LOUDONVILLE − Smithville head coach Eric Nickles summed up best what he felt his team showed in their Division VI district semifinal outing with Loudonville on Tuesday evening.
“We wrote on our board, ‘Tough teams win.'”
That description was very accurate, as Smithville (14-10) had to tough out a hard-edged 46-44 road win in overtime over Loudonville (16-8) in a Division VI district semifinal, which was a rematch of last year’s district final between the two teams that Smithville won 42-31.
“We had to dig deep with two starters fouling out. Kids were in different spots,” said Nickles. “Both teams had some turnovers late in key situations but overall I thought we were tough. We battled in those situations and I’m proud of those kids.”
In many ways, this was a game where there wasn’t much separation between the two teams, with the score being tight the entire way and both teams turning the ball over down the stretch enough times to the point where ball possession became crucial.
After Smithville jumped out to an early 8-0 lead, Loudonville answered back and the score was tied at 13-13 after the first quarter. After a couple of lead changes in the second quarter, Smithville led by one 22-21 heading into halftime.
The Smithies came out with a 7-0 run in the third quarter (29-21 Smithville lead), then the Redbirds answered back with their own 7-0 run (29-28). By the time this game moved to the fourth quarter (Smithville led 31-30 going into the 4th quarter), you could feel that this one could go anyway.
With Smithville clinging onto a 41-39 lead with under 20 seconds to play, Loudonville senior Addison Wolford (team-high 20 points, made four 3-pointers), who was the Redbirds top performer, stepped up and made two key free throws to tie the game up that eventually went into overtime.
“That was crazy. I didn’t know what to think. I was really stressed out,” said Smithville senior forward/guard Leah Keib on the pressure she felt in the fourth quarter and overtime session. “I love playing with my friends and I just gotta trust them in those situations. Going into overtime, I was really excited and I was thinking we need to win this.”
Doing everything she can on the night to get her team back to another district final, Keib gave the Smithies the start they needed in OT. On a pick-and-roll play, Keib found Rebekah Keib for an assist, then two possessions later scored on a drive for two points, that gave Smithville a lead they would hold onto.
“I think them coming out scoring first was big,” said Loudonville head coach Daryl Young. “Then from there, it was pretty even. They hit their first shot and I think we had an empty possession. In overtime you really need to come out and establish yourself. They did and we didn’t.”
On a late steal by Wolford with seconds running down in overtime, she dribbled all the way down the court and extended for a layup just outside the paint area and missed it. A made basket would have sent the game into double overtime.
Asked afterwards, what was the key area his team needed to focus on the most in this year’s postseason meeting with Smithville, Young said, “Certainly contain Leah a little bit better than we did. That was different than last year because they had different players last year we had to key in on.”
Said Nickles, “We rely on Leah Keib a lot. She’s probably averaging close to 20 points per game in the second half of the year. As a senior, she’s playing her best at this time of the year. You trust her to make plays but other players stepped up.”
“In the season, when we loss some games, I didn’t score as much. It wasn’t that I put pressure on myself but I knew as a senior, I had to step up and make those plays,” Keib said, who finished with a game-high 24 points. “Whether it’s me shooting or me passing to get someone open shots. Sometimes it’s better to pass up a shot for another shot.”
For Loudonville, this was their second straight postseason being eliminated by Smithville but ended up as co-league champions in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference. They didn’t have starter Elly Hensel in Tuesday’s game (torn ACL at the end of the regular season) or junior guard and capable 20-point scorer Mya Vermilya for much of the season (played just eight games before tearing her ACL) but Young in his second year at Loudonville expressed his gratitude in being able to coach this group.
“These girls have blessed me immensely as a coach,” said Young. “The Lord has seen fit to bond the girls and I together as a family. The assistant coaches were great and the girls bonding, then winning the KMAC for the first time was a great memory for us.”
As for Smithville, they get a familiar face in Rootstown in Saturday’s district final (more on the matchup later in the week), who Smithville loss to last season in the Division VI regional final and who they just played about two weeks ago.
“We’re excited to get the opportunity again,” said Nickles.
jamessimpson@gannett.com
Twitter/X: @JamesSimpsonII
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: “Tough teams win” – Smithville earn every bit of Division VI district semifinal win over Loudonville
Reporting by James Simpson II, Wooster Daily Record / The Daily Record
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