BERLIN — If anyone examined Hiland girls’ basketball schedule before the 2025-26 season kicked off, they would see two giants on the slate.
No, No, No.
Not literally actual giants but giants in terms of top-tier teams they would be sharing the hardwood with. Not just spread out across the schedule either, but in back-to-back games at the renowned Classic in the Country Challenge on their home floor in Berlin over this past Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend.
Hiland, a consistent perennial power themselves, had last season’s OHSAA Division IV state champions Bellevue (12-0), the No. 1 ranked team in Division IV by MaxPreps, come in on Saturday, then faced last year’s Division V state runner-up in Norwayne (12-2), the No. 4 ranked team in Division V, on Monday.
Hiland, who were ranked No. 11 in Division VI going into both games, came away with a split, losing to Bellevue 46-39 on Saturday, then responded on Monday with a mega 63-53 victory over Norwayne.
For a program like Hiland, which is accustomed to playing in high-pressure games in the regular season over the years, talked about the stiff test of facing a defending state champion one night, then a defending state finalist a day later.
“Obviously, these two teams are very good. Probably the best we’ve seen all season,” said Hiland center Reagan Zerger, after the win over Norwayne on Monday. “We just wanted to take away the bad things we did in the Bellevue game and turn it around for this game. We did pretty well in executing that.”
The “bad things” Zerger spoke on specifically about the Bellevue game was how much better the Hawks finished late in the game against Norwayne compared to versus Bellevue.
On Saturday, Hiland and Bellevue were tied at 35-all heading into the fourth quarter and with the game tied at 37-37 with around four minutes to go, Bellevue finished the game on a 9-2 run to notch a seven-point victory. Lady Red’s full-court press and sound shot selection was a key factor down the stretch.
“That’s one of our goals that we talked about in the locker room at halftime,” Zerger said. “We needed to finish better than we did on Saturday night and we did that.”
“It’s exactly what we talked about the last two games. Making game-winning plays,” said Hiland head coach Brady Schlabach. “We didn’t do that in the fourth quarter of the Bellevue game. Tonight, we were more than willing to make those tonight like getting to those loose balls. Our kids made shots and when you make shots, you feel a lot better.”
The shot-making part down the stretch that Schlabach referred to against Norwayne came from sophomore guard Perryn Mishler (31 points), who’s crucial eight consecutive points scored in a two-minute period late in the fourth quarter, extended the Hawks lead from 52-49 to 60-49.
“They are both two great teams. After a tough loss to Bellevue, we just wanted to come out and leave it all on the court and our coaches did a great job preparing us,” said Mishler. “We just came in after our loss to Bellevue at 9 a.m. on Sunday and got back to work and were ready for it.”
A big difference in both games for Hiland was its three-point shooting.
The Hawks shot just 5.8 percent from distance (1-for-17) against Bellevue, while the Lady Red shot it a little better, making six 3-pointers (6-for-25). On Monday, Hiland found its shooting form, making 55 percent of its 3-pointers (11-for-20) versus Norwayne, which struggled from behind the arc shooting 12.5 percent (2-for-16).
Stylistically, both Norwayne and Bellevue presented different challenges for Hiland.
Schlabach added that Bellevue played at a slower pace, while Norwayne was a quicker team.
“Bellevue was a little more of a half-court team. We had to sit down and really defend,” he said. “Both teams tonight ran well in transition and we didn’t do a great job of stopping Norwayne in transition but we hit some big shots in transition.”
However, what Hiland had to deal with was matching up with both Norwayne and Bellevue inside with post players in Norwayne’s 6-foot-1 Hannah Froelich (18 points, 12 rebounds vs Hiland) and Bellevue’s 6-foot-3 Kaitlyn Turnisky (12 points, 16 rebounds).
The 5-foot-10 Zerger had the assignment against Turnisky on Saturday, then Froelich on Monday, and she held her own in both games. The junior had 13 points and six rebounds versus Bellevue and 18 points, five assists and three rebounds against Norwayne.
“Both post players that I had to guard in both games were very physical, very strong and very good rebounders,” said Zerger. “I’m grateful I got to play against them. That made me a better player.”
“We had different gameplans. We were very focused on Bellevue’s post. Norwayne’s post is also great,” Mishler said. “Our post did a great job guarding their post. I would say rebounding was a huge thing in both games.”
For a 12-4 Hiland team that has state aspirations and were Division VII regional finalists last season (the Hawks played the two games without one of their top players in senior guard Evie Mast), playing in back-to-back games against two high-end teams that could also find itself back in Dayton come March, will only prepare them even more.
Said Zerger, “That helps us prepare for the tournament.”
“I think we learned we can win big games,” said Schlabach. “That we can beat really good teams. To see that fight in their eyes to win was pretty cool.”
“Our goal every year is to win state,” said Mishler. “These games prepare us for that. Even in a loss, then in a win. Both teams are great and prepares us.”
jamessimpson@gannett.com
Twitter/X: @JamesSimpsonII
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Inside Hiland girls basketball’s stiff two-game stretch versus state powers
Reporting by James Simpson II, Wooster Daily Record / The Daily Record
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