Late rally lifts Lynnville-Sully past Wildcats

TAMA -- The improbable dream died a bitter death.Tara Van Rees spearheaded a fierce late rally as ninth-ranked Lynnville-Sully outlasted Central City, 42-38, in a Class 1A girls' basketball regional final Monday night at Meskawki Settlement School.Van Rees scored nine points as the Hawkettes (20-4) ended the game with a 14-1 run and advanced to the state tournament. They'll face No. 2 Ar-We-Va in the first round at 5 p.m. next Monday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines."I wasn't ready to be done yet," Van Rees said. "It's my senior year, and I wanted to make it back to state."Central City retired at 16-9, its first winning season since making the switch to five-player basketball in 1993-94. Midnight struck for this Cinderella at about 8:10 Monday night."It was a great (postseason) run," said Central City junior Rachael Enabnit. "We beat all odds. I think we wanted it more, but they threw up some shots at the end that went in."When Meghan Simmons nailed a 3-pointer with 6 minutes to go to extend Central City's lead to 37-28, it appeared the Wildcats were Des Moines-bound. But Van Rees drilled a trey of her own, and the comeback was on for the more experienced, tradition-rich Hawkettes.Van Rees followed with a layup and a driving hoop, then Brianna James added a drive of her own to tie it, 37-37, with 3:10 to go.Tanya Hendrickson's free throw gave Central City a one-point edge, but James made a free throw to get the Hawkettes even, then scored inside to give Lynnville-Sully its first lead of the game, 40-38, with 1:27 left.Van Rees extended the margin to four with a pair of free throws, and Central City couldn't get off a good shot to counter."I think our experience had something to do with it," said Lynnville-Sully Coach Jerry Hulsing, who will take his seventh team to state. "The kids believed the whole time they were going to win."Van Rees finished with 14 points for the winners; James posted 12 points and 11 rebounds.Enabnit led Central City with 14 points, 12 in the first half as the Wildcats took a 20-14 lead into the locker room."I came out inspired," Enabnit. "We all did."Wildcats Coach Cody Ratliff said, "We were ready for them. It's unfortunate it ended the way it did."Hendrickson added 11 points. Simmons hit three 3-pointers in the second half. But each time she hit one to give the Wildcats some cushion, the Hawkettes countered quickly.Simmons' first trey made it 25-16, a nine-point margin the Wildcats matched on Simmons' final long-range shot with 6 minutes left.That was the Wildcats' final field goal."I think the biggest key was that we started rebounding the basketball," Hulsing said. "And they missed a few shots down the stretch they had made earlier in the game."

AT TAMA

CENTRAL CITY (38): Rachael Enabnit 6-11 2-6 14, Christy Nelson 1-6 0-0 2, Tanya Hendrickson 4-14 3-5 11, Vanessa Fiechtner 1-6 0-0 2, Meghan Simmons 3-7 0-1 9, Sam Nielsen 0-0 0-0 0, Kelsey Kellogg 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-44 5-10 38.

LYNNVILLE-SULLY (42): Abby Van Wyk 2-10 0-0 6, Taylor Van Wyk 0-0 0-1 0, Tara Van Rees 5-13 2-3 14, Danielle Samson 2-3 0-1 4, Brianna James 4-8 4-6 12, Caitlin Cross 0-1 0-2 0, McKenzi Ritter 2-2 0-0 6, Aimee Rolffs 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 15-39 6-13 42.

Halftime: Central City 20, Lynnville-Sully 14.

3-point goals: Central City 3-11 (Nelson 0-3, Fiechtner 0-2, Simmons 3-6), Lynnville-Sully 6-20 (A.Van Wyk 2-8, Van Rees 2-8, Ritter 0-2, Rolffs 0-2).

Team fouls: Central City 15, Lynnville-Sully 17.

Fouled out: none.

Rebounds: Central City 31 (Fiechtner 8), Lynnville-Sully 31 (James 11).

Assists: Central City 8 (Fiechtner 5), Lynnville-Sully 8 (Van Rees 3).

Steals: Central City 5 (Fiechtner 2), Lynnville-Sully 4 (Van Rees 2). 

Turnovers: Central City 9, Lynnville-Sully 8.