Newton Falls wins first district crown

February 28, 2016 at 12:06a.m.

By BRIAN DZENIS

RAVENNA

Before the ecstasy, there was agony.

The Newton Falls High School girls basketball team mustered just enough offense to earn the program’s first district title on Saturday. At Ravenna High School, the Tigers defeated Brookfield, 32-28, in the Division III district final.

Neither team had a player make more than three shots from the floor. Newton Falls and Brookfield shot a respective 25 and 27 percent. Only one player scored in double digits.

That was Newton Falls’ Gabby Kline with 16 points and nine rebounds while shooting 3-for-19 and going 8-for-8 at the line.

There were a combined 24 turnovers.

“Nobody wanted anybody to score,” Kline said. “Both teams’ defenses were excellent, we both had trouble scoring, but I’m glad we pulled through.”

Matt Baker, the Tigers’ 11-year coach, put a positive spin on his first district title.

“I wouldn’t call it an ugly game. I’d call it an excellent defensive battle between to very well-coached and disciplined basketball teams,” Baker said. “If you follow girls basketball, you know to what to expect when Brookfield and Newton Falls girls play each other.

“It’s going to be a hard fought defensive battle every time.”

The Tigers (24-1) swept the season series, 3-0 with the Warriors (20-6). The other wins came by scores of 49-44 in overtime and 35-20.

Newton Falls’ largest lead was by seven points in the third quarter, but in a rare offensive outburst, Brookfield’s Autumn Kirila knocked down her next three shots to tie the game up at 20-20.

Kirila was the Warriors’ leading scorer with nine points and Bailey Drapola added eight points.

“We swung the momentum there, but we knew it was going to be possession by possession,” Brookfield coach Shawn Hammond said.

With the game tied at 22-22 heading into the fourth quarter, neither team could manage more than a two-point lead.

With 1:40 to play, Kline was presented with a chance to solve that. Standing under the basket, the Tiger’s all-time leading scorer deferred to teammate Kayla Barreca, who caught Kline’s pass near the free throw line and converted the jumper. Now Newton Falls had a three-point lead, which felt like a 30-point swing.

“I saw one girl on the low side and a girl on the high side defending me and I could tell [Barreca] was going to cut down the middle,” Kline said. “I threw it to her and she did exactly what I thought she would do, she scored.”

Drapola went to the free throw line with a chance to bring her team within a point of tying the game, but went 1-for-2 at the line. Two more free throws from Kline with 20 seconds left to play clinched the title.

“I was little frustrated, but I didn’t want this to be my last time playing,” Kline said of the lack of offense. “I just had to do my best and leave it all on the floor.”

Newton Falls made it to the district final and lost to Garfield last season. The Tigers move on to play Doylestown Chippewa in the regional.

“It brings out a lot of emotion for me because I get up to go to work everyday to get up to do what I love to do and I don’t dread going to work,” Baker said. “I don’t drive there because of the bricks and mortar that make that place, I go for the kids.

“I work hard every single day and my kids work really hard and I couldn’t be more proud of them right now.”