LOGANSPORT, Ind. – The Union City girls basketball team made history on Saturday as the No. 8 Indians defeated No. 5 Marquette Catholic 69-64 in double overtime in the semi-state at Logansport.
Justiss Cantu led the charge as she scored 36 points as the Indians earned a ticket to next Saturday’s Class 1A state championship game at Bankers Life in Indianapolis at 10:30 a.m..
“I guess I was just feeling it,” said Cantu, who made half of her 20 attempts from almost every spot on the floor. “I had a good pregame. The team kept telling me to keep shooting. That helped a lot.”
Union City (24-4) will meet top-ranked Wood Memorial (27-1), which defeated Indianapolis Tindley 59-50 in the other semi-state affair in Jeffersonville.
“We kept our composure and we kept our poise,” Union City coach Sarah Black said. “We did what we need to do to close it out at the end.”
“They knew that if we did what we needed to do to win that we would have an opportunity to play in Bankers Life,” Black added. “We had a game plan in place and the girls did a good job of executing.”
The Indians led at each of the first three stops, but a 3-pointer by Marquette’s Dia Rallings with seven seconds left in regulation tied it at 52-52 to send it to overtime.
Cantu completely took over from that point as she scored 13 in the two extra sessions.
“This means absolutely the world to us,” Cantu said. “We’re just so excited. This is our dream.”
She hit 3-of-5 from the floor and 7-of-10 from the free throw line.
“She played with a lot of heart,” Black said. “She did a lot of great things for us and took the team on her shoulders. She stepped up big for us.”
The junior guard gave her coach the credit.
“Coach has definitely trained us to do this,” Cantu said. “She has taught us everything we need to know. We had no doubt in our minds.”
The Indians are the first girls basketball team from Randolph County to ever reach the state title contest.
“This is just a surreal experience for them,” Black said. “They knew that this was an opportunity for them. They missed that opportunity last year and they didn’t want that to happen again.”
Courtney Wise was the only other Indian in double figures with 10 points as she blocked five shots. Kelsey Zimmers tossed in nine points, while Kora Kerns had eight.
Baylee Hartman had six points to go with a game-high 11 rebounds. Cantu pulled down nine rebounds and handed out six assists with seven steals.
Sophia Nolan led Marquette with 25 points. Emma Nolan added 23 for the Blazers, who finish the season at 21-6.
Box Score
UNION CITY (24-4) – Justiss Cantu 10 14-18 36, Kora Kerns 3 0-0 8, Courtney Wise 3 3-4 10, Kelsey Zimmers 2 3-4 9, Baylee Hartman 3 0-1 6, Ellie Kerns 0 0-0 0, Kahlee Dowler 0 0-0 0, Mackenzie Green 0 0-0 0. Team – 21 20-27 69.
MARQUETTE CATHOLIC (21-6) – Sophia Nolan 9 3-7 25, Mackenzie Marovich 1 2-2 4, Emmery Joseph 0 0-1 0, Morgan Crook 1 0-0 3, Emma Nolan 9 3-4 23, Hannah Nolan 2 0-1 4, Dia Rallings 1 2-2 5, Clare Salyer 0 0-0 0. Team – 23 10-17 64.
Union City 21 35 44 52 58 69
Marquette 14 31 42 52 58 64
3-pointers – Union City 7 (Cantu 2, K. Kerns 2, Zimmers 2, Wise), Marquette 8 (S. Nolan 4, E. Nolan 2, Rallings, Crook). Rebounds – Union City 34 (Hartman 11, Cantu 9), Marquette 34 (E. Nolan 10). Turnovers – Union City 19, Marquette 24. Fouls – Union City 16, Marquette 23. Fouled out – S. Nolan, Joseph, Crook.