Hiland 57, Lutheran East 52  Overtime

Hiland coach Dave Schlabach said last summer that Lutheran East quite possibly will be the best girls' basketball team in Division IV this season. He added that in order to secure yet another state tournament berth, his Lady Hawks will have to go through the Falcons.

Schlabach's prediction was dead-on.

Noelle Yoder hit a 3-pointer to force overtime, and Hilary Weaver was golden from the line during the extra session as No. 2 Hiland came back to beat No. 9 Lutheran East by five in the Division IV Sweet 16 on March 11 at Perry High at Massillon.

"That was an amazing finish," Hiland coach Dave Schlabach said. "It was a battle. I was impressed with Lutheran East tonight."

Jessica Stutzman heaved a full-court inbounds to Weaver, who quickly dished cross-court to Yoder on the left baseline for a 3-pointer to pull Hiland to its first tie at 44-all, forcing overtime.

"That play we ran twice this summer, and both times she hit game-winning shots," Schlabach said of Yoder's shot. "She's just that kind of kid. She wants the ball so bad in that situation... It did not surprise me when that thing went in."

In overtime, Hiland stole all the swagger that Lutheran East owned for the previous four quarters.

Weaver hit 8 of 9 foul shots, including a pair that gave the Lady Hawks their biggest lead at 56-50 with 22 seconds to go.

Weaver finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists. With five dimes, Weaver surpassed idol Launa Hochstetler as the program's all-time assist leader with 589. Hochstetler ended her career in 2005 with 587.

Yoder kicked in 21 points and six rebounds for Hiland, which never led until overtime and trailed by as many as eight in the third quarter.

Hiland struggled driving against a bigger, taller Lutheran East team, and shot 39 percent (18 of 46) overall. Yoder hit five 3-pointers to boost the Lady Hawks' perimeter offense.

Conversely, Lutheran East struggled against Hiland's defense, shooting 36 percent (20 of 55) from the floor.

Lutheran East led 23-19 at half and 37-36 going into the final period.

Hiland 43, Cuyahoga Heights 22

Tired legs weren't enough to stop Hiland as it rolled past Cuyahoga Heights and into the Division IV state tournament for the 11th time.

Katelyn Stuckey had her best tournament game at the best possible time, scoring 14 points and lifting Hiland to a 21-point victory over Cuyahoga Heights and into the state tournament on March 13 at Perry High.

Hiland is making its six appearance at the state tournament in seven years (2004, 05, 06, 08, 09, 10), and is vying for its fourth title in six years (2005, 06, 08) and fifth overall (2000).

"This was a challenge, we were tired," Hiland coach Dave Schlabach said. "We were physically and mentally spent. That game the other night [Lutheran East] took a lot out of us."

Lacking a post game against a taller, more physical Falcons team a game earlier, Hiland pounded the paint early with Stuckey scoring six in the first to get things underway.

"We knew we had a post advantage, and we had to take advantage of that," Stuckey said. "We work on post-entry passes a lot during practice and those really paid off tonight."

Hiland shot better than it had since the sectional tournament, making 46 percent (17 of 37) of its shots from the field.

The Lady Hawks had a quick start and led 14-2 after one quarter and 22-12 at half. The Lady Hawks outscored the Redskins 15-8 in the third to take a 37-20 advantage with eight minutes to go. Hiland then took it easy in the fourth, hitting just one field goal - a Noelle Yoder 3-pointer - on seven tries.

Hilary Weaver scored seven points and added to her all-time assist tally with five dimes. Yoder added five points for the Lady Hawks, the second-ranked team in the final AP poll.

Cuyahoga Heights couldn't get much going against Hiland's defense, shooting 27 percent (8 of 30) from the floor and committing 17 turnovers.