Comeback Kids — Hawk Girls Overcome Huge Deficit, Advance To Title Game As Wurtz Sets Scoring Record

By Andy Hutchison

WALLINGFORD — Regardless of the caliber of the opponent, and the size of the deficit