Carson Francis, Contributor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
THE PLAINS — For anyone who loves low-scoring, defensive battles, you couldn’t have asked for a better matchup on Monday.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Notre Dame fought tooth and nail, and despite not putting together its best offensive game, its defensive effort was rewarded as the Titans (19-5) managed to grind out a narrow 34-30 win over South Webster in a Division IV district semifinal.
What made the victory extra sweet was getting a measure of revenge after falling to the Jeeps by a 39-36 final back on Jan. 14.
“It was a good night for us after making this long trip late at night,” Notre Dame coach Matt Mader said. “Our guys battled and it wasn’t pretty, but they kept fighting and did just enough down the stretch to win.”
The game was a stalemate down to the very end.
Both teams found themselves deadlocked 7-7 at the end of the first quarter, and again tied at 17 at halftime.
Despite the lack of offensive success, the Titans were not discouraged and trusted in their defensive efforts throughout the night.
“We have grit and I knew we were going to come out and fight,” Notre Dame’s Dominic Sparks said. “It wasn’t pretty on offense but we came to play on defense and that was pretty much our game plan.”
Once the second half started, Notre Dame’s ability to get stops on defense finally led to some opportunities on the other end.
The Titans began the half on a 5-0 run after a bucket inside from Sparks and a 3-pointer from Cody Metzler. The small offensive spark was attributed mostly to the rebounding of Carter Campbell.
“We’re a very selfless team. Not one guy on this team is a selfish player,” Campbell said. “I think we can go out there and trust that the guy next to us can make a play when we need them to.”
After Notre Dame extended its lead to 27-20 with 2:33 left in the third quarter, it looked as though the Titans were set to run away with it. But South Webster (15-9) wasn’t ready to call it quits just yet.
Following a timeout, Jaren Lower stole the ball and drove straight to the basket for two points while drawing a foul. After knocking down the bonus free throw, Lower fired from long range on the next possession for a personal 6-0 run.
In a moment’s time, the Jeeps were right back in the game with the lead down to just a point before Notre Dame’s Landon Barbarits connected on a bucket to give Notre Dame a 29-26 lead heading into the fourth.
It was in the final eight minutes of the game where the Titans decided they wanted it just a little more.
“We didn’t stop all night,” Campbell, who finished the game with 14 rebounds, said. “The resilience on this team is amazing. We knew the fourth quarter was big and we stepped up to the occasion.”
Late in the game, the two teams once again found themselves tied at 30-30. With 1:08 to go, Sparks snatched an offensive rebound and exploded up for a put-back to give the Titans a 32-30 lead. Later, with 21.5 seconds remaining, Metzler knocked down the front end of a one-and-one to extend the lead to 33-30.
With time running out, the Jeeps had one final chance to tie the game and extend their season.
And with just a few seconds left on the clock, South Webster had a wide-open look from outside, but its shot didn’t connect as the Titans punched their district final tickets.
“I thought we handled the pressure a lot better tonight than we did the first time we played them,” Mader said after the game. “Kudos to [South Webster], but I’m proud of the work our guys have put in and we’re just excited to move on.”
Notre Dame was led in scoring by Sparks with a game-high 11 points, followed by Metzler with 10 points.
For the Jeeps, Lower led the way with nine points off the bench. Right behind him was Connor Bender with eight points, while Will Collins contributed seven points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Titans now advance to a Division IV district final at 8 p.m. on Thursday at Ohio University’s Convocation Center against Federal Hocking, who defeated Eastern to advance.
“It’s been a dream of ours since we were kids,” Sparks said on the Titans’ upcoming trip to the Convo. “We’re definitely excited and we’re going to come back tomorrow and have another day of practice and work.”
“We only have two district titles in our program’s history,” coach Mader added. “We’re excited for the opportunity. Federal Hocking is a very good team. They can get up and down the floor and they have guys at all five positions that can shoot. But we’re going to enjoy this win tonight and get back to work tomorrow.”
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