by MEDINA, OH – For the first time in over 40 years, the Medina Bees are headed to the OHSAA Regional Finals! They did so with a nail-biting victory over the Lake Blue Streaks. Medina was led by Junior guard Olivia Klanac. Klanac, who was named the GCC Women’s Basketball Athlete of the Month, posted 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. Throughout the entirety of the game, the score was neck and neck.
The opening quarter already saw multiple lead changes throughout. Lake’s Serenitee Johnson was battling inside and out on both ends of the floor. She finished the quarter with 4 points and 5 rebounds to lead the Blue Streaks. It was Klanac and the Battling Bees that would finish the quarter on top, however. The Junior guard dropped 5 points in the quarter. Izzy Kurka and Addy Shook contributed on both ends of the floor as well! After one, Medina held a 15-13 lead.
With both teams continuing to go back and forth early in the 2nd, Medina caught some momentum. The Bees went on an 8-2 scoring run capped by triples from Abby Dress and Izzy Kurka that grew their lead to 25-18. This would be the biggest lead for either team all night. With 3:31 left in the period, Lake called time.
Over the next 2 minutes of play, the Blue Streaks went on a 9-0 scoring run to immediately take back the momentum. Hayden Croyle and Savanna Horning contributed offensively along with Serenitee Johnson during the run. With momentum stripped away from them, the Medina Bees were trailing 27-25 at the break.
The 2nd half was no different from the first. Both teams continued to fight tooth and nail to claw out a victory for their squad. The 3rd quarter once again saw multiple lead changes with neither side gaining any kind of real momentum. The outstanding play of Serenitee Johnson and Emma Anderson willed the Blue Streaks. After struggling with her shot in the first half, Emma Anderson knocked down multiple 3-balls in the 3rd quarter.
For Medina, all-around team contribution continued to be key. Kylie O’Cull had the matchup on Serenitee Johnson for most of the game. She did everything she could to keep her at bay and take her away from the basket. Olivia Klanac and Izzy Kurka continued to make plays on the offensive end for themselves and their teammates. Heading into the final period, Lake held a 43-42 advantage.
Hounding defense from Medina was a huge key to their success in the 4th quarter. Jumping to 2:07 left to play in the game, Medina led 49-45 and had held Lake to just 2 points in the quarter up to that point. After the next few possessions, we had another tie ball game with the score knotted up at 49. With 42.6 left to play, Izzy Kurka knocked down a clutch free throw that put Medina up by 1.
On Lake’s ensuing possession, Serenitee Johnson knocked down a free throw to tie up the game at 50 apiece. On her 2nd free throw attempt, 5’3 guard Hailey Johnson may have made the play of the game. With Serenitee Johnson’s 2nd free throw attempt missing, Hailey Johnson of Medina soared in the air to grab the defensive rebound.
“Hailey is one of our leading rebounders on this team even though she is just 5’3. She’s a senior so she has heart, desire, and she has hops” said Coach Kase after the game.
With time dwindling down, Olivia Klanac drew a foul with just over 10 seconds remaining. Lake fans and students were making noise so loud that you would have thought they were playing at home when Olivia Klanac stepped to the line. In an atmosphere that would have shaken almost anyone else, Klanac knocked down both free throw attempts to give the Bees a 52-50 lead.
Klanac, who picked up her 4th foul early in the quarter, had this to say about her game-winning free throws, “I was not going to let that be the reason I let my team down. I was going to do everything I could to get it back on offense and give it all I got because that could have been our last game.”
On the final 2 plays, Serenitee Johnson was called upon for Lake. Driving to the basket with barely any time left, she had a layup blocked out of bounds by Izzy Kurka with 0.1 seconds remaining. The ensuing play was a tip-shot attempt that fell short for Lake as time expired. Medina was able to string together the plays they needed to win at the end of the game.
This is what Coach Kase had to say about the final moments, “One of the mottos in our locker room is “Next Play” and boy did we make a lot of mistakes. But we hustled back and made up for it. Izzy is a perfect example of that with the turnover, but the ability to stick with it and get that block and just stick with the play and get it done is amazing.”
The Medina Battling Bees have advanced to take on the 7th seeded Magnificat Blue Streaks in the Regional Finals at Medina High School. The game will be on Saturday, March 9th at 7pm. We will be sending our coverage team of Vince McKee & Maggie McKee for that one.
Key Players
Medina:
Olivia Klanac – 17 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists (Game-Winning FTs)
Izzy Kurka – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist (Game-Saving Block)
Addy Shook – 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist
Lake:
Serenitee Johnson – 15 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists
Savanna Horning – 11 points, 4 rebounds
Emma Anderson – 12 points, 2 rebounds
PLAYER OF THE GAME: OLIVIA KLANAC
