Neumann girls play hard but Northumberland Christian reaches third straight district final

By CHRIS MASSE

cmasse@sungazette.com

MILTON–Northumberland Christian seemingly had an easy layup, but a blur coming from halfcourt changed everything. Lily Reid quickly made up 20 feet and broke up that potential third-quarter basket, knocking the ball free.

St. John Neumann suffered a devastating blow just 47 seconds into Saturday’s District 4 Class A semifinal against Northumberland Christian, but that did not dull its fight. The Knights competed hard, but played without leading scorer Sheiana Tutler most of the way and Norry broke things open in the second half, winning, 66-27. The Warriors (20-3) will play Lourdes in a rematch of last year’s district championship and try winning their third straight crown.

Neumann still has a shot at carving out a special place in program history and will try joining the 2014 squad as the only state qualifier there when it plays Meadowbrook Christian for third place at a time, place and date to be determined.

“We’ll take the positives out of it and know that we’re not done,” Neumann coach Helena Floyd said. “We have another chance to redeem ourselves and let them know that we’re still here.”

Two-time all-state point guard Emily Garvin scored 25 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and added five steals for Norry. Anna Ulmer (18 points, 15 rebounds) also produced a double-double and Jenika Krum added 13 points.

Neumann (11-11) was an underdog entering the game against a team returning three starters from last yearás state semifinalist. Still, the Knights had won five straight games and were confident they could give Norry a battle. They might have, too, but everything changed when Tutler was injured on a fastbreak in the game’s opening minute.

Coming off a career-high 29-point performance against Bucktail in the quarterfinals, Tutler was driving off the left wing when she planted her leg and tried cutting inside against the defender. Tutler, averaging nearly a double-double, was helped off the floor by Floyd and the trainer and did not return.

Neumann is hoping Tutler suffered just a sprain but her status was unknown at press time.

“We were ready for this and I definitely think it would have been a different game if she was able to play. We’re just praying for the best,” Floyd said. “She’s one of our top scorers so that kind of just put us all out of whack. That was hard to come back from.”

Still, Neumann initially responded well, tying the game three times in the first quarter, the last on Gigi Parlante’s 3-pointer. Norry led 18-13 after the first quarter and Reidás 3-pointer pulled Neumann within four early in the second. It was still a six-point game midway through the second quarter but Norry scored the half’s final seven points and took a 34-21 halftime lead.

The Warriors then showed exactly why they have been so dominant the last two years, putting together a virtuoso second-half performance. Norry outscored Neumann, 21-4 in the third quarter and its three returning starters scored 19 of those points.

The Ulmer sisters are both 6-footers, so losing Tutler hurt Neumann on the boards with those two grabbing 24 rebounds. Garvin plays with a non-stop relentless motor and was all over the court as well and Norry put everything together in that third quarter to deliver a knockout blow.

“I just tried to encourage them at halftime and let them know we’re in this game and let’s do this for her (Tutler),” Floyd said. “I think with her out of the game that’s where the height factor hurt. I think it would have been a good matchup inside with her, Gigi and Lizzie (Weller) against them. With her down, that kind of shifted everything.ã

Reid continued her strong play, scoring a game-high 11 points and adding seven rebounds. The junior guard has reached double figures in six of her last eight games and picked up where she left off against Bucktail, scoring seven second-quarter points to help keep Neumann in the game.

“Lily has not been feeling the best the last few days and you could kind of see it, but she’s a fighter. She’ll push through anything,” Floyd said. “You can tell when she’s not full 100 percent but she will always compete 100 percent.”

Parlante picked up her third foul late in the second quarter which dealt Neumann another blow. The sophomore still finished with eight points and seven rebounds. Weller added six points and nine rebounds, while Shanniyah Tutler made two steals.

NEUMANN (27)

Sheiana Tutler 0 0-0 0, Gigi Parlante 3 1-2 8, Lizzie Weller 3 0-3 6, Shanniyah Tutler 1 0-0 2, Lily Reid 5 0-0 11, Michelle Pierce 0 0-0 0, Ella Ballard 0 0-0 0, Jaden Nixon 0 0-0 0, Kylie Cendoma 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 1-5 27.

NORRY (66)

Emily Garvin 10 5-11 25, Anna Ulmer 8 1-3 18, Emma Ulmer 4 0-0 8, Jenika Krum 4 3-4 13, Eden Treas 0 0-0 0, Aubrie Hostetter 1 0-0 2. Totals 26 8-18 66.

Neumann 13 8 4 2-27

Norry 18 16 21 11-66

3-pointers: Neumann 2 (Parlante, Reid); Norry 3 (Krum 2, A. Ulmer).

Records: Norry 20-3. Neumann 11-11.