Dexter rallies, hands second loss to Notre Dame girls

~ The Bulldogs held the lead entering the fourth quarter in a 60-54 loss to its Class 4 District 1 rival

In a much anticipated showdown between two district rivals, the Notre Dame girls basketball team had Dexter right where it wanted.

The Bulldogs (15-2) held a three-point lead heading into the final quarter on their home floor.

In the blink of an eye that lead was gone, Dexter took charge, and the Bearcats outlasted Notre Dame for a 60-54 win.

"That fourth quarter, we talked about at halftime about how we had to play defense because we let up too many points," Dexter senior Hannah Noe said. "That fourth quarter we just kind of buckled down and actually played defense and we got a lot of stops."

Notre Dame’s Kaitlin Welter beats Dexter´s Melanie McKuin to a rebound during Monday’s game at Notre Dame Regional High School. Dexter won 60-54. (Adam Vogler)

The Bulldogs' offense went into hiding in the final eight minutes.

Notre Dame did not score a basket in the fourth until 3 minutes and 10 seconds remained in the game.

The Bulldogs missed their first seven shots as Dexter (16-3) went on a 9-0 run to start the quarter to grab a 54-48 lead.

"I thought our girls stepped up and did an unbelievable job that fourth quarter defensively," Dexter coach Chad Allen said. "I think we limited them to six points. I just thought we really got down and guarded them extremely well in that fourth quarter."

Halle Lynch finally got Notre Dame on the board to cut the lead to 54-50, but Dexter scored the next three points and the Bulldogs never managed to seriously threaten after that.

"We got the looks we wanted and we got the shots we wanted, and we just didn't finish," Notre Dame coach Renee Peters said. "We just fizzled out. We didn't execute. We talked about that. Those are things we can fix."

Dexter was 10 of 14 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, including Noe's 7-of-8 performance in the final quarter.

The district rivals traded runs through the opening three quarters.

Dexter jumped out to a 20-15 first quarter lead with Noe leading the way with 10 points and Alison Jarrell hitting two 3-pointers.

Notre Dame managed to cut into the lead in the second quarter and took a 37-35 lead by halftime.

The Bulldogs forced six turnovers in the quarter and converted them into easy offense.

"Our defense is our bread and butter," Peters said. "These girls know what this game meant to them. They wanted it. They played hard. We were outsized a little bit, but nothing we shouldn't have been able to handle. They're a very good team. Dexter is a very reputable, very competitive team."

Notre Dame senior guard Annie Siebert scored 17 of her team-high 19 points in the opening half, including four 3-pointers.

"It carried us," Peters said about Siebert's first-half performance. "It kept us in the game. She stepped up. She was our leader out there. Annie -- that's just something you can't teach her -- she's a competitor."

Siebert capped off her first half with a baseline jumper with two seconds left to break a 35-35 tie.

Notre Dame connected on six of its seven 3-pointers for the game during the first half.

"We gave them a lot of open looks that first half," Allen said. "I couldn't believe we weren't matching up as well as we were. I thought the girls did a great job adjusting the second half and finding their shooters."

Notre Dame appeared to be building a solid lead midway through the third quarter. The Bulldogs used a 9-2 run to make it a 46-39 game with 2:30 left in the period.

Dexter rattled off a 6-0 run to make it a one point game before Taylor Feeney scored off an offensive rebound with four seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 48-45 lead.

"This game was definitely a game of runs," Allen said. "Coming in here, playing at Notre Dame, we knew it was going to be a tough one. It's a game of runs. I'm just glad our girls kept our composure and really gutted it out."

Dexter has defeated the Bulldogs three straight years in the Class 4 District 1 championship game.

"It is big because it's kind of momentum going into districts," said Noe, who led all scorers with 21 points.

Jarrell added 12, and Erika Cobb netted 11 for the Bearcats.

Kaitlin Welter added 15 points for the Bulldogs.

Dexter 20 15 10 15 -- 60

Notre Dame 15 22 11 6 -- 54

DEXTER (60) -- Hannah Noe 21, Melanie McKuin 4, Alison Jarrell 12, Erika Cobb 11, Paige Patterson 10, Makayla Waldner 2. FG 13, FT 16-24, F 14. (3-pointers: Noe 2, Jarrell 4. Fouled out: none)

NOTRE DAME (54) -- Karsen Powers 9, Annie Siebert 19, Shelby Beussink 4, Kaitlin Welter 15, Halle Lynch 5, Taylor Feeney 2. FG 14, FT 5-11, F 20. (3-pointers: Siebert 4, Welter 3. Fouled out: Siebert)