Hiland claws past St. Peter's

By ZACH BOLINGER
Daily Record Sports Writer

COLUMBUS -- Crouching next to the scorers' table in a tiger-like position, Hiland coach Dave Schlabach glared at his team in disgust - shaking his head furiously as it headed for the halftime break.

The 14th-year coach apparently wanted his Hawks to take his lead and pounce, but on this night, scratching and clawing was good enough.

Despite its worst shooting game of the season and its top offensive threat playing just 12 minutes due to foul trouble, No. 1-ranked Hiland took care of Mansfield St. Peter's 50-31 in a Div. IV state semifinal Thursday night at St. John Arena.

"I never felt like we got the game at the speed we would've liked it," Schlabach said. "(St. Peter's) did a good job handling our pressure for the most part ... and we got ourselves in a little foul trouble and didn't do an overly great job defensively in the first half."

Still, the Hawks are in a position to win the school's second state championship in girls basketball. The Hawks, who have been ranked No. 1 the entire season in the Associated Press poll and are now 27-0, advance to Saturday's 2 p.m. title game against Ottoville. The Big Green beat Xenia Christian 48-41 in the other semifinal Thursday.

"A year ago at this time we weren't very happy people," Schlabach said. "Now, we're playing for another state championship. We've worked really hard to get back to the state finals, and our girls deserve a lot of credit. I'm very proud of them."

Schlabach said that after the game, but during many first-half and third-quarter occasions, he looked as if he might explode.

By making five straight shots in a 2:15 span - capped by back-to-back 3-pointers from Lydia Miller and Launa Hochstetler - Hiland bolted to an 11-2 lead with 4:41 left in the opening quarter. The Hawks would make just five of their next 30 shots, though, and St. Peter's took full advantage.

The Spartans (20-6) actually cut their deficit down to four (21-17) midway through the second quarter on a Whitney Lindsay jumper in transition. And when Hiland didn't get a shot off during the final possession of the second quarter, Schlabach was visibly frustrated with his team only leading 29-21 at intermission.

"We had a little bit of uncertainty there in the first half with foul trouble, and not playing our best offensively," Schlabach said. "After that first two or three minutes of the game, we never felt like we got into any sort of rhythm, or got the tempo where we wanted it."

The trend continued out of the break, as Hiland made 1-of-12 shots in the third quarter. It would finish 14-of-46 and just 5-of-20 from 3-point range, but that didn't matter as St. Peter's couldn't get first-team All-Ohioan Gretchen Polinski, or speedy point guard Lindsay Whitney, going either.

Polinski was fronted by the Hiland defense and routinely double-teamed from the weak side. She finished just 3-of-15 from the floor, including 0-of-5 from 3-point range, in totaling eight points. The 6-foot-1 Polinski did have 10 rebounds, while Lindsay was reserved to the jump shot most of the game and was 4-of-14 from the floor for eight points.

St. Peter's, which was led by nine points from freshman Krysten Lindsay, finished 14-of-45 from the floor and 0-of-11 from 3-point range. The Spartans were 5-of-19 on action shots in the second-half and scored just 10 points. It had 18 turnovers and was outrebounded 38-32.

"If we hit any of our outside shots in the first half, it’s a three or four-point game at halftime and that changes things a little," said St. Peter's coach Bill Tomsich. "They even had a lull in the third quarter, and when you're playing a team of that caliber, you have to make sure you take advantage of the opportunities. They kept missing shots, but we couldn't get anything to drop either, and weren't able to pick up some ground."

The Spartans did trim their deficit to nine (38-29) on Polinski's baseline jumper to start the fourth quarter, but Launa Hochstetler countered with a 3-ball just 30 seconds later and Hiland never looked back.

"We all feel like it wasn't our best, but the good part is we get to come out on Saturday and play again," said Launa Hochstetler, who dished out six assists and was the game's only double-figure scorer with 14 points. "We have so many girls, that if one isn't having a great shooting night, someone else can step up and knock a shot down. There are so many weapons that it kind of takes the pressure off all of us."

Jena Stutzman was 0-for-11 from the floor, but did hit 8-of-12 free throws as she and Lydia Miller added eight points apiece for Hiland. Stutzman snared six rebounds, while Rachel Thomas added seven points and five boards.

"It's good to know that at least defensively we gave them as much a battle as anyone in the state," Tomsich said. "All we needed was one shot to fall. If Gretchen hits one early, it breaks the ice and we all get a little more confidence - and maybe we're capable of knocking down five, six or seven in a row. (Hiland) didn't have a great shooting night, and we're probably fortunate, but I would like to think some of that had to do with our pressure.

"That team is going to win the state championship this year," Tomsich added. "I'm not taking anything away from (Ottoville), but I would be extremely shocked if Hiland doesn't win it all. You can tell those girls worked hard for this, and they are determined."

Courtesy The Daily Record, Wooster, Ohio.