Montini pushes past Hersey for title-game berth

Montini went from dominant to vulnerable to its usual dominant again in the space of 32 minutes Tuesday night.

The Broncos took a 55-39 victory from Hersey in the semifinals of its girls basketball holiday tournament.

The Broncos (15-0) will play Whitney Young at 8:15 p.m. Wednesday in the championship game. Hersey (12-2) gets Benet at 6:30 p.m. for third place.

"It's a great thing," Montini senior Tiara Wallace said of the championship berth. "We didn't get there last year, so we just wanted to get there. It was like a revenge-type of thing."

The Broncos looked like they'd run away with the game when they took a 19-5 lead after the first eight minutes, then made it 29-9 midway through the second quarter. But Hersey didn't quit, pulling within 10 by halftime.

"They forced a bunch of turnovers," Hersey coach Mary Fendley said, "but to our guards' credit they made much better passing decisions in the second quarter. We had a lot more composure in the second quarter. We got a little jittery, but I like that we were able to overcome a really bad start."

"I was really disappointed with our four minutes of the second quarter and our eight of the third," Montini coach Jason Nichols added. "We just kind of went blah. We just kind of lost focus."

The game could've gone either way in the fourth quarter, which started with Montini leading 39-30. The Broncos made sure it went their way, scoring the first 16 points of the period while the Huskies missed their first 10 shots.

"We ended up stepping up in the late third (quarter) into the fourth," Wallace said.

Hersey didn't score in the fourth until 47 seconds remained on a Kelly Weyhrich 3-pointer, the first of three 3s Hersey hit to finish the game.

Senior guard Lea Kerstein was the only Bronco in double figures with 18 points, going 6 of 11 from 3-point range, including her first four attempts of the game. Montini finished with 10 3-pointers.

"No. 23, it's been years since I've seen a kid that shoot that well," Fendley said of the UAB-bound Kerstein. "I don't know what her shooting percentage is, but there were shots that she just hit with a kid right on her. She's just a fantastic shooter. That's tough to defend."

Junior Claire Gritt made four 3-pointers to lead Hersey with 12 points.

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