STATE CHAMPS: Calhoun girls get revenge on Moweaqua Central A&M
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NORMAL – The outcome of last year's IHSA Class 1A girls basketball state championship game left a bitter taste in the mouths of Hardin-Calhoun.
The loss to Moweaqua Central A&M didn't sit well with the Warriors, who vowed to return to Illinois State's Redbird Arena to finish the job.
That they did – and it didn't come easily, the Warriors having to go to overtime but getting a pair of free throws each from Grace and Emma Baalman in the final 20 seconds of the extra session to dethrone the Raiders 60-56 in Saturday afternoon's state championship game.
“The girls did a very good job,” said Warrior coach Aaron Baalman. “We were able to move the ball around the perimeter in the second half better, and then getting the big girls back in the second half really helped.”
The game was tied at 11 at quarter time, but the Raiders held leads of 27-24 at the long break and 37-31 at three-quarter time before the Warriors came off the deck with an 18-13 final term to force extra time.
The Warriors never trailed by more than six points at any point in the game, but both Baalmans struggled in the first half, both of them drawing two fouls each. The Warriors rallied, however, even taking a 49-45 lead thanks to a Grace Baalman jumper with 3:28 left in the final quarter to give Calhoun a 47-45 lead, then Sydney White connecting on a pair of free throws with 2:32 to go to extend the lead.
It stayed that way most of the way down the stretch before the Raiders' Olivia Jordan connected on a three-ball with 40 seconds left to cut the Warrior lead to one, then the Raiders getting a lay-in from Mikah Maples with 16 seconds to go to put A&M back on top. Undaunted, the Warriors got a White free throw with 10 seconds left to tie it up at 50, but neither team could get the game-winner and the contest went into overtime.
Early in overtime, the Warriors got a pair of lay-ups from Grace Baalman to go ahead 54-50, but the Raiders got two free throws from Emma Meyer and another pair of free throws from Abigail Hilton with 1:56 left to forge another tie, this one at 54-54. Kassidy Klocke and Maples each traded free throws to even the game at 56 with 1:17 left but a couple of Raider misses and a foul with 21 seconds left from Ryan Dooley sent Emma Baalman to the line, where she connected twice to put the Warriors back on top 58-56. A Hilton foul with seven seconds to go put Grace Baalman on the line and she didn't miss to give the Warriors the final margin of victory.
Following last year's loss in the final, the Warriors vowed to return to finish the job, and they did just that. “We had some unfinished business we wanted to take care of, and we had some tremendous support from the community and the school,” Aaron Baalman said. “Winning the championship is really a great thing for the program and our community.
“It's a great feeling to win it; being around the girls and seeing how hard they worked to get here was exceptional. We have an exceptional group of girls here.”
Grace Baalman and Klocke led the Warriors with 17 p
oints each, with Klocke getting nine rebounds and Grace Baalman five. White added 11 points for Calhoun, who finished the season at 32-2; Emma Baalman added six points and four rebounds.
Meyer led the Raiders (32-2) with 17 points, with Maples scoring 16 points and adding eight rebounds; Hilton had eight points and eight rebounds.
A reception and celebration for the team is scheduled for approximately 8:30 tonight at the high school.
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