NRHEG rallies to return to state

Section 1A No. 1-seed NRHEG hasn’t had to play from behind often during its near-perfect 27-3 season, but it saved its best basketball for the right moment during a 64-62 comeback win over No. 2 Hayfield/Schaeffer in the section championship game last weekend.

Despite trailing 37-32 at halftime and losing leading scorer Camryn VanMaldeghem to an injury late in the first half, NRHEG still found a way to rally and outscore the Vikings 32-25 in the final 18 minutes to shock Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy.

“It was a roller coaster of a night,” said NRHEG head coach Onika Peterson. “Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy came out with some phenomenal play. They did a lot of really nice things. Unfortunately, with Camryn going down, it was great to see other kids stepping up, holding their composure and doing the little things well. They didn’t freak out about things and they stepped up, which was huge.”

The Vikings entered the matchup as underdogs but quickly made a statement by building a lead and holding it for the entirety of the first half.

NRHEG found success on offense largely due to its ability to snag offensive rebounds for second-chance points, but the team struggled to contain the Vikings’ fast-paced offense.

Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy stretched the floor and used strong ball movement to set up open looks and find cutters in the lane, exposing holes in the Panthers’ defense.

However, defensive breakdowns were the least of the Panthers’ issues in comparison to the team losing VanMaldeghem late in the first half due to a non-contact injury to her leg.

According to the senior, trainers indicated to her that the injury did not involve any broken bones, but that it had something to do with ligaments; potentially a “ligament tear.”

She was eventually carried off the floor by Peterson and medical staff, leaving NRHEG without its point guard and first-choice offensive threat.

While VanMaldeghem was being evaluated by trainers, the Panthers went to work searching for answers of their own on how to turn the game around.

The immediate fix for NRHEG was giving control of the offense to VanMaldeghem’s twin sister, Quinn.

Instead of letting the scary nature of her sister’s injury affect her game negatively, VanMaldeghem used it as inspiration.

“We said, ‘It’s time to go.’ We’re not stepping down after [Camryn’s injury]. We were pretty mad, but we took it to them,” said Quinn VanMaldeghem.

NRHEG rallied late in the first half with some big buckets to trail by just five points heading into the second half.

The slight deficit was a much more welcomed sight for the team in comparison to last year’s 19-point margin it had to overcome to beat Glencoe-Silver Lake in the section finals.

According to Peterson, the team was able to draw from its experience overcoming adversity last season to achieve its goal against Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy.

“We even brought that up [at halftime]. I said, ‘Last year we were down by 19. We’re within five. That’s way more doable,’” said Peterson.

Her sentiment was completely accurate as NRHEG never found itself outside of striking distance of the lead in the second half.

The Panthers’ defense went to work pressuring Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy’s guards into some costly turnovers while the team’s offensive rebounding continued to give the Vikings fits.

The momentum in the game shifted when NRHEG tied the score at 45-45 with 8:02 remaining.

The trio of VanMaldeghem, Clara Buendorf and Ezra Boerner attacked the Vikings with a mixture of perimeter shooting and hard drives to the basket that put the Vikings in foul trouble and kept the opposition guessing.

Ultimately, NRHEG’s late rally earned the team its first lead of the game at 55-51 with 4:24 remaining.

The two teams traded blows late, but it was the Panthers that held a slight 63-62 edge with 1:20 left.

Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy had a chance to take the lead with a one-and-one free throw opportunity with 1:01 left, but a miss and a critical defensive rebound for the Panthers gave the team possession again.

NRHEG’s Chloe Stork was fouled with 22.9 seconds remaining, but missed both free throws to afford the Vikings another opportunity to take the lead while still trailing 63-62.

However, Boerner secured a late Vikings’ turnover and was subsequently fouled to put the Panthers in position to acquire some insurance points with just over three seconds left.

The sophomore hit one free throw to push the lead to 64-62, but Hayfield/Schaeffer Academy gambled on an inbound pass and managed to get the ball across half court before calling a timeout with just over one second on the clock.

The Vikings drafted up a play and settled for a contested jump shot from three-point range, but the team’s final prayers were left unanswered as the attempt missed the basket, securing the win for NRHEG.

What had been a difficult first half would go on to become a storybook comeback for a team rallying behind its injured leader.

“I had so many mixed emotions; crying, happy, kind of mad… But they pulled off the win and that’s all that matters,” said Camryn VanMaldeghem.

The Panthers’ thrilling comeback earned the team the right to return to the state tournament for the second consecutive year after once again triumphing over adversity.

“This is a really, really special group. And I know people say that a lot, but I’ve never had a group like this. They care about each other. They compete for each other. They want to spend time with each other. They want to do all those things together. It’s pretty impressive and special with what they do,” said Peterson.

Class A No. 5-seeded NRHEG’s first game at state will be against No. 4 Hillcrest Lutheran Academy at the University of Minnesota’s Maturi Pavilion on Thursday, March 12 at 1 p.m.

Hillcrest Lutheran Academy enters the game at 28-2 overall and is coming off of a 67-52 win over Breckenridge (22-8) in the Section 6A title game.