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Splash down: Key 3’s help lift Lady Dragons past Grove City in playoff opener

Warren’s Rachel Wilson goes between Grove City’s Emma Isenberg (22) and Abigail Biddle (24) to put up a shot during the first half of Saturday’s District 10 Class 5A playoff game at Warren Area High School. Wilson scored 13 points in the 47-30 win.

Margo Loutzenhiser’s right arm was held up for just a moment as she watched her shot hit the bottom of the net and then backpedaled all the way down the court, smiling ear-to-ear with teammate Autumn Hultberg.

That 3-pointer as time expired in the third quarter gave Warren a 34-24 lead over Grove City and was part of a 13-2 run that sent the Lady Dragons to a 47-30 win in the first round of the District 10 Class 5A playoffs at Joseph A. Massa Gymnasium on Saturday.

“The big talk before the game was ‘you all know your roles, let’s execute our roles to the best of our ability’ and that’s what they did, every single one of them,” said Warren coach Lisa LaVan.

Loutzenhiser’s 3 came on the heels of Hultberg’s triple and it halted the momentum for Grove City, which had cut the lead to 28-24 after Warren led by 11 at halftime.

The Lady Dragons (18-5) left no doubt in the fourth, as Rachel Wilson scored nine of her 13 points in the final eight minutes, including 5-of-6 from the free throw line.

Warren’s Autumn Hultberg splits the defense as she goes up for a shot in the lane during Saturday’s District 10 Class 5A playoff game at Warren Area High School. Hultberg scored 10 points and dished out six assists in the win.

“I thought Rachel had a really nice game and Margo ran an absolute fantastic point,” LaVan said.

It was an impressive finish after a rough start.

The lid was on the basket early in the game, as Grove City’s zone defense slowed down the Warren attack. The Lady Eagles (9-14) were deliberate on offense, chewing up more than a minute on a pair of possessions and led 6-3 after the first quarter.

Nevertheless, the Lady Dragons weren’t rattled.

“We knew they were going to slow it down,” LaVan said. “They played man all season and we’ve scouted them a lot and noticed them putting in a zone their last few games. We were prepared for it but not fully because in my mind you can never be prepared for any one zone because every one is different. It came down to trying to be patient and executing on the zone side.”

Warren senior Maddie Loutzenhiser delivers a pass during the first half of Saturday’s District 10 Class 5A first round playoff game against Grove City at Warren Area High School. Loutsenhizer had five steals in the 47-30 win.

That patience paid off in a big way, as the shots finally started to fall.

Warren connected on four 3’s in the second quarter – two from Loutzenhiser, one from Hultberg and another from Taylor Childress, part of a 16-0 run that made it 19-6 with 2:30 left before halftime.

Not only were the Lady Dragons patient, but they were aggressive on the defensive end, forcing six second-quarter turnovers that led to runouts and sped the game up more to their liking.

“We picked up our defensive pressure and started taking a few chances to get our defense to create some offense for us,” LaVan said. “It was one of the better games that we’ve played for a number of reasons. At one point we chewed a minute off the clock and made a basket. That’s a sign of them maturing greatly – executing something we’re asking them to execute that we might not have actually practiced.”

Key in that effort was Maddie Loutzenhiser, who had five steals.

Warren’s Taylor Childress brings the ball up the floor during Saturday’s D-10 Class 5A playoff game against Grove City. Childress hit a key three-pointer as part of a 16-0 second quarter run that helped the Lady Dragons to a 47-30 victory.

At one point in the second half, Margo Loutzenhiser fired a pass to Wilson who had an open look, but Wilson made the extra pass to Maddie Loutzenhiser who was even more open for an easy layup, part of the execution their coach alluded to.

The younger Loutzenhiser, Margo, scored a game-high 17 points, while Hultberg was also in double figures with 10. Wilson also pulled down six rebounds and Hultberg dished out six assists.

For Grove City, Abby Fulkerson scored 10 of her team-high 15 points in third quarter, including a mid-range jumper that cut the lead to four before Warren went on its run. Hannah Santom, GC’s leading scorer at just over 16 ppg., finished with 12.

For Warren, the game was extra special as they got to play at home, with quarterfinal games moving to neutral sites.

“I know there’s a lot of negativity around going to the open format and going to the six classifications, but this is a prime example of why the open format is awesome, because you have the opportunity to get another home game,” LaVan said.

Warren head coach Lisa LaVan (left) gives instruction to senior guard Maddie Loutzenhiser (12) during the second half of Saturday’s District 10 Class 5A playoff game against Grove City at Warren Area High School.

For the Lady Dragons, they now turn their attention to Region 5 champion Slippery Rock (17-4) in the quarterfinal round, a game that will be played Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at Mercer High School. The Rock beat Grove City twice this season, 57-43 and 62-35.

“We kind of knew where things were going to fall after our Fort LeBoeuf loss and we have a lot of film and have already started on that (preparing for Slippery Rock),” LaVan said. “I’m glad we played and they have 12 or 13 days off. We’re excited.”

– – –

GROVE CITY (30)

Culmer 0-0-0-0, Fulkerson 5-5-6-15, Biddle 1-1-2-3, Santom 5-0-0-12, Burtch 0-0-0-0, Isenberg 0-0-0-0, Persinger 0-0-0-0, McDowell 0-0-0-0, Totals 11-6-10-30

WARREN (47)

Al. Hultberg 1-0-0-2, Mad. Loutzenhiser 1-0-0-2, Wilson 4-5-6-13, Mar. Loutzenhiser 5-4-8-17, Au. Hultberg 3-2-2-10, Childress 1-0-0-3, Wood 0-0-0-0, M. Wortman 1-0-0-2, Lupole 0-0-0-0, Citro 0-0-0-0, Nebinski 0-0-0-0, Matson 0-0-0-0, Lucks 0-0-0-0, Totals 15-11-16-47

By Quarters

Grove City 6 4 14 6 – 30

Warren 3 18 13 13 – 47

Three-point FGs: Grove City (2) – Santom 2; Warren (6) – Mar. Loutzenhiser 3, Au. Hultberg 2, Childress

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