LEAGUE FOES … Evergreen’s Ava Vaculik is cutoff on a drive to the basket during last week’s sectional final versus NWOAL rival Liberty Center.
PHOTOS BY RACHEL NAGEL / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
SECTIONAL FINAL … Lanae Manz (above) had 18 points for Evergreen as they surrendered a 19-point lead in a 40-38 loss to Liberty Center. VIEW 242 PHOTOS OF THIS CONTEST FOR FREE AT WWW.THEVILLAGEREPORTER.COM
By: Joe Blystone
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
METAMORA (February 20, 2026) – For 20 minutes, Evergreen pretty much had its way against Liberty Center, building a 19-point third-quarter lead.
But a flurry of late third-quarter fouls kept Liberty Center somewhat in the game. Then in the fourth, a rash of Evergreen turnovers let the Tigers come all the way back and steal a 40-38 win in a Division VI sectional title game.
The Vikings rebounded from an early 4-0 deficit to take a 9-8 lead into the second. Lyla Radel got inside twice for buckets, then Lanae Manz and Addy Gleckler each hit jumpers to make it 9-6.
Addi Davis’s drive full-court just seconds before the first-quarter horn brought the Tigers within a point, but the Vikings extended the lead in the second.
Kyla Risner’s triple started a 15-2 second quarter salvo that boosted the Vikes margin to 14 by quarter’s end.
Manz hit twice from outside the arc for six of her 10 second-quarter points to make it 24-10 at half. Manz’s third three-ball of the night and a bucket from Risner pushed the gap to 29-10 with 4:40 left in the third.
However a multitude of fouls gave the Tigers a chance to get back in the contest without the clock running.
Davis and Aletha Fausnight hit 4-6 from the line. Brooklyn Mohler tripled late to slice the deficit to 33-21.
Avah Vaculik scored in the closing ticks of the quarter to give Evergreen a 35-21 lead, but the Vikings wouldn’t score a field goal for the next six minutes.
That drought came mostly because of six Evergreen turnovers in the first three minutes of the final frame.
Davis hit twice from three-land to get it to 35-28, then once more after another Viking turnover to knot the game at 35-all with four minutes left.
Chloe Mohler’s split at the line gave the Tigers their first lead since the first quarter with under two minutes left. Radel got inside to regain a one-point Viking lead, but Fausnight countered 10 seconds later to make it 38-37 Tigers.
Vaculik went 1-2 from the stripe with 36 seconds left to knot the game, and when the Vikings rebounded her miss on the second, they had a chance to take the lead.
A bad pass led to Mohler going to the line with 19 seconds left. Mohler hit the first but misfired on the second giving Evergreen a chance.
Vaculik got a drive from the right side, but her shot was off. Fausnight split at the line giving Evergreen (12-11) one final try but the 10th Evergreen turnover of the quarter ended its chances.
Each team had 24 turnovers for the game, but the telling tale was Liberty Center (11-12) going to the line 16 times in the second half, hitting 10 of those freebies.
Davis had 20 points to pace the Tigers and Manz had 18 for Evergreen.
LIBERTY CENTER (40) – C. Miller 4; B. Mohler 5; Davis 20; C. Mohler 2; Fausnight 9; Conrad 0; B. Miller 0; Cordes 0; Hill 0; Totals: 8-4-12 – 40
EVERGREEN (38) – Risner 5; Manz 18; Lumbrezer 0; Abec 0; Vaculik 5; Gleckler 2; Emmitt 2; Radel 6; Totals: 9-5-5 – 38
LCHS 8 2 11 19 – 40
EHS 9 15 11 3 – 38