By Cort Reynolds
ADA - The host Ada girls basketball team lost a 43-40 nailbiter to county foe Hardin Northern Tuesday night in the hard-fought season-opener for the Lady Bulldog cagers.
The purple and gold fell to 0-1 after the tough defeat in their delayed lidlifter. HN improved to 1-2 with the victory, having lost to Botkins and Riverside before Thanksgiving.
Ada got off a last-second shot at a potential tying three-pointer, but the right side 20-footer was just off and Northern narrowly held on for the win.
"I thought we got a good look at the end," said Bulldog third-year head coach Morgan Bass. "It was their third game and just our first, and we are not in great shape.
"I am frustrated because we didn't execute, and we got out-hustled at times," she added.
Both teams shot well in a high-scoring 32-point second period, and HN won a tense, low-scoring second half 17-16 to pull off the three-point win.
"We moved well without the ball better than (we did) in our first two games," said veteran HN head coach Brady Mast, whose team made several successful backdoor cuts for scores. "This game for us was about limiting turnovers and offensive rebounds, and I think we did those things.
"I thought one of the keys was Bella Wilson's defense out top in our 1-2-2 zone," Mast continued. "It was a very good win, and it is nice to get our first win. We only played six girls."
The first half was pretty well-played, especially for an early December contest with little pre-season. The Bulldogs solved the Polar Bear zone to score on their first two possessions, but then hit a dry spell due in part to some some bad passes.
Ada senior post Megan Light sank a nine-footer 30 seconds into the fray, followed by a right side 15-foot banker from Polar Bear Eris McCoy. Bulldog freshman Olivia Burkhart drained an eight-footer off an Alexis Waugh assist for a 4-2 lead.
Bear sophomore post Katie Good tied it by drilling an eight-footer at the 4:47 mark. Senior Maddie Grappy put HN ahead by swishing a right corner triple.
Sumner then stole the ball, drove the length of the court and made a layup to end a 5:06 Bulldog drought.
McCoy came up with a steal, and she buried a pull-up 14-footer for a 9-6 lead. With time running out in the period, Sumner swiped a pass near midcourt and launched a 44-footer that banked it at the buzzer to knot it 9-9.
Ada senior guard Kylie Acheson corraled a weak side offensive rebound and put it back in 30 seconds into the second stanza to give the hosts an 11-9 edge.
Lady Polar Bear Aleah Obenour tied it on a layup 19 ticks later.
Ada junior guard Kirsten Poling buried a left baseline 15-footer, and Eris McCoy split a pair of free throws.
Good swished a 17-footer off the right baseline to put Northern ahead 14-13 at the six-minute mark. Light scored inside off a fine Poling feed to give Ada the edge 27 seconds later.
Grappy answered with a stickback layin seconds after that. Sumner continued the seesaw battle when she drove straight down the lane and banked in a floater at the 4:55 juncture.
HN's Bella Wilson sank a fast break layup for the fifth straight lead change. Bear sophomore guard Emma Martin then pulled down an offensive rebound and scooped a layup off glass that rolled around and in for a 20-17 lead with 3:07 left in the half.
Light drilled a right baseline shot from 10 feet, but Grappy responded by nailing a 12-footer from the right side to restore the lead to three.
Burkhart buried a 14-footer from the left wing, followed by a pull-up banker in transition from McCoy.
Poling split two charity tosses to cut the lead to two. Burkhart then stole the ball and drove in for a breakaway layup that tied it, 24-24.
Martin canned two free throws with 21 seconds left to give the visitors a slim 26-24 advantage heading to intermission.
Light scored a layup to open the second half, but Martin gave a good fake and drove the left baseline to tie it moments later.
Martin sank another layup off a nice lefty feed from Wilson, but Waugh answered with a basket. Martin then drove the lane and bounced in a runner to make it 32-28.
Light split two free throws, but Martin scored again for a 34-29 Bear cushion at the 3:15 mark.
Sumner banked in a 10-footer out of the ensuing Ada timeout. Waugh then swished a mid-range shot from the left baseline with 15 ticks to go in the third period to pull Ada within 34-33.
Waugh then followed in a miss off a Sumner steal to gve the Bulldogs a lead early in the fourth. But Martin sank a left side runner to put Northern back in front, 36-35.
Poling drove, was fouled and tied it by sinking the first foul shot.
Grappy made a nice post move and hit a short banker at the 4:50 mark for a 38-36 lead. Poling blocked a triple try from Grappy, but Ada turned the ball over in transition.
Grappy then powered her way in off the left block for a layup halfway through the quarter. Waugh rebounded a missed Grappy corner three, and Poling penetrated the zone to bank in a one-footed runner with 3:11 left.
Grappy muscled her way in for a crucial three-point play at the 2:13 mark to put HN ahead 43-38. Ada then committed a costly turnover with 1:53 left.
Poling then drove the lane and lofted a fine runner that bounced in off the back iron to cut the deficit to 43-40 with 45 seconds to play.
Sumner stole the ball but missed a contested drive in transition, and Ada misfired on the follow shot. Northern ran off some clock before McCoy was fouled with 9.4 seconds left. But she missed the front end of a one-and-one that could have iced the win, giving the Bulldogs a final chance to tie.
Light rebounded the missed free throw and passed to Sumner, who pushed the ball up quickly and found Poling open in the right corner for a trifecta. Her tying triple try was slightly off right, and bounced off the rim as the final buzzer sounded before anyone could rebound it.
"I thought there were moments when we did not match their intensity," summed up Bass. "Megan Light stepped up and played one of her better games."
HN was led by Martin and Grappy with 14 points apiece. Ten of Martin's points came in the second half, including eight in the third period. McCoy added seven markers.
"Martin had a real good game, she was aggressive in her cutting," Mast noted.
Sumner and Light topped Ada with nine points apiece. Poling netted eight, while Burkhart and Waugh tallied six apiece. Sumner added five steals.
The Bulldogs sank 18 field goals, including 17 deuces and one shot from beyond the arc. Ada converted just three of 11 attempts from the charity stripe (27 percent).
"Foul shooting hurt," Bass agreed.
The Lady Bears made 19 field goals and one triple. HN converted four of seven free throws (57 percent).
In the reserve contest, HN squeaked past Ada 17-16 on a last-minute three-pointer by Emmah Boose. Junior Skyler Gaunt led Northern with five points. Bulldog freshman Mariah King scored six for the Ada reserves.
Ada 40 (0-1)
Sumner 4 0-3 9, Poling 3 2-4 8, Light 4 1-2 9, Burkhart 3 0-0 6, Waugh 3 0-2 6, Acheson 1 0-0 2.
Totals: 18/3-11/40. 3-pointer: Sumner 1.
HN 43 (1-2)
Martin 6 2-2 14, Wilson 1 0-0 2, McCoy 3 1-4 7, Obenour 1 0-0 2, Grappy 6 1-1 14, Good 2 0-0 4.
Totals: 19/4-7/43. 3-pointer: Grappy 1.
1 2 3 4 F
Ada 9 15 9 7 40
HN 9 17 8 9 43
JV: HN 17, Ada 16.
Ada hosts league favorite Columbus Grove (0-2) in the Northwest Conference opener Thursday, December 3.
HN visits another local rival in USV Thursday evening as it seeks to complete a Hardin County road sweep this week.
