CLINTON - Hot met cold and early mistakes proved insurmountable as the Juda girls basketball team fell to Catholic Central 63-34 Saturday in a Division regional final at Clinton High School.
Missed shots and turnovers plagued the Lady Panthers early, allowing Catholic Central to jump out to a 7-0 first-quarter lead and forcing Juda coach Curtis Brown to use an early timeout to recompose his team.
"We definitely needed the timeout," Brown said. "We came out, we missed three shots, we didn't box out once and I think we had two turnovers. It was about as cold as we could start, and then from there we were trying to play catch-up."
But the early deficit could not be overcome, thanks in part to Catholic Central coach Todd Willems' early defensive scheme of preventing the Panthers from getting the ball into their talented frontcourt of junior forward Heather Boeke and freshman center Ellen Kiser.
"Our defensive scheme was built around the idea of stopping their two bigs," Willems said. "And their two bigs are good ... and they're strong. Keeping them under 25, especially when [Boeke] had 23 the other night, that was a big concern of ours."
And the Lady Toppers' execution of that plan worked, as Boeke wasn't able to notch her first points until midway through the second quarter.
However, Boeke and company did not let Central's widening lead get to them. They continued to be physical on offense and drew fouls, but the shots would not fall. The Panthers went 5-of-10 from the line in the first half.
Juda's junior guards Brittany Riese and Larissa Klemm looked to the outside to narrow the lead, continuously working the ball around the perimeter and putting up several 3-pointers, but a stifling rush of Central defenders kept them them out of their rhythm and their shots out of the basket.
"I give Catholic Central a lot of credit," Brown said. "We had a hard time shooting from outside. They knew we wanted to get inside. They did a really decent job going after us."
A Klemm 3-pointer and a quick four points by Boeke in the last minute of the second quarter appeared to put the Panthers into a groove, but there wasn't enough time to extend it and Juda headed to the locker room down 35-14.
Catholic Central picked up where they left off, holding the Panthers to eight points and extending the lead to 31 points in the third quarter.
Despite the game being out of reach, from the court to the bench the young Panthers - who should return all five starters next season - kept their heads up, played on and showed their promise in the coming years.
Klemm and Kiser lead the way, each scoring six second-half points, and the team showcased a physical style of play that wouldn't be hampered by the realization of a loss.
The Panthers drew fouls and improved on those opportunities, shooting 12 percent better from the free throw line in the second half than the first.
Klemm went 4-for-4 from the line and finished the game with a team-leading 11 points.
Kiser also held her ground throughout the third and fourth quarter, tying up several Central players and notching two blocks. Additionally, the freshman became a representation of the young, never-say-die attitude of the Panthers: a fact not overlooked by their opponents.
"That freshman center is the real deal," Willems said. "They're a young team. Curt is a good coach and they're going to keep on going. They're going to be scary in a few years."
But despite playing hard all the way to the finish, the Panthers still had to deal with the hard fact that their season was over.
"Every time you get to the end of the year, it's hard to figure out success and where you're feeling after your last loss," Brown said. "I know that it's going to hurt for the kids today and tomorrow, but I hope in the next week they start to understand that this was the most successful season in Juda history ... It's the groundwork for us to hopefully get better."
Senior Tara Allen's contribution this season didn't go unnoticed by her coach and teammates.
"(Tara's) really the heart and soul of our team," Brown said. "Tara's had a great year, and she worked so hard to come back from her knee injury, and we didn't want to see it end for her."
Kiser said it was emotional in the locker room after the game, but it offered the players a chance to come together.
"It was emotional, but we all wanted to be there for each other," Kiser said. "I'm really excited (for next season). I think a lot of us younger girls are. But we all feel really bad for Tara. We just kept talking to her and gave her a bunch of hugs. Everyone was really sad that the season is over."
Kiser also noted the large turnout of Juda fans and how they helped cope with the loss and the conclusion of the season.
