Hiland slips by Minster

COLUMBUS — It wasn’t the usual run-and-gun Berlin Hiland track meet.

However, the Hawks were able press-and-run just enough to win.

Berlin Hiland’s Katelyn Stuckey sank a layup with 15 seconds left to give the Hawks a 49-48 victory over Minster in the Division IV girls basketball state semifinals Friday at the Value City Arena.

Berlin Hiland’s press forced Minster into 15 turnovers, including 10 in the second half. Minster also struggled at the foul line, hitting 9 of 16.

“It came down to we had 15 turnovers and they had eight,” Minster coach Nann Stechschulte said. “In the fourth quarter they came after us, but we knew that was going to happen. … They were 11 of 13 at the line and we were 9 of 16. Free throws don’t win all the games, just the close ones.”

Lehigh-bound guard Hilary Weaver led Hiland with 12 points and four assists. Guard Noelle Yoder, who is headed to Bowling Green State, added 11 points for the Hawks.

Minster’s Maria Dahlinghaus and Erica Fullenkamp both scored 12 points. Delanie Wolf had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Fullenkamp, who missed the regional finals with an ankle injury, started and was able to play 29 minutes.

Minster held a 48-41 lead with 2:48 to go before the Hawks’ press caused back-to-back turnovers. Suddenly, Minster’s lead was chopped to 48-47 with 1:54 left.

With 33 seconds left, Hiland’s inbounds pass was tipped and gobbled up by Minster’s Fullenkamp, who was fouled.

With 32 seconds left, Fullenkamp went to the line and missed both shots on the double bonus.

The Hawks rebounded and ran the ball up the floor to Yoder, who penetrated the lane and fed inside to Stuckey for the go-ahead basket to make it 49-48.

“We always practice when the guards drive in, just to make sure I’m always ready when the defense collapses on them,” Stuckey said.

After a timeout with 13 seconds left, Minster inbounded to Dahlinghaus, who fed Fullenkamp in the frontcourt. Fullenkamp penetrated the lane, then dished to Tara Clune on the left. Clune missed an 8-footer on the baseline with one second to go to end it.

Second-ranked Berlin Hiland (25-2), which averages 69 points-per-game, advances to the state title game against Harvest Prep (26-1). Minster, which started the season 6-7, finished 18-8.

Minster had Hiland playing a halfcourt game in the first half and the Wildcats led 23-19 at the half. But Hiland switched its presses up in the third quarter and forced Minster into three quick turnovers.

“They attacked us, attack, attack, attack,” Stechschulte said. “Weaver came right at us. But the biggest thing was their back-side rebounds. It was a combination of not making our free throws, turning the ball over and giving up offensive boards.”

That helped the Hawks kick in their fast-break attack and go on a 7-0 run to take a 28-23 third-quarter lead.

“We have multiple presses and trap different places on the floor,” Schlabach said. “We tried to mix things up a little bit. Our half-court zone press threw them off a little bit, then our full-court pressure finally got things going.”

Both teams battled throughout the game, with each applying heavy man-to-man pressure. For Minster, Dahlinghaus guarded Weaver, while Sarah Huelsman watched Yoder.

“I think they knew our sets well. I know they would call it out before we would cut,” Weaver said of the Minster defense. “They were very well prepared.”

The game was tied at 41-41 with 4:07 to go. Minster ripped off a 7-0 run to pull out to a 48-41 lead. In that spurt, Dahlinghaus hit a 3-pointer and Wolf canned a 15-footer and hit two foul shots.

That’s when Hiland’s press cranked it up a few more notches.

“We looked at each other and said, ‘We’re still in this,’” Weaver said when her team was down seven. “We just needed a few extra-effort plays to get us over the hump and we had those.”

Berlin Hiland outrebounded Minster, 31-29. Stuckey had seven boards, to go with eight points.

Hiland shot 34 percent from the field and 2 of 13 on 3-pointers. Minster shot 47 percent and was 5 of 8 on 3-pointers.

For Minster, it was quite a ride to the state tournament after a 6-7 start.

“We were so thankful for the opportunity to be here,” Dahlinghaus said. “It wasn’t meant to be, I guess.”