3A: No. 1 NorthWood to face Delta for a spot in Indy; Glenn eliminated

ELKHART — More than 20 minutes after tragically seeing their season come to end, Glenn's boys basketballl players emerged from their locker room with blank stares.

A magical playoff run, which included the program's first sectional and regional titles since 2005, crashed in the worst way possible. In a tightly contested semistate semifinal game against Delta at North Side Gym, the Falcons, leading 47-46, gave up for looks at a game-winning shot, and eventually got burned when Delta's Jonny Manor knocked down a corner three-pointer with less than 20 seconds remaining, leading to his team's 50-47 victory.

"I thought we did everything right," Hannah said. "We forced a non-shooter to shoot the basketball, but the problem was we couldn't rebound. He got a third opportunity and knocked it down."

Glenn's final offensive possession ended on a charge call against Brycen Hannah, who led the Falcons with 22 points. Delta knocked down one free throw with less than a second left and Hannah's heave at the buzzer was off line.

No. 1 NorthWood rolls, Glenn edges South Bend Washington in 3A regional finals

"I thought the last play we got what we wanted,'' Travis Hannah said. "I didn't want them to get set defensively and put pressure on them. Put the game in the officials hands and got a charge call."

The Eagles (19-9), who were led by Jackson Wors 17 points, advanced to Saturday night's semistate championship against No. 1 NorthWood, a 53-43 over F.W. Bishop Dwenger in the other semifinal.

DELTA 50, GLENN 47

Delta (50): Jackson Wors 6 3-4 17, D'Amare Hood 5 0-0 13, Blake Jones 5 0-1 11, Jayden Furney 3 0-2 7, Jonny Manor 1 0-0 3 TOTAL: 20 3-7 50

Glenn (47): Joe Chrapliwy 4 0-0 11, Chase Miller 2 0-0 6, Brycen Hannah 6 10-10 22, Noah Dreibelbeis 2 1-3 5, Carson Kruger 1 0-0 3, Joey Shoue 0 0-1 0 TOTAL: 15 11-14 47

NorthWood cruises to semistate final

NorthWood head coach Aaron Wolfe wasted no time getting his players out of the locker room and to their parents to go.

That is because the No. 1-ranked Panthers, now just one win away from their first trip to Indy after a 53-43 win over Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger in the semistate semifinals, need all the rest they could get before Saturday night's semistate final against Delta at North Side Gym (8 p.m.).

Saturday wasn't as dominant NorthWood a performance many expected against a 13-win team. The Panthers' biggest lead was 11 points and Dwenger fought within a couple possessions most of the game.

But NorthWood did what it has done for the past 18 games: just enough to win.

"I thought our kids had to grind one out today," Wolfe said. "That's a good team. They have size and they were a great challenge. Very proud of our guys."

It was the same cast of characters that has led the Panthers all year. Seniors Cade Brenner (24) and Ian Raasch (12) combined for more than half of NorthWood's points, while their supporting cast did their part to keep the Panthers on top having a Raasch three-pointer give it 5-4 lead early in the first quarter.

The Saints were led by Caleb Lehrman's 13 points.

For NorthWood, all focus now turns to Delta, and one more win away from the 3A state title game next Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

"That is a testament to the type of basketball players we have on our team," Wolfe said. "They have a knack for stepping up. Now we are just 32 minutes from a chance to play in Indianapolis. We are excited."

NORTHWOOD 53, FW BISHOP DWENGER 43

NORTHWOOD (53): Ian Raasch 4 2-4 12, Cade Brenner 8 6-8 24, Tyler Raasch 5 2-2 12, Brock Bontrager 0 2-2 2, Ethan Wolfe 1 0-0 3 TOTAL: 18 12-17 53

DWENGER (43); Preston Ross 5 2-2 12, Caleb Lehrman 4 3-5 13, Camren Quinlan 4 0-0 10, Samuel Campbell 2 0-0 4, Aslan Nolan 2 0-2 4 TOTAL: 17 5-9 43

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: NorthWood to play Delta for trip to 3A state title game