Girls basketball: Millers grab wins over Norwell, Valpo to win Noblesville Holiday Tournament

By CRAIG ADKINS

For The Reporter

NOBLESVILLE – Saturday’s Noblesville Holiday Tournament was quite the competitive four-team field. It took a pair of intense wins, but the Millers were able to grind out two solid wins to claim the championship.

The first game of the day saw the Millers head to overtime to overcome 3A No. 7 Norwell, 73-71 and then fought off a feisty Valparaiso squad in the championship, 43-37.

Noblesville 73, Norwell 71 (OT)

The Millers jumped out to an 11-0 lead before the Norwell Knights could blink. At 9-0, the Knights burned a 30-second timeout just over two minutes into the first.

The Knights woke up and scored 13 to Noblesville’s 10 during the rest of the first for a 21-13 Miller lead.
Norwell started off 10-4 in the second to take a 26-25 advantage. Fending off the Knights, the Millers took the remainder of the second, 9-7, for a slim 34-33 halftime score.

“Norwell shot very well and battled hard the entire game,” said Noblesville head coach Donna Buckley.

Meredith Tippner gave Noblesville a 60-58 edge on a fast break.

The game would be tied at 41, 56 and 58 before a Vanessa Rosswurm offensive rebound putback tied it at 60-60 with 12.2 seconds. Norwell took a timeout, but neither found the bottom of the net, sending it to the extra four minutes.

Norwell got off to a 68-62 margin to begin the OT. Then came the turning point with 2:24 left for the Millers. Rosswurm would foul out. Tippner scored four in a row to cut it to 68-66.

Ashley Waldman knocked down a three from the right for a 71-66 Knight lead.

Consecutive baskets from C.C. Quigley, Tippner and Kate Rollins, along with a Tippner free throw with 6.5 seconds remaining were exactly what the Millers ordered, sending them to the championship with a 73-71 win.

“We had several kids make big plays late to help us find a way to win. Our defense forced several turnovers in the OT to help us find out way back in,” Buckley continued.

Norwell (10-5) got three into double figures. Rosswurm had 28 points on 10 total field goals and 4-for-5 free throws. Macie Saalfrank had 19, knocking down five from outside. Ashley Waldman netted 10 for the Knights.

Noblesville was led by Tippner’s 33 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals. Kate Rollins scored a career-high 16 points on six field goals, while also dishing out six assists and three steals. C.C. Quigley was solid with 14 points, nine boards and three assists.

Championship: Noblesville 43, Valparaiso 37

Noblesville got off to another great start, leading the Vikings 6-0 and eventually 14-6 through one quarter.

The Millers used an 8-2 run to grab its largest lead at 22-8. Valpo called a full timeout with 5:55 left in the half after Ally Hutchinson scored on a fast break for 19-8. Quigley drained a three for the 14-point score.

Valparaiso went on a 9-0 spree themselves to trim the lead to 22-17, forcing a Noblesville timeout. They would each score four more to close out the half for a 26-19 Miller halftime advantage.

“They were very physical. They made it hard to get anything on a post up,” Buckley stated. “We had to work hard to get anything going on offense.”

Another 9-2 run for Noblesville stretched it back to 14 at 35-21, but that was short-lived. Valpo scored 11 straight to trail 35-32 through three.

Cadynce Clark drilled a three from the right wing to tie it 35-35. That had Noblesville spend a 30 second timeout with 6:29 left.

Eight points in a row for Noblesville came from Quigley and Rollins scoring on offensive rebound putbacks, along with the final four from Tippner to hold on for the 43-37 win.

“We had a lot of offensive rebounds that helped us get the win,” Buckley said.

The Millers finished with 29 rebounds overall, 13 offensive, which helped keep them over the top for their second win of the day.

“We played well versus Valpo. We got tired, but roughed it out with some huge stops. We had a lot of kids step up all day. I am so proud of the kids. They battled and never quit. They are a special group of kids,” Buckley continued.

Valparaiso (9-6) got two in double-figures for the majority of their scoring. Lillian Barnes tied for game-high honors with 18 and 10 rebounds, with Cadynce Clark scoring 10.

Noblesville (10-3) was led by Tippner’s game-high 18 to go with 17 rebounds, five assists and four steals. Ally Hutchinson helped the balanced scoring with eight, while both Rollins and C.C. Quigley scored seven.

“We had several kids hit big shots. We are finding balance in scoring with this group. It has been so fun to watch them develop confidence in themselves and each other,” said Buckley.

To get to the championship, Valparaiso knocked off Fort Wayne Snider, 59-41, in the second game of the day. Norwell won the consolation game over Snider, 68-58.

The Millers are off until Jan. 4 when they head northeast to play in the Huntington North Classic. The Whitko Wildcats (8-2) play the host Huntington North Vikings (9-5) at 10:30 a.m. in the first game. Fort Wayne Northrop (9-3) and Noblesville (10-3) tangle in the second game just after 12 p.m. The consolation is slated for 5:30 p.m. with the championship to follow.