Kettering Alter pulls away in overtime
“What I liked was our kids stayed together the whole time. There was no fingerpointing in huddles. We’re accustomed to them being able to fight. We’ve been down before.”
These are exciting but nervous times for Kettering Alter as it attempts to accomplish what only four other teams have done in the 42- year history of the girls basketball state tournament.
The Knights are on the verge of a third straight Division II championship, but every team wants to get a piece of them as witnessed by OttawaGlandorf overcoming a 12- point second half deficit to come within inches of an upset Thursday.
With all- state guard Braxtin Miller being smothered by the Titans' Lexi Schroeder, Alter banked on its support players and experience to come away with a 50- 43 victory in overtime over Glandorf at Value City Arena.
The Knights ( 27- 2) can join West Holmes, ( three), South Euclid Regina and Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame ( four) and Shaker Heights Hathaway Brown ( five) as the only teams with at least three straight titles.
“They are 5- foot9, but they play like 6- 1," Alter co- coach Kendal Peck said of the Titans. “They were one play from being in the finals again."
In 2016, the Knights overwhelmed Glandorf in the championship game. The situation was far different this time as Miller shot 4 of 13 from the field with Schroeder guarding her.
“I don’t know where that energy came from," Schroeder said. “The goal was to put pressure on Braxtin. I thought I gave it my all."
Schroeder tied the score at 41 for the Titans ( 27- 1) with 58.1 seconds left in regulation on a three- pointer from the side.
Peck called a full timeout to draw up a final play, but Schroeder knocked the ball away from an Alter player with three seconds left and passed to a teammate who narrowly missed a shot from mid- court as time expired.
“It looked good," Knights senior guard Libby Bazelak said. “We all stopped. There was nothing we could do."
Overtime, though, was when Alter got going again, beginning with a runner by Miller in the lane and a steal and layup by Lauren Lush to lead 45- 43.
Olivia Gillis drove Kettering Alter co-coach Christina Hart the baseline for a layup that made it 47- 43 with 1: 11 remaining. The Titans were in a desperate situation, and they turned the ball over and missed a layup on their next two possessions.
“They kind of swim like sharks in the sea smelling blood, and they went after it," Glandorf coach Troy Yant said of Alter. “It was us not having the legs."
Alter had an uncharacteristic 18 turnovers, which cocoach Christina Hart attributed to nerves and the Titans.
“What I liked was our kids stayed together the whole time," she said. “There was no finger- pointing in huddles. We’re accustomed to them being able to fight. We’ve been down before."
Miller, who has signed with Oklahoma State, said the players are feeling pressure to win another title.
“There are a lot of emotions that play into it," she said. “We’re seniors and there is a lot more at stake.
“We’re trying to just win as a team. There is pressure to do your very best — do your very best. Last year, we said we still had one more year."
This was the last shot at a championship for four Glandorf seniors. They lost in the 2015 Division III title game to Versailles.