KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The No. 3 seed Washburn came back from 16-points down in the second half to defeat No. 7 seeded Missouri Western 67-63 in the semifinal round and advance to the MIAA Championship for the first time since the 2011-12 season. The Ichabods will take on the No. 1 seed Central Missouri at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
The Griffons (15-15, 9-10 MIAA) got off to a fast start leading 11-4 at the 4:43 mark after a 5-0 run. Payton Sterk knocked down a triple late in the quarter that cut the lead down to four. The offense for Washburn (23-7, 14-5 MIAA) was cold, shooting just 22% in the opening quarter as they trailed 15-9.
Seven quick points in the second quarter for Kellyn Hunter cut the deficit down to two points at 7:28 after she connected on a 3-pointer. Missouri Western answered back, scoring nine of the next ten points to lead by ten at 29-19. The Ichabods were held to under 30% shooting in the quarter as they went into the locker room trailing 33-25.
A 4-0 ran to begin the second quarter for the Griffons pushed the lead back to double figures. The deficit would grow to 16-points at the 5:14 mark. A layup for Nia McKenzie was followed by five points for Gabi Giovannetti to make a 7-0 run and cut the deficit back down to eight with 2:29 remaining in the quarter. That is where the deficit sat heading to the fourth.
After a bucket to start the quarter for Missouri Western the next eight points were Washburn's. A layup inside from Yiibari Nwidadah made it a two-point game with 6:58 remaining. Just inside five minutes a triple for McKenzie was followed by a layup inside from Aniah Wayne that gave Washburn the lead at 58-57. Sterk and Wayne each knocked down triples on the next two trips down that grew the lead to five points.
The Griffons cut the lead down to one point inside the final minute. Sterk knocked down one free throw, and after an offensive rebound by Nwidadah she hit two more, putting the game away at 67-63, moving into the championship game.
Washburn ended the game shooting just 38.3% from the floor, but knocked down six triples and got to the free throw line 22 times, making 15.
A 42-35 rebounding advantage, including 20 offensive, aided the Ichabods. Both teams turned the ball over 18 times, Washburn turned it into 21 points while the Griffons scored just eight off the giveaways. The Ichabod bench also outscored the Missouri Western reserves 24-5.
Yiibari Nwidadah led the way with her second straight double-double, scoring 17 points with 13 rebounds while shooting 5-8 from the floor. Gabi Giovannetti had 13 points while Payton Sterk had 11 with three steals and four assists. Kellyn Hunter had nine off the bench.
Mia Morel led the Griffons with 21 points, Nakiya Harris added 11.
