Unbeaten Wellington defeats Goddard

Wellington jumped to a 16-point lead after one quarter over Goddard, but the Crusaders still had to work to secure the Wildcat Classic title Saturday.

The Lions battled back the next three quarters, but the Crusaders’ first-quarter cushion proved insurmountable in a 47-42 victory.

“That first quarter was huge, because we knew what was going to happen,” Wellington coach Eric Adams said. “(Goddard’s) going to find a way to battle back. We knew it wasn’t going to be enough.

“Things got tough in the second half, but hey, we found a way.”

Wellington (12-0) built its first-quarter advantage on Grace Mitchell’s hot shooting and the Lions’ cold shooting. Mitchell hit three three-pointers, and Avery Rusk also had a three-pointer and eight points to push the Crusaders ahead.

“If you give (Mitchell) space, as you saw in the first quarter, you saw what she can do,” Adams said.

Meanwhile, Goddard was kept from getting the ball to post Sam Schwab in the period, and watched all of its three-point tries bounce away.

Junior guard Madi Smith found her touch after that, hitting three three-pointers and finishing with a team-high 12 points. C.J. Wilhelm, who had the primary defensive responsibility on Mitchell, hit a couple of field goals, and the Lions cut deficit to 28-15 at the half.

Goddard held Wellington to seven points in both the second and third quarters, but 12 points – all on free throws – in the fourth quarter sealed the victory.

The Lions (9-2) got back into the game by forcing turnovers in the second half, Adams said.

“They started jumping our curl cuts, our front cuts, and we started having to make more adjustments with more quick hitters,” he said.

“So we had to go to our quick-hitter sets and just try to grind this win out and get out of here.”

Goddard could get no closer than 43-39 with 1:05 to play on a basket and free throw by Torri Vang.

Shayland French’s shot in the lane with 2:03 left in the third quarter was Wellington’s lone second-half field goal.

Goddard coach Kevin Hackerott said the game, though disappointing, was the type of test his team needed.

“I told the girls in big games, with two really good teams, it comes down who makes plays,” he said. “The first half, Wellington made a ton of shots, and we didn’t.

“Then you spend a ton of energy trying to get out, and then it’s hard when you do get close.”

Key shots in the second half – especially those in close – didn’t fall, which was a challenge for Hackerott, he said.

“You’re trying to keep it positive, but then it’s also, ‘Girls, you’ve got to make these easy shots,’ ” he said. “Part of that’s Wellington, but we had our chances and just came up short.”

Rose Hill 65, Cheney 52 – The Rockets (6-6) built a 38-19 halftime lead, then had to hold on for third place. Anna Van Driel led Rose Hill with 23 points, and Mackenzie Herman and Kylie Woods had 15 apiece. Haley Albers scored 13 for Cheney (8-5).

Haven 40, Kingman 39 – Katelynn Stucky drove to the basket and was fouled just before the final buzzer and completed a three-point play that gave the Wildcats (10-3) fifth place despite 15 points from the Eagles’ Bailey Bangert.

Nickerson 54, Chaparral 49 – Nickerson (4-9) had three players in double figures and captured seventh place. Chaparral (1-12) closed the gap with a 20-point fourth quarter.

This story was originally published January 30, 2016 at 7:49 PM with the headline "Unbeaten Wellington defeats Goddard."