When last seconds ticked off the clock, the fans immediately made their presence known and to show that, although at an end, the girls' season was a success as they began chanting "We are proud of you. Say, we are proud of you."
Missed shots and turnovers plagued the Lady Panthers early, allowing Catholic Central to jump out to a 7-0 first-quarter lead and forcing Juda coach Curtis Brown to use an early timeout to recompose his team.
"We definitely needed the timeout," Brown said. "We came out, we missed three shots, we didn't box out once and I think we had two turnovers. It was about as cold as we could start, and then from there we were trying to play catch-up."
But the early deficit could not be overcome, thanks in part to Catholic Central coach Todd Willems' early defensive scheme of preventing the Panthers from getting the ball into their talented frontcourt of junior forward Heather Boeke and freshman center Ellen Kiser.
"Our defensive scheme was built around the idea of stopping their two bigs," Willems said. "And their two bigs are good ... and they're strong. Keeping them under 25, especially when [Boeke] had 23 the other night, that was a big concern of ours."
And the Lady Toppers' execution of that plan worked, as Boeke wasn't able to notch her first points until midway through the second quarter.
However, Boeke and company did not let Central's widening lead get to them. They continued to be physical on offense and drew fouls, but the shots would not fall. The Panthers went 5-of-10 from the line in the first half.
Juda's junior guards Brittany Riese and Larissa Klemm looked to the outside to narrow the lead, continuously working the ball around the perimeter and putting up several 3-pointers, but a stifling rush of Central defenders kept them them out of their rhythm and their shots out of the basket.
"I give Catholic Central a lot of credit," Brown said. "We had a hard time shooting from outside. They knew we wanted to get inside. They did a really decent job going after us."
A Klemm 3-pointer and a quick four points by Boeke in the last minute of the second quarter appeared to put the Panthers into a groove, but there wasn't enough time to extend it and Juda headed to the locker room down 35-14.
Catholic Central picked up where they left off, holding the Panthers to eight points and extending the lead to 31 points in the third quarter.
Despite the game being out of reach, from the court to the bench the young Panthers - who should return all five starters next season - kept their heads up, played on and showed their promise in the coming years.
Klemm and Kiser lead the way, each scoring six second-half points, and the team showcased a physical style of play that wouldn't be hampered by the realization of a loss.
The Panthers drew fouls and improved on those opportunities, shooting 12 percent better from the free throw line in the second half than the first.
Klemm went 4-for-4 from the line and finished the game with a team-leading 11 points.
Kiser also held her ground throughout the third and fourth quarter, tying up several Central players and notching two blocks. Additionally, the freshman became a representation of the young, never-say-die attitude of the Panthers: a fact not overlooked by their opponents.
"That freshman center is the real deal," Willems said. "They're a young team. Curt is a good coach and they're going to keep on going. They're going to be scary in a few years."
But despite playing hard all the way to the finish, the Panthers still had to deal with the hard fact that their season was over.
"Every time you get to the end of the year, it's hard to figure out success and where you're feeling after your last loss," Brown said. "I know that it's going to hurt for the kids today and tomorrow, but I hope in the next week they start to understand that this was the most successful season in Juda history ... It's the groundwork for us to hopefully get better."
Senior Tara Allen's contribution this season didn't go unnoticed by her coach and teammates.
"(Tara's) really the heart and soul of our team," Brown said. "Tara's had a great year, and she worked so hard to come back from her knee injury, and we didn't want to see it end for her."
Kiser said it was emotional in the locker room after the game, but it offered the players a chance to come together.
"It was emotional, but we all wanted to be there for each other," Kiser said. "I'm really excited (for next season). I think a lot of us younger girls are. But we all feel really bad for Tara. We just kept talking to her and gave her a bunch of hugs. Everyone was really sad that the season is over."
Kiser also noted the large turnout of Juda fans and how they helped cope with the loss and the conclusion of the season.
When last seconds ticked off the clock, the fans immediately made their presence known and to show that, although at an end, the girls' season was a success as they began chanting "We are proud of you. Say, we are proud of you."
