Panthers Lose Heartbreaker
DECATUR – It was heartbreak time once again Saturday for the NorthWood girls basketball team in the regional round of the state tournament.
The Panthers, for the second straight year, dropped a thriller in semifinal play of the Class 3-A Bellmont Regional.
Norwell senior Laken Chaney calmly hit a free throw with no time left on the clock to lift her team to a 55-54 win over the Panthers.
No. 11 NorthWood, which finishes at 19-6, lost at Bellmont last year 42-39 on a half court buzzer-beater by Fort Wayne Concordia in a regional semifinal game.
No. 12 Norwell, now 19-5, advanced to play Muncie Central Saturday night in the regional title game. Central upset No. 3 and previously undefeated Garrett 48-35 in Saturday’s other semifinal contest.
The loss for the Panthers marked the end of the coaching career of Steve Neff. The Hall of Famer, who was making his 24th regional appearance, is retiring from coaching after 37 seasons at NorthWood. Neff, who guided the Black Swish to a state championship in 1999, finishes his career as the state’s all-time winningest girls coach at 653-181.
But, it was the final game of that illustrious career that is sure to stick with Neff for a long time.
The contest was tied at 54-54 with 3.9 seconds to play. Chaney took an inbounds pass and raced up the court to let fly with a desperation shot. A foul was called on the play as the final horn sounded. Chaney then sank the game winner on her first free throw attempt to give her 21 points.
Norwell led 10-8 after the opening period and 26-24 at halftime. The Panthers inched ahead 41-40 going into the fourth quarter.
Junior Jordyn Frantz drained four treys and finished with a game-high 25 points to lead NorthWood.
Morgan Olson, NorthWood’s all-time leading scorer, had 17 points in her final high school game. The Youngstown State recruit also had seven rebounds.
Norwell hit 17-20 free throws in the win, while the Panthers were 13-20 from the line.
The Panthers, who will be coached by Adam Yoder next season, lose four seniors in Olson, Taylor Fielstra, Tiffanie Alexander and Inger Yoder.