D-II District Girls Basketball: North Ridgeville stays cool, wins physical battle over Solon

NORTH RIDGEVILLE — Hot shooting and cool heads prevailed for North Ridgeville. As Solon piled up fouls, including a technical, the Rangers kept piling up 3-pointers as they cruised past the Comets 70-58 in Division II, Northeast 8 district semifinal play Tuesday. "We kept going in little huddles, kept regrouping each other," said Rangers junior guard Brooke Schroeder, who dropped a game-high 26 points. "We had to stay calm, get a good possession and get a good shot off. We had to keep the momentum going for us. We always talk about momentum." No. 10-seeded North Ridgeville (16-7) will face No. 9 North Canton Hoover (16-6) or No. 24 Cleveland Heights (7-15) in the district final hosted by Berea-Midpark on Saturday at 4 p.m. No 13 Solon concludes its season at 10-13. "I feel like the vibe on this team is confidence, and we're excited," North Ridgeville coach Amy Esser said. "I think they're ready for the opportunity (to play for a district championship)." Tuesday's semifinal featured 45 combined fouls, including 15 in a sluggish second quarter. However, it was North Ridgeville that managed to dodge foul trouble while Solon ended the first half with two of its starters — Jamiyah Sullins-Burke and Marissa Blackford — with four fouls apiece. Sullins-Burke fouled out with 3:02 left in the third quarter, while Blackford went on to post 20 points and 10 rebounds, including 11 points in the first half. The Comets also shot just 2-of-28 from 3-point range for the game while North Ridgeville was 9-of-18. Senior Reyna Balderas shot 4-of-10 from 3-point range while Schroeder went 3-of-4. But it was sophomore Adri Spyres who came off the bench and gave the Rangers a jolt in the second quarter, scoring all 10 of her points, including eight in a row that pushed the North Ridgeville lead to 33-18. "Our team relied on me to make shots," Spyres said. "We needed to work together and they relied on me. We all were happy and played very well together. We all just knew that (our 3-point shooting) brought our energy up. If we were hitting them, it elevated it more." Solon, however, didn't go down without a fight. The Comets methodically chipped away in the third quarter and — thanks to eight points from Madeline Kormuth during a 14-5 run — cut the Rangers' lead to 53-42 with 2:31 left in the third. North Ridgeville responded with 11 unanswered points to retake control of the game up 64-42 at 5:38 in the fourth. Solon kept persisting with 15 unanswered points in the final three minutes, but the Rangers had too big of a cushion. "We've got leadership out there," Esser said. "Kids who've been here before. They know how to go out there and handle the situation. Obviously, the fourth quarter isn't exactly what we wanted it to be. I think we lost our legs a little bit, but at the end of the day we'll take it." Contact Chris Sweeney at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X. North Ridgeville 70, Solon 58 SOLON (58): Jamiyah Sullins-Burke 0-0-0, Marissa Blackford 8-5-20, Kaylie Gaiter-Davis 3-3-9, Madeline Kormuth 6-7-19, Atalya Steiner-Phillips 3-1-9, Jacey Simms 1-0-2, Grace Gerhard 0-0-0, August Maddox 0-0-0, Josetta Mauceri 0-0-0. Totals 20-16-58. NORTH RIDGEVILLE (70): Brooke Schroeder 8-7-26, Yams Scott 2-0-4, Mary Strippy 4-0-8, Reyna Balderas 6-0-16, Lauryn Bohannon 0-3-3, Adri Spyres 3-2-10, Maddie Kuhn 1-1-3, Savanah Kreilach 0-0-0, Riley Marlow 0-0-0. Totals 24-13-70. Solon 16 6 20 16 — 58North Ridgeville 19 23 14 14 — 70 Three-point goals: Solon 2-28 (Blackford, Steiner-Phillips), North Ridgeville 9-18 (Balderas 4, Schroeder 3, Spyres 2). Field goals: Solon 20-57 (35 percent), North Ridgeville 24-49 (49 percent). Free throws: Solon 16-32 (50 percent), North Ridgeville 13-22 (59 percent). Rebounds: Solon 24 (Blackford 10), North Ridgeville 30 (Strippy 11). Total fouls: Solon 21, North Ridgeville 24. Fouled out: Sullins-Burke. Turnovers: Solon 13, North Ridgeville 18.