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Lady Hornets dethrone Rich Hill in Appleton City Tournament title game, 53-46
Despite being the top seed at the 36th annual Appleton City Basketball Tournament, the Hume Lady Hornets entered Saturday’s title tilt in the underdog role against the No. 3 seed and five-time defending tournament champion Rich Hill Lady Tigers.
The winless drought against their arch-rival came to an end as the Lady Hornets stung Rich Hill in an entertaining 53-46 championship game victory.
Hume trailed at halftime 15-14, with Rich Hill extending its advantage to 22-16 early in the third quarter. The Lady Hornets, however, stormed back from the six-point deficit, as a balanced second-half scoring attack lifted Hume to the title game triumph.
‘The sky is the limit for this group,” said elated Hume head coach Heath Heckadon, as his club moves to 11-2 overall. “Our goal is to win a conference championship and compete for a district championship. We’re this far into the season and still have our goals intact. We’re 3-0 in conference and have three tough conference games coming up. Going into districts we’re hoping to be playing our best basketball, and I think we have as good a shot as anybody to win that district.”
Added Heckadon: “I’m not too sure how long its been, but it had been a while since we beat Rich Hill.”
Trailing 31-29 late in the third quarter Hume knotted the contest with an Emmah Fillpot lay-in, but the Lady Tigers regained the lead when star guard Taylor Coonce scored on a fadeaway jumper just before the third quarter horn, handing Rich Hill a 33-31 lead.
Hume came out on fire to open the fourth. Hannah Swickhamer’s 5-foot jumper from the left baseline to open the frame, followed by Hannah Gorda’s steal and coast-to-coast bucket, put the Lady Hornets in front 35-33.
Providing a major spark for Hume off the bench, center Anna Spencer scored on back-to-back possessions from the right block, handing the Lady Hornets their largest lead of the night at 39-33 with 4:52 remaining in the fourth.
“Anna was great tonight,” said Heckadon, as Spencer concluded with six critical fourth quarter points. “She led us in the post. She got the ball, turned, finished, and scored. Her coming off the bench and scoring three times in the post was a big part of the game.”
Coonce then stemmed the tide with a driving, twisting lay-in through heavy traffic and a trip to the charity stripe, where the all-conference guard trimmed the Rich Hill deficit to 39-36 with 4:40 remaining.
The Rich Hill mini-run continued, punctuated by forward Kylann Tourtilott’s close-range score with 3:20 to play, tying the contest 41-41.
“We started rushing, taking bad shots, and not running offense,” explained Heckadon. “We were turning the ball over, taking quick shots, and weren’t rebounding — and that’s what let them back in the game.”
With Rich Hill having regained the momentum, and the title slipping out of Hume’s grasp, Swickhamer took a pass on the right wing and calmly swished a 3-pointer, putting the Lady Hornets up 44-41 with 2:18 showing on the clock.
“It’s just a matter of confidence with Hannah,” said Heckadon. “She’s been struggling with her shooting a little bit, and I just tell her to keep shooting. She’s a shooter and that’s what she does.”
Junior shooting guard Katlyn Brooks stretched Hume’s lead to six with 1:12 remaining in regulation after sinking both free throws on the 1-and-1.
A pair of Coonce free throws drew Rich Hill to 47-44 with 47 seconds remaining. The Lady Hornets then salted the contest away at the free throw line, with senior floor general Karlee Metcalf connecting on 6-of-6 free throws in the final minute of regulation — sending Hume to its signature victory of the Heckadon era, now in his second season leading the Lady Hornets.
Hume finished 12-of-19 from the charity stripe, while Rich Hill connected on just of 9-of-22 attempts.
Heckadon said keys to victory included his squad’s ability to contain Coonce and Tourtilott, as the duo poured in 33 of Rich Hill’s 37 points in their semifinal victory.
“We knew we had to shut them down and make somebody else beat us,” noted Heckadon. “(Coonce) is either the best player or second best player in this tournament, along with (Montrose’s) Abby Vogel. She’ll most likely be playing Division II or NAIA basketball.”
Brooks, Hume’s top perimeter defender, held Coonce scoreless in the first half. Coonce got loose in the second half, nearly rescuing Rich Hill from the clutches of defeat with a 17-point half.
Heckadon said he was thoroughly impressed with his team’s overall defensive effort, adding he would grade Brooks an “A” for her physical defense on the perimeter. Heckadon noted that Brooks recently rejoined the team after missing time with a concussion suffered in the Lady Hornets 44-35 mid December home loss to Rich Hill.
Other injuries Hume has overcome this season include a back injury suffered by Swickhamer, and Emmah Fillpot’s broken nose, as the starting forward donned a protective mask Saturday night.
“We didn’t play very well without those three,” said Heckadon, adding, “they really wanted to play against Rich Hill.”
“Winning the championship means a lot,” said Gorda, who finished with a team-high 13 points and 3 blocks. “This was a really big win for us, because of who we were playing against, and I think this win will really help our confidence.”
Swickhamer finished with 10 points, all coming in the second half, including a pair of momentum-changing 3-pointers. Additionally, Brooks added 9 points, including 4-of-4 from the free throw line, while Metcalf tallied 8. Fillpot concluded with 7 points, scoring from the low post three times in the third, while Spencer chipped in 6 points off the bench.