Xavier rallies past Washington in an MVC thriller

CEDAR RAPIDS — Tom Lilly wore a Grinch-themed tie Tuesday night.

“It was either this one, or one with a bunch of penguins skating,” he said.

He didn’t feel very Grinch-like after this one.

Freshman Libby Fandel played far beyond her years, and Lexi Beier sank two free throws with 6 seconds left to send Class 4A 10th-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier past 5A No. 11 Cedar Rapids Washington, 51-49, in a Mississippi Valley Conference girls’ basketball dandy Tuesday night at Washington High School.

“(Assistant coach Stephanie) Potts told me, I’d made these hundreds of times. I could do it in with my eyes closed,” Beier said.

She kept them open anyway, just in case.

Washington’s Hannah Stuelke, who registered 30 points and 10 rebounds, missed a contested 10-footer at the buzzer, and the Saints (7-2 overall, 3-1 MVC) scored the game’s final seven points.

Fandel, a volleyball/basketball wunderkind, scored 18 points despite taking just eight shots from the floor.

The 6-footer isn’t a starter; she’s part of the Saints’ second shift of five players. But she was on the floor throughout crunch time, and helped lead the Saints back from an eight-point fourth-quarter deficit.

“We push each other in practice,” she said. “I work on my shot a lot, and I was open for a lot of shots.”

Fandel was 6 of 8 from the floor, 4 of 5 from long range. This was her first — and only — experience against Stuelke, the University of Iowa signee.

“I’ve looked up to her for so long,” Fandel said. “She’s such a good player. We just wanted to help each other on defense and make it as tough as we could.”

Stuelke made 12 of 19 from the floor, 6 of 10 from the line.

“I thought we did an outstanding job on her,” Lilly said. “She got loose a couple of times, but we made her work for her points.”

Washington (6-3, 1-3) was without two starters, but led most of the way. Stuelke’s free throw gave the Warriors their largest lead, 39-31, with 6:57 to go.

But Fandel scored inside and followed with a 3-pointer, then Lexi Turner added a bucket — all in a 42-second span -- and it was a dogfight again.

With the Warriors up 49-44, Fandel scored on a drive with 1:16 to go, then added the game-tying 3-pointer at the 0:50 mark.

Washington came up empty after a steal, and Beier grabbed the rebound and was fouled.

She made both ends of the one-and-one, with her eyes wide open.

Fandel was the only Xavier player in double figures, but seven others contributed in the scoring column. Mary Kate Moeder tallied seven points. Maya Karl added nine rebounds to go with five points.

Jaliea Havel was a solid sidekick for Stuelke, posting 14 points for Washington.

Cedar Rapids Xavier 51, Cedar Rapids Washington 49

At C.R. Washington

C.R. XAVIER (51): Maya Karl 2-4 1-2 5, Lexi Beier 1-8 3-4 5, Madi Steger 2-6 0-0 4, Lexi Turner 2-7 1-2 6, Mary Kate Moeder 2-5 2-2 7, Emma Arnold 2-3 0-0 4, Riley Jonker 0-2 0-0 0, Sydney Huber 0-2 0-0 0, Libby Fandel 6-8 2-4 18, Kyla Mason 1-3 0-0 2, Ava Turner 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-48 9-14 51.

C.R. WASHINGTON (49): Jocelyn Doyle 1-4 0-0 2, Anna Peckosh 1-3 0-0 3, Marie Jackson 0-2 0-0 0, Hannah Stuelke 12-19 6-10 30, Deja Redmond 0-2 0-0 0, Jaliea Havel 5-13 3-4 14, Jamiah Malone 0-0 0-0 0, Lydia Jackson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-43 9-14 49.

C.R. Xavier 11 12 8 20 — 51

C.R. Washington 9 16 13 11 — 49

3-point goals: Xavier 6-22 (Beier 0-7, L. Turner 1-4, Moeder 1-4, Huber 0-2, Fandel 4-5), Washington 2-13 (Doyle 0-2, Peckosh 1-3, M. Jackson 0-1, Stuelke 0-2, Havel 1-5). Team fouls: Xavier 15, Washington 15. Fouled out: Havel. Rebounds: Xavier 26 (Karl 9), Washington 31 (Stuelke 10). Assists: Xavier 14 (Steger 4), Washington 6 (Doyle 3). Steals: Xavier 6 (Moeder 2), Washington 5 (five with 1). Turnovers: Xavier 7, Washington 15.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com