“Coach Long always tells us to keep shooting, that even if you miss five in a row, that sixth one is going to go in.”
Those were the words of Perry freshman guard Molly Lutmer, who raced to the corner of the floor, caught a long pass from the back court from Jo Diw, and calmly splashed an all-net 3-pointer with 6.5 seconds left in overtime to lift the hosts to a 55-54 win over Winterset in a Raccoon River Conference thriller Tuesday.
Trailing, 54-52, the harassing Jayette defense forced a turnover in front of the Husky bench. Diw snatched the loose ball, then alertly looked down court for Lutmer, who had raced to the corner near the end of the Perry bench. Diw’s long pass was on the money, and Lutmer cooly turned toward the rim and dropped a 21-footer straight down the chimney.
“It was not a set play — they just didn’t get back well, so I just found an open spot,” Lutmer smiled.
Winterset called a quick timeout, and with four full seconds on the clock, Lutmer knew the issue was yet to be decided.
“It was great to hit that shot, but the game wasn’t over,” she said. “We knew we had to play good defense because defense is what wins games.”
Winterset inbounded the ball and managed to launch a desperation shot from the edge of half court, but Macy Johnson’s heave — taken under close defensive pressure from Diw and Grace Stewart — was well off the mark.
Perry (7-2, 3-1) faced a 14-9 deficit after one period of play. The Jayettes outscored the Huskies (3-5, 1-3), 18-6, to take a 27-20 halftime lead, but Winterset returned the favor with an 18-6 edge in the third period to back up by five points, at 38-33, entering the fourth quarter.
“We stay pretty even-keeled,” senior forward Emma Olejniczak said of the shifting flow of the game. “We like to remain calm and play the game we know we know how to play.”
That coolness showed itself when Olejniczak hit 1-of-2 and Diw drained a 3-pointer to bring Perry to within 43-41 late in regulation. Winterset held a 45-43 lead moments later when Diw scored on a layup with 26 seconds left to play. Perry came away with one final possession but were unable to convert, forcing four minutes of extra basketball.
Winterset led most of the way in the overtime, holding margins of 49-45 and 52-46 before Olejniczak and Grace Marburger scored to close the gap to 52-50. The teams traded baskets, and the Huskies had possession but turned the ball over near the foul line with 11 seconds left, leading to the dramatic finish.
“There was no panic,” Olejniczak said. “We are pretty experienced and we are teaching Molly to become experienced very fast. It (any nervousness) was not really an issue — we don’t get panicked or become rushed.”
Wauters had 20 points for Winterset and Mia Olson 12, of which three came on 3-pointers. Johnson added 10 points, with Ally Pickering, Erika Shahan and Sophie Stover scoring four points apiece.
Marburger drained four treys as part of her game-high 22 points, with Olejniczak hitting one triple while tossing in 16 points. Diw finished with nine points, Lutmer with six and Stewart with two.
Perry helped themselves with a 10-of-14 effort at the foul line, including 8-of-12 after halftime, while Winterset sank 7-of-9.
The Jayettes return to action in a girls-only set against visiting Greene County Jan. 3. They will join the Bluejays for a visit to Ballard Jan. 6, with both Perry squads traveling to Roland-Story Jan. 7.
