Wadsworth head coach Andrew Booth and Jodi Johnson will take on Toledo Whitmer in the Regional Championship game. This will be the fourth Regional Championship for the pair. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)
Albert Grindle
The Gazette
The demons that live inside the Wadsworth girls basketball team’s house of horrors are going to be exorcised.
That’s the plan, anyway.
The Grizzlies will travel to Norwalk High for the fifth straight season to play today in a 1 p.m. Division I regional championship game. The opponent is not Toledo Notre Dame Academy, as Toledo Whitmer (22-6) upset the Eagles to win its first district title in 24 years.
As the top-ranked team in the final Associated Press D-I state poll, Wadsworth (25-1) expected to be in this position. However, that diminishes neither the excitement nor the accomplishment.
“It’s unreal. I’m really thankful to be able to get this far each year,” Grizzlies power forward Jenna Johnson said. “Hopefully this year we’ll be able to make it a little farther than we have been.
“Obviously, it’s a big game. That’s what comes to my mind. We have to come out ready to play.”
Whitmer (22-6) knocked off Notre Dame after losing to the Eagles twice in Three Rivers Athletic Conference play. The first defeat featured Notre Dame being without Michigan recruit Brelynn Hampton-Bey, who sat the first 11 games after transferring from Rogers.
The Panthers have rallied from seven-point, second-half deficits in each of the last two games. They did it against Notre Dame in a 44-41 win and Westlake in a 41-38 regional semifinal victory.
Though Whitmer finished behind co-champions Notre Dame and Toledo Central Catholic in the TRAC standings, coach Sean Flemmings’ squad is playing without fear because few expected it to be here.
“What makes them a tough matchup is they have really good balance,” Grizzlies coach Andrew Booth said.
Like Wadsworth, the Panthers’ offense uses two posts and likes to work inside-out. While Whitmer has 3-point shooters in recent hero Maddie Brown (5-6, so.), Sara Semler (5-7, jr.) and Katie Conkle (jr.), ESPN three-star recruit Bryce Blood is the unquestioned key player.
The 6-foot-2 junior is the team’s lone double-digit scorer at approximately 14 points per game. The Panthers prefer to set screens with 5-10 Tyra James to get Blood either isolated on the block or rolling to the rim, much like Magnificat star power forward Elise Keshock.
The glaring difference between Whitmer and the Blue Streaks, however, is Blood is surrounded by 3-point shooters who also aren’t afraid to attack the rim if the defense falls asleep or closes too hard.
“They’re really solid,” Johnson said. “They have a lot of people who can score at the offensive end. We just need to play defense.”
If the postseason has been any indicator, the first quarter could be the difference.
Over their last four first periods, the Grizzlies have scored 96 points on 33-of-63 field goals (.524), 8-of-20 3-pointers (.400) and 22-of-24 free throws (.917). Opponents have 22 points on 7-of-27, 3-of-14 and 5-of-6 while committing 37 turnovers.
Ashland recruit Jodi Johnson is pumping in 20.3 points (7.5 in first quarters) on 28-of-38 field goals, 7-of-11 3-pointers and 18-of-21 free throws. Centers Peyton Banks (13.5, 4.0 rpg) and Lexi Lance (10.3, 7.8) also are north of double figures, while point guard Sophia Fortner is posting 9.3 points, 3.8 assists and 1.8 turnovers.
Wadsworth is averaging 74.0 points in the tournament. That’s a 17.6 increase from the regular season, but a lot of that has to do with frantic second halves after opponents fall behind by 20-30 points.
Pace again will be critical, as Whitmer has allowed 67, 61, 73 and 74 points in losses, though it must be noted two of those games were decided by one and two points, respectively.
“We really need to set the tempo,” Jenna Johnson said. “We need to get them moving fast and kind of out of control so we can control the game.”
Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.