Waterford rallies past Buckeye Central in second half to clinch spot in Ohio state

Waterford’s Madi Hiener (22) makes a move with the ball as Buckeye Central’s Kate Siesel (2) defends during Friday’s Division IV state semifinal in Dayton. Waterford won, 53-39. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

DAYTON, Ohio –Down nine at the 4:58 mark in the third quarter of Friday’s Division IV state semifinal against Buckeye Central, Waterford went back to its bread and butter.

Head coach Jerry Close dialed up their full-court, man-to-man press defense, and the Wildcats (25-3) responded with 19 straight points to turn a 28-19 deficit into a 38-28 lead. The Bucks (25-2) never recovered from that spurt, as Waterford went on to win 53-39 and earn a spot in Saturday’s state championship game. Tip-off is set for 5:15 p.m. against New Knoxville, 38-29 winners over Cincinnati Country Day Friday.

“That energized them,” Close said of the defensive adjustment. “That’s the way these girls like to play.

“That third quarter, that’s us. That’s the way we play the game. Maybe the slow second quarter was my fault a little bit for not changing things up sooner. I didn’t give us enough credit to how good we were today. I kind of held them back a little bit, but once we turned them loose, they played the way we play basketball.”

Buckeye Central trailed 12-10 after the first quarter but outscored Waterford 13-5 in the second to take a 23-17 lead into halftime. Sydney Wurm’s 3-pointer to open the second half stretched the lead to nine, and Claudia Pifher’s jumper with 4:58 left in the third made it 28-19, but the Bucks didn’t score again until the the third-quarter buzzer sounded. By then, the Wildcats were in control.

Waterford outscored Buckeye Central 19-0 over a 4-minute, 23-second stretch in the third to completely alter the complexion of the game. During the run, Cara Taylor knocked down two 3-pointers, Mackenzie Suprano had a basket-and-1 followed by a trey, and Avery Wagner scored four points and had an emphatic block to cap off the spurt.

“The run in the third quarter proved to be the difference,” said Buckeye Central head coach Abram Kaple. “We just didn’t respond the way we needed to.”

Suprano opened the fourth quarter with a 3 and Wagner followed with a putback to put Waterford up 13. The Bucks got within six, 45-39, thanks to five straight points from Pifher with 3:23 remaining, but the Wildcats scored the final eight points of the game, including six straight from Kendall Sury to close it out.

“They dialed things up quite a bit,” Kaple said. “For the most part, nobody’s really pressured us like that.”

Waterford held significant advantages over Buckeye Central in points off turnovers (23-9) and fastbreak points (18-5).

“When you get to the Final Four,” Kaple added, “you’re dealing with elite programs and elite teams and everybody’s here for a reason. (Waterford’s) a good basketball team, and they freaking played hard.”

Buckeye Central shot 60% (9 for 15) from the floor in the first half but just 33% (5 for 15) in the second half. The Bucks committed 18 turnovers to Waterford’s 11.

“These guys are quick,” Close said. “They can cover, and that’s what’s got us here. If we don’t play defense that way, we don’t win. That’s what’s gotten us here the last two years.”

Taylor and Suprano led Waterford with 13 points apiece. Suprano also had six rebounds and two assists, while Taylor chipped in six steals and two dimes. The Wildcats went 46.2% (18 for 39) from the floor and they out-rebounded the Bucks 23-18, including 13-7 offensively.

“Our coaches are just like, ‘If you’re open you need to shoot the ball,’” Taylor said. “‘Take the chance.’ We’ve got rebounders, so either way.”

Wagner finished with 12 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and two assists.

“I was here last year when they played and I saw them lose (to McDonald in the state semifinals),” Wagner said. “I just knew coming into this game we had to give it our all. I just wanted to get the boards, go for the second chance opportunities and help us win.”

Sury tallied eight points and two assists. Madi Hiener had three points while Laykyn Jones and Lilly Franchino netted two apiece to round out Waterford’s scoring.

Pifher led Buckeye Central with 16 points and six boards.