DUNLAP — Taylor Miller was eager to get back at Warsaw and to get back in the sectional championship game Friday, Feb. 8.

Her Northridge Raiders lost to the Tigers 52-39 on Jan. 5. Northridge lost the sectional championship last year by a bucket.

In order to get a shot at both chances for revenge, the Raiders had to get past Goshen (14-8) first. Miller led Northridge there to the tune of 19 points and a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc in a 45-38 victory.

“Taylor was outstanding,” Northridge coach Doug Springer said. “As a sophomore, I’m telling you, she’s one of the top sophomores in the area. Unfortunately for her, she’s our sixth man, but she’d probably be a starter for most of the other teams in our area.”

Miller’s sure-handed shooting helped the Raiders (19-4) fend off a late Goshen surge.

The rest of the game played out fairly evenly. Both teams finished with 15 field goals, 10 turnovers, 19 fouls and 16 rebounds. Where Northridge prevailed — and Goshen fell — was at the free throw line.

The Raiders finished 5-for-10 from the line, while the Redskins struggled at 7-for-20.

“Our kids came out hard tonight and held their own against a very good team,” Goshen coach Lenny Krebs said. “And the fact that we’re just talking about missed free throws says a lot about how far along our team’s come. As frustrating as this moment is, I am proud of those kids and how hard they’ve worked.”

Goshen senior Aimee Swihart led all scorers — and a handful of Redskins rallies — with 21 points and four assists.

Earlier in the evening, Concord was faced with the triple-threat of Jennifer Walker-Crawford, Lindsay Baker and Nikki Grose.

But while Concord (6-17) was preoccupied with what coach Dan Ross called “the three-headed monster,” Brooklyn Harrison came off the bench to score 11 points and grab five steals for the Tigers (21-1).

Between Warsaw’s three double-digit scorers and a lock-down defense that held Concord to six points in the first half, the Tigers locked down a place in the sectional championship with a 59-21 win.

Concord’s Jade Iavagnilio hit two quick 3s early in the game before Warsaw embarked on 21-0 scoring run in the first half. The Minutemen didn’t score a 2-point bucket until the third quarter.

“We had been working all week on attacking in the paint,” Ross said. “In the first half, we didn’t take one shot in that area. We just felt like if we could make a run and put a little pressure on them ... and they just did not turn the ball over.”

The Tigers only lost the ball once the entire second half while Concord finished with 23 total.

Warsaw and Northridge will face off Saturday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m. The winner will mark the first non-Memorial sectional champion since Penn in 2003.



Class 4A Concord Sectional

Semifinals

Warsaw 59, Concord 21

Concord — Jade Iavagnilio 3-5 0-0 9, MacKenzie Rutter 1-3 0-0 2, Anna Heck 0-6 2-2 2, Shanice Matthews 0-0 0-0 0, Michelle Detwiler 0-1 0-0 0, Dayana Watson 0-2 1-2 1, Taylor Milnamow 0-1 1-2 1, Breona Bloch 2-4 0-2 4, Keaonna Clopton 0-2 0-0 0, Jenna Makin 1-3 0-0 2, Rachel Haha 0-0 0-0 0, Chloe Emerick 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 7-27 (.259) 4-10 (.400) 21.

Warsaw — Melanie Holladay 3-7 0-0 6, Eryn Leek 2-3 0-0 6, Jennifer Walker-Crawford 4-5 3-4 11, Lindsay Baker 3-5 2-2 9, Nikki Grose 4-6 2-3 10, Brooklyn Harrison 5-7 1-2 11, Sarah Ray 0-2 2-2 2, Pam Miller 1-1 0-0 2, Gabby Monroy 1-2 0-0 2, Vicki Harris 0-2 0-0 0.. Totals: 22-40 (.550) 10-13 (.769) 59.

Scoring By Quarters

Concord 6 0 9 6 — 21

Warsaw 14 17 17 11 — 59

3-point goals: Concord (3-9) — Leek 2, Baker; Warsaw (3-9) — Iavagnilio 3.

Rebounds: Concord (20) — Heck 6; Warsaw (15) — Baker 4, Grose 4.

Steals: Concord (1) — Watson; Warsaw (16) — Harrison 5.

Turnovers: Concord 23, Warsaw 9.

Fouls: Concord 13, Warsaw 10.

Officials: Tom Hinz, John Wright, Russ Melcher.

Records: Concord 6-17; Warsaw 21-1.

Northridge 45, Goshen 38

Northridge — Brianne O’Dell 0-1 1-2 1, Morgan Miller 3-9 0-0 6, Haley Schrock 2-4 0-3 4, Madison Schrock 4-7 1-2 11, Mikalea Zook 1-4 0-0 2, Taylor Miller 5-10 6-6 19, Molly Bontrager 0-1 2-2 2. Totals: 15-36 (.469) 10-15 (.667) 45.

Goshen — Christina Gipson 0-1 0-2 0, Olivia Love 4-5 0-6 8, Aimee Swihart 8-15 4-7 21, Kayci Troyer 1-2 1-1 3, Deja Felder 2-3 1-2 5, Yadira Cabrales 0-3 1-2 1, Leslie Vandlandingham 0-0 0-0 0, Desiray Brown 0-1 0-0 0, Alyssa Hershberger 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 15-28 (.536) 7-20 (.350) 38.

Scoring By Quarters

Northridge 17 13 8 7 — 45

Goshen 9 10 11 8 — 38

3-point goals: Northridge (5-12) — Miller 3, M. Schrock 2; Goshen (1-11) — Swihart.

Rebounds: Northridge (16) — O’Dell 6; Goshen (17) — Troyer 9.

Steals: Northridge (6) — H. Schrock 3; Goshen (2) — Love, Swihart.

Turnovers: Northridge 10, Goshen 10.

Fouls: Northridge 19, Goshen 19. Fouled out — M. Miller, Swihart.

Officials: John Walczewski, Bruce Wirick, Darrell Watson.

Records: Northridge 19-4; Goshen 14-8.

Next: Northridge vs. Warsaw Saturday, Feb. 9, in championship of Class 4A Concord Sectional, 7 p.m.