BUCYRUS, Ohio — A spirited halftime discussion roused Shelby from its first-half slumber Wednesday at Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium.
After sleep-walking through the opening 16 minutes of the Division II sectional semifinals, the Whippets came to life in the second half and rumbled to a 56-32 win over Lexington.
Fourth-seeded Shelby (17-6) will play No. 5 Sandusky Perkins for a sectional title at 6:15 p.m. Saturday at Bucyrus.
“I kind of felt like we were on another planet. We were pretty flat in the first half,” Shelby coach Natalie Lantz said. “I gave them a little chat, a little talking-to, at the half. What I liked was, after I talked to them, they huddled up in the hallway and had a conversation among themselves.
“You saw in the second half more of what we are capable of.”
Leading 26-21 at the break, the Whippets outscored Lady Lex (2-21) 30-11 the rest of the way. Shelby committed just four turnovers in the second half after coughing it up 17 times in the first two quarters.
“We did a better job of taking care of the basketball and we finally started moving on offense,” Lantz said. “Defensively, we did a better job of communicating and rotating.
“We were able to dictate the tempo and that led to some easy transition baskets.”
Not Without a Fight: Leading 12-8 after the first quarter, the Whippets opened the second on an 8-2 run and took a 20-10 lead on freshman forward Bailey Walter’s offensive rebound and putback with 5:47 to play in the half. Lady Lex refused to go quietly, however, outscoring Shelby 11-6 the rest of the quarter. Junior forward Courtney Gouge jump-started the rally with a steal and layup with 4:50 remaining. Gouge’s layup with 1:12 to play before halftime cut Shelby’s lead to 23-20.
“In the past, we may have folded up our tents when we fell behind 20-10,” Lexington coach Brian Thompson said. “These girls kept competing. I think we played our best half of the year.”
Game-Breaker: Shelby took control in the third, outscoring Lexington 17-5. The Whippets scored 10 unanswered points to open the period and took a 36-21 lead on Maddi Fidler’s layup with 2:11 to play. Lexington’s first points of the quarter came on Gouge’s traditional three-point play with 1:37 remaining.
“The changed up their defense a little bit and really gave us some headaches,” Thompson said. “I think we kind of ran out of gas there.”
Balance: Sienna King led Shelby’s balanced attack with 15 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Fidler and Kennadie Goth had nine points apiece, while Jackie Garrett added seven.
The Whippets were 18 of 42 from the field, connecting on 5 of 6 3-pointers.
Gouge led the way for Lady Lex with 14 points. Abigail Adams added 11.
On the Rise: Lexington will lose just one senior, Brooke Thompson, to graduation. Lady Lex will also welcome back talented sophomore forward Julia Kocher, who missed the entire season after injuring her knee during the volleyball season.
“We have a talented eight-grade class that will be moving up,” Thompson said. “The future looks bright for Lady Lex basketball.”
Rematch: Sandusky Perkins knocked Shelby from the tournament last year in the sectional championship game at Willard.
“They are a well-coached team and a very patient team,” Lantz said of the Pirates. “We’re going to have to play better than we did tonight. It’s all about surviving and advancing now.”
