Western Reserve (19-4) was led by Sammi Burton, who scored 16 of her 18 points in the second half.

“She’s one of those kids who are deceiving,” said Scott. “She always gets herself in the right position and makes things happen.”

Cornerstone (16-0) had three players in double digits, including Reese with a game high 25, Macie Malone with 15, and Kayla Weber added 16.