DES MOINES — Chris Barkema never had any doubts.
The Des Moines Christian girls basketball coach knew his team was going to prevail against Forest City on March 3 in the Iowa high school girls basketball tournament Class 3A quarterfinals.
Forest City rallied from an 11-point deficit to take a 44-41 lead midway through the fourth quarter. But then Urbandale transfer Reese DeVooght scored seven clutch points in a row to lead the Lions into the semifinals with a 52-46 victory.
“When it’s tight like that — it sounds really crazy — but I feel pretty comfortable that we’re going to make that big shot and we’re going to make that right play,” Barkema said. “You might think I’m lying, but as that game was getting close at the end, I knew we were going to make a play to win the game.”
DeVooght was the hero for Des Moines Christian down the stretch.
The senior hit a pair of free throws with 4:27 left. Then 30 seconds later, she drained the go-ahead 3-pointer to give DMC a 46-44 lead. DeVooght hit four more clutch free throws in the final 1:30 to help the Lions advance to the 3A semifinals with a 23-3 record.
“She was insane tonight,” said DMC point guard Addy Oetker. “This was her first game playing (at Casey’s Center), so she went off.”
DeVooght finished with a game-high 23 points. She made 7 of 16 field goals, three 3-pointers and all six of her free-throw attempts, while also adding six rebounds.
“My team made excellent passes,” DeVooght said. “I give it all to them. My points weren’t my own; it was just (playing) unselfish basketball and passing me the ball whenever they needed to.”
After coming over from Urbandale, DeVooght loved getting the opportunity to play on the big stage for the first time.
“Playing here with these girls is such a joy,” DeVooght said. “Our coach pushes us so hard and he loves us so much. They want all of us girls to succeed.”
Des Moines Christian looked to be in firm control until midway through the third quarter. The Lions led 33-22 after a DeVooght 3 early in the third, but behind the inspired play of center Jenna Dontje, Forest City slowly whittled away at the DMC advantage.
A Dontje putback pulled Forest City within 41-40 and then Dru Seglem hit a floater in the lane to give Forest City its first lead at 42-41 with 6:37 left in the fourth. A Dontje putback pushed the lead to 44-41 before DeVooght took over to reclaim the momentum for DMC.
Dontje made 9 of 13 field goals and finished with 21 points, 13 rebounds and four steals for Forest City, which finished 22-4. Hayden Brown added three points, eight rebounds and six assists, and Seglem finished with seven points.
Des Moines Christian prevailed despite a 43-30 rebounding deficit. The Lions forced 19 Forest City turnovers; they made 9 of 11 free throws and 7 of 22 3-pointers while holding the opposition to 3 of 18 shooting from downtown.
“Back-and-forth, really tight — that’s what we planned for,” Oetker said. “In the end, we just stayed composed. We knew our stuff and we knew we had the capability of coming out with a win.”
Oetker complemented DeVooght’s big night by contributing 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks. Lauren Schmaltz and Caitlin Hall each scored six points for the Lions.
DMC will play No. 2 seed Maquoketa (22-4) in the 3A semifinals on March 5. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:15 p.m. at the Casey’s Center.
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Des Moines Christain tops Forest City in Iowa girls state basketball tournament
Reporting by Joe Randleman, Des Moines Register / Ames Tribune
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