Westfield girls basketball advances to State

It was really anyone’s game during a WIAA Sectional Final game between Westfield’s Lady Pioneers and Amherst’s Lady Falcons. At first it was not looking good for the Westfield, who was down for a majority of the game, but a miraculous second half helped secure a spot at State for the Lady Pioneers, with a final score of 58-55.

“That was a great high school basketball game.  The energy in the gym throughout the game was electric,” commented Coach Luke Showen, “We were never really in control of the game until the final buzzer.  I am so proud of the girls for never giving an inch and always believing that we would come away with the win.”

The Lady Pioneers had quite the competition ahead of them with Amherst outsizing the home team. Westfield Senior, Lexi Brakebush, started things off on a high note for the team with a 3-pointer on the board. Amherst proved they were a force to be reckoned with quickly though, shooting four consecutive 2-pointers. Westfield was down by 7 in the first minutes of the half.

Lady Pioneer Carly Drew tied the game at 14, but Amherst was quick on their feet and snagged the lead back before the first half finished. A Westfield 3-point shot at the buzzer ended the half 25-29, which helped lower the Amherst lead.

The Lady Pioneers needed to pick up their pace in the second half if they had any chance of catching up to their opponent. Nadia Hoffa was able to tie the game once again at 36 after shooting from the free throw line. A 3 from Hoffa had Pioneer fans jumping for joy as the team was in the lead by 1 point.

At this point in the game the ball took turns with both teams who took turns in the lead by 1 or 2 points. With 2 minutes left in the game Amherst was ahead 52-51. Brandi Lentz took quite the hit going up against an Amherst runner, which caused Kimmy Sengbusch to sub in while Lentz was checked out. Sengsbusch took over at the line, and went 2 for 2 getting Westfield to 53 points. Amherst was not slowing their momentum as they were able to hit another 3-pointer. With 1 minute left in the game, Carly Drew tied the teams at 55. The anticipation in the stands was unmatched as Trista Drew made her way to the line, going 1 for 2. The Lady Pioneers really took advantage of the free throw line when Brakebush went 2 for 2 for the winning shot.

“We face off against a very tough Aquinas team on Friday.  We will have four good practices and be ready for them.  We are looking forward to the challenge,” Coach Showen said.

Carly Drew was the top scorer of the Sectional game, with 15 points going towards the team. Lexi Brakebush came second at 13 points, with Brandi Lentz following with 12 of her own. Trista Drew and Nadia Hoffa each had 8 points during the night. Kimmy Sengbusch managed to get herself on the board with her 2 free throw shots as well.