MORGANTOWN – University High School girls’ basketball head coach Nick Lusk and his club knew it would take a strong effort from all five players in his starting lineup to be successful in Tuesday’s Class AAAA Region I co-final against visiting Wheeling Park.
Lusk and the Hawks got precisely what was needed from that group as they punched their ticket to the state tournament in Charleston with a decisive 65-35 victory over the defending Class AAAA state champion Patriots.
Senior Hannah Stemple led all scorers in the game with 20 points, with junior Bri Fox adding 18 and senior Lexi Simpson netting 14 to go along with nine rebounds.
Senior Julia Maisel filled the stat sheet with six points, five steals, four assists, and three rebounds.
Duquesne signee Alexis Bordas led the Patriots with 19 points.
“Right now, I can’t put it into words,” Lusk said about his feelings after the victory. “This is such a special group. These four seniors are very special to me, and getting them down to Charleston has been a huge goal of ours. I’m very proud of this team.”
The UHS starting five of Julia Maisel, Hannah Stemple, Lexi Simpson, Alexa Johnson, and Brianna Fox accounted for all but four of the Hawks’ 65 points in the contest, and all scored at least one field goal in the opening half.
Despite the offensive success at halftime, the game began slowly for both sides scoring the ball as the Hawks only led 4-0 midway through the first quarter.
Foul trouble played a role early for Wheeling Park as it accrued five team fouls with 3:27 left in the frame. This put UHS in the bonus and allowed them to pull ahead by eight, 14-6.
After shooting 0 for 5 from three-point range in the first quarter, Bordas opened the second with a triple, but that would be the only points for the Patriots for the next five minutes until she hit her second three late in the frame.
The Hawks went on a 12-0 run after Bordas’s initial triple and went to the locker room leading 30-12 at halftime.
Bordas was the only Patriot to register a point in the first two quarters, as the rest of her team missed all nine shot attempts. Wheeling Park shot 5 for 25 in the first half.
“We didn’t have Alexa Johnson the last time we played them when they beat us, and we needed all five of our starters tonight,” Lusk said. “They play so well together as a group and I think having her out there helped. We prepared so much for this game, and the girls did a nice job of executing.”
Park’s Maggie Hupp became the first Patriot other than Bordas to score with a layup to open the second half. While the Hawks didn’t score for the opening four minutes of the third, Wheeling Park also struggled offensively.
Simpson got the UHS offense going with a layup at the 4:20 mark, opening the floodgates for the remainder of the frame.
The Hawks scored all of their 19 points in the third after nearly half of the quarter had passed and held a 49-23 lead heading into the final eight minutes.
“Closing the way we did in the first three quarters was big,” Lusk said. “We just told them to dig deep. I know they were tired, but I told them they had to suck it up and finish the game strong.”
UHS outscored Wheeling Park 16-12 in the fourth to secure a share of the Region I championship and advance to the state tournament for the first time since the 2019-202 season was cut short due to COVID. The Hawks were set to play Parkersburg in the semifinals before the cancelation.
“I don’t even know what I’m feeling right now,” said Stemple. “This group is one of the best groups I’ve had the honor to play with. We click so well as a team on and off the court. It really helps with our chemistry. Being able to accomplish this with this group of girls is so special to me.”
BOX SCORE
University 65, Wheeling Park 35
WP 6 6 11 12 – 35
UHS 12 16 19 16 – 65
Wheeling Park (15-9) – Bordas 7 2-2 19 Miller 2 0-2 5 Hupp 4 0-2 8
University (14-7) – Stemple 8 2-2 20 Fox 7 3-4 18 Simpson 6 2-4 14 Maisel 2 2-2 6 Johnson 0 3-4 3 Cox 1 0-0 2
3pt goals made: Wheeling Park 4 (Bordas 3 Miller 1); University 3 (Stemple 2 Fox 1)
