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Wetzel scores 23 to help Peters Township clinch section title

By Jerin Steele 4 min read
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MCMURRAY – It was evident throughout, but when the game was on the line in the fourth quarter, Peters Township senior Natalie Wetzel really showed why she’s an NCAA Division I basketball recruit.

With her team leading by five, Wetzel had a sequence that pretty much put the game on ice.

She had a block on a driving layup, sprinted down the floor and got a pass for an easy layup.

Then, she hit a turnaround, fadeaway three-pointer on the next possession.

That pushed the lead to eight points, and Thomas Jefferson never got any closer, as the Indians clinched the Class 5A Section 4 title with a 58-49 victory Monday night.

Wetzel, a Miami (Fla.) recruit, finished with a game-high 23 points.

The fadeaway three she hit is something she’s worked on and she was happy to see it go through the net in a crucial moment.

“I try to practice a lot of off-balanced threes, so it kind of just felt like I was shooting in practice, which I think is kind of the goal,” Wetzel said. “It didn’t feel like a super tough shot, because I practice it a lot.”

The Indians (10-0, 17-2) clinched at least a share of the section title and the top seed out of the section by completing a season sweep of the Jaguars (9-2, 17-3).

It wasn’t without some tense moments, however.

The Jaguars whittled down a double-digit lead early in the fourth quarter but were never able to take the lead.

Daniela Radulovich, Taylor McCullough and Alina Spoko each hit clutch shots in the fourth to help the Indians secure victory.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game, because TJ is one of the four or five best teams in 5A,” Limberiou said. “That’s a big win for us. I’m proud of them. It’s nice to get a win and win another section (title).”

The Indians led by seven at halftime and quickly got their first double-digit lead when Bri Morreale hit a three-pointer on the first possession of the third quarter, but Thomas Jefferson made a run.

Riley McCabe banked in a shot in the paint and Maggie Spell followed with a three on the next possession to cut the lead to four.

The Jaguars got to within two points on a pair of McCabe free throws, but Sopko converted a layup late to make it 44-40 Peters Township after three quarters.

Thomas Jefferson led 18-13 after one quarter, but the Indians owned the second.

Morreale canned a 3-pointer to tie the game at 18-18 and later gave Peters Township the lead on a layup that was set up by Wetzel.

Jordyn Welsh hit a three that put Indians ahead 27-24 with just over two minutes remaining in the first half. McCullough followed with a tough, driving layup and Wetzel added another layup inside to up the lead to 31-24.

Wetzel made two free throws in the final seconds, after drawing a foul, while being triple-teamed to give the Indians a 33-26 advantage at halftime.

The Indians outscored the Jaguars 20-8 in the frame.

McCullough finished with 11 points and Morreale had 10.

“They have one of the best teams in the state, with one of the best players in the state and a supporting cast that’s about as good as you’ll see at the high school level,” TJ coach Matt Gould said.

“I don’t know what else to say about Wetzel. I thought Maggie did a great job on her tonight. She stuck with her end line to end line all night and she still ended up with 23 points.”

Backed by a pair of 3-pointers by Spell and a couple tough, inside buckets by Alexandra Wilson, the Jaguars got off to a strong start.

Spell and Wetzel guarded each other throughout the night. Spell ended up scoring a team-best 15 points for the Jaguars.

“Maggie’s a great player and I’ll give her credit, she knocked down a lot three’s this game,” Wetzel said. “They weren’t falling for her last time, so I was a little more successful defending her last time. She was hitting some deep, tough, contested shots.”

Wilson and McCabe ended up with 10 points each for Thomas Jefferson.

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