TROJAN GIRLS BASKETBALL: Worthington outlasts Windom Area in wild finish

WORTHINGTON — It was a wild, wild finish.

Rebecca Linder, Ana Boever and Apiew Alwal combined to make 5 of 6 free throws in the final 52 seconds as Worthington held off Windom Area 73-68 in a Southwest Conference basketball battle Friday.

Sporting a lineup missing starters Paige Gravenhof and Brooke Henning, 5-foot-6 senior guard Lydia Kemper stepped into a scoring roll for the Trojans with a game-high 27 points.

“Talk about two unsung heroes, Rebecca Linder and Apiew Alwal, who hit some crucial free throws for us and the end of the game,” Worthington head coach Eric Lindner said with excitement. “They stepped in, along with Lydia Kemper, and played very well for our kids who were gone.”

Henning and Gravenhof were sidelined with an injury and an illness, respectively. Henning averages 7.5 rebounds and Gravenhof averages 14.0 points a game.

Despite Kemper’s effort, the Eagles made a 10-point run late in the final 5½ minutes to tie the game at 66 on a layup from Jasmine Carlson with 2:49 left.

Samantha Petersen sparked the Windom Area run by hitting a 3-pointer at the top of the key before Gina Hauge cashed in an old-fashioned 3-point play and Holly Larson drained a pair of free throws with 3:26 left.

“I thought we did a great job of scrapping back in the second half. The girls showed a lot of heart and I’m proud of them for that,” Windom Area head coach Jeff Huska said.

Hauge supplied the Eagles with a team-high 24 points and added seven rebounds in a game that featured much contact inside the lane and underneath the basket at both ends.

Of the 42 fouls whistled, 22 were called against Worthington. K.C. Riley and Whitney Coriolan fouled out for the Trojans, while the Eagles, who were called for 20 fouls, saw Kelsey Hanefeld (13 points) lost to fouls.

The game took a wild turn with less than 7 minutes left as Huska and Windom Area assistant coach Tim Hayenga were called for technical fouls for disputing calls made by game officials.

“I put (our girls) in a little bit of a hole with the technical and I’m not sure what the second one (technical) was about,” Huska said. “The fact is (Worthington) scored on that, but I have to give all the credit in the world to our girls for battling back and giving us a chance to win.”

Riley missed both free throws on the first technical foul before Abbie Landgaard knocked down two regular fouls shots and two technical free throws, giving the Trojans took a 65-56 lead with 6 minutes left.

Worthington found a little more offense at the end.

Ana Boever’s jumper from inside the lane handed WHS a 68-66 edge with 2:34 remaining, but Windom Area couldn’t find an answer.

The Eagles missed three field goal attempts and a pair of free throws until Hanefeld produced Windom Area’s last field goal of the game with 15.5 seconds left.

Meanwhile, Linder drained two free throws with 52.1 seconds left before Boever hit 1 of 2 at the free-throw line as 26.5 ticks remained. Alwal sealed Worthington’s final points with two free throws with 11.9 seconds left.

Kemper scored 11 first-half points, but Hauge had 12 markers in the first 18 minutes as the Eagles led 30-29 at halftime.

The Trojans took a 56-46 lead midway through the second half with an 11-2 run that featured a turnaround jumper from Linder, a right-wing 3-pointer from Boever (14 points), consecutive baskets from Kemper (a drive and a coast-to-coast layup) and a layup from Coriolan.

Kemper’s left-wing 3-pointer handed Worthington a 59-48 advantage with 8:29 left, but she was held scoreless the rest of the way.

“Our problem was that we stopped executing in the second half and we needed one basket to get the lead where we wanted it,” Coach Lindner said. “Then, we ran our stall game and Windom Area had to foul us.”

Hauge put Windom Area in position to make its comeback with pair of baskets during a mini 6-0 run. Hanefeld added the other one as the Eagles trailed 59-54 with 6:55 left.

“I thought we did a good job of attacking the run and Worthington doesn’t always get back on defense,” Huska said. “Looking back, I think we could have rebounded a little better. That could have made a difference.”

Windom Area held a 29-27 edge in rebounding as Larson completed a double-double with 11 caroms and 10 points.

Rachel Sorenson scored 10 second-half points for the Eagles, who are 8-7 overall and 3-3 against the SWC.

WORTHINGTON 73,

WINDOM AREA 68

WINDOM AREA (8-7, 3-3 SWC): Hanefeld 6 1-4 13, Sorenson 4 2-2 10, Petersen 2 2-2 7, Carlson 2 0-0 4, Larson 2 6-8 10, Hauge 10 4-6 24. Totals: 26 15-22 66.

WORTHINGTON (11-3, 7-1 SWC): Boever 5 2-4 14, Landgaard 1 5-6 7, Kemper 12 1-5 27, Lindaer 1 2-2 4, Riley 2 0-2 4, Thongvanh 0 0-0 0, Coriolan 3 2-6 8, Alwal 3 3-4 9. Totals: 27 15-29 73.

Windom Area 30 38 — 68

Worthington 29 44 — 73

3-Point Goals: Windom Area 1 (Peterson); Worthington 4 (Boever 2, Kemper 2). Rebounds: Windom Area 29 (Larson 11, Carlson 7, Hauge 7); Worthington 27 (Alwal 8). Total Fouls (Fouled Out): Windom Area 20 (Hanefeld); Worthington 22 (Riley, Coriolan). Technical Fouls: Windom Area 2 (Head Coach Huska, Assistant Coach Hayenga).

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