Eleven days separated the last time the Chardon Hilltoppers and Kenston Bombers squared off. It was the Bombers coming away, victorious, 37-28. Leading the way was freshman Morgan Cicek with 12 points.
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Eleven days separated the last time the Chardon Hilltoppers and Kenston Bombers squared off. It was the Bombers coming away, victorious, 37-28. Leading the way was freshman Morgan Cicek with 12 points.
In the loss, the Bombers’ defense kept Chardon’s most explosive player, Emily Noerr at bay. It would be a different story for Noerr in the rematch game.
The Hilltoppers would pull away in the second half, reclaiming victory over the Bombers, 53-45.
Scoring the first points of the game was senior Caroline Neimes for the Bombers. Emily Noerr scored on her team’s second possession, followed by an early foul committed by Ramsey Smith.
“We had a lot more ball movement in the second half,” said Noerr when asked what adjustments the team made at halftime. “Our team did a really nice job of moving the ball on offense. We made the extra pass every single time. Another thing is we had to be careful on the turnovers, sometimes we get a little scrambled when the game is close. So a big thing is taking care of the ball, playing calm, and really executing the offense.”
Second-year head coach Erik Hoenigman applied a full-court press midway through the opening first quarter. Success came right away, after sophomore Payton Platz picked up a steal. Senior Julianne Sweet scored off of the turnover, cutting the lead in half.
Cicek scores an easy layup and extends her team’s lead to four, with less than four minutes remaining in the first quarter.
Sophomore Abigail Zeiger stepped onto the court with thirty-one seconds remaining, and came up huge for her Hilltoppers. Zeiger would knock down a three pointer, and get fouled on the shot. The game would be tied at ten with seconds remaining.
Noerr would grab a steal, and score on the fast break, evening the score at 12. Senior Ramsey Smith would earn her first points of the night at the free throw line, splitting a pair with 5:46 in the second quarter. Chardon would call a timeout with less than 5:30, after turning the basketball over, and Neimes made the Hilltoppers pay for it with a 3 ball.
The Hilltoppers’ defense would get a few key stops, giving their offense every chance possible to cut into the lead, and eventually tie the contest at 21 apiece as time expired. Anna Landies would record her first points of the contest as she connected on a contested layup on the lower block.
Noerr led all scorers with eight points in the first half, while Pagon was held scoreless in the second quarter, and still led the Bombers with six points.
The Bombers would start the second half with the basketball, but could not handle the press that the Hilltoppers brought, turning it over on their first possession. The Hilltoppers would return the favor, and turn the ball back over on their first attempt in the second half. Passing along the perimeter, Alexis Black finally made a cut through the lane, scoring two, and retaking the lead for the Bombers, 23-21.
And the Hilltoppers did just that in the closing quarter. In the final two quarters, the Hilltoppers outscored their opponent 32- 24. A sense of calmness came from junior guard Nicole Krakora when she finished perfect from the free throw line, going 10-10 in the game, and more importantly 8-8 in the final quarter. The Hilltoppers finished 17-21 at the stripe, while the Bombers connected on just six of their 13 shots.
The Hilltoppers would pull away, reclaiming victory over the Bombers, 53-45. With the win, the Hilltoppers improved to 5-9 overall, but 4-3 in the Western Reserve Conference, just one game behind the Madison Blue Streaks, good for third place.
Pacing the way for the Hilltoppers was Noerr with a game-high 20 points. Krakora added 14, while Sweet and Gerlica each added five. Senior Emily Kratzert led the Bombers with nine points, scoring six of those points in the second half.
“I think losing to [Kenston] sparked us a little bit, and put a fire under us. We didn’t want to lose to them on our home floor, and I think we practiced well, knowing what they were going to give to us,” said Anna Landies.