Norwell Girls move to 6-1

The Norwell Girls Basketball Team defeated Columbia City 49-39, moving to 2-0 in the conference and 6-1 overall.

“I’m not 100 percent sure, but I think it’s the first time we’ve ever won here,” [Coach] Thornton said. “Columbia City through the years is how you model your program. Wayne (Kreiger) has won a million games and he’s a Hall of Fame coach. I’ve watched him for a lot of years, and his teams have always had that toughness.

“That was our theme this week, just being mentally tough.”

Norwell (6-1, 2-0) needed that trait because it watched Columbia City (5-3, 1-1) storm back from a seven-point deficit at the end of the third quarter to tie the game at 37 midway through the fourth.

But that was as close as the Eagles would get.

On Norwell’s first possession after Columbia City tied the game, senior Carlee Bauermeister got the ball near the wing and drove hard to the basket and made a left-handed layup to snap the tie.

After a missed shot on the opposite end, Andrea Vogel connected on a basket from inside to boost the lead to 41-37 with 3:23 to play. Vogel followed that with a block at the other end.

Teammate Haley Chaney sank four three throws in the final stretch to finish with a team-high 12 points, and Alyssa Shutt had a pair of free throws and a basket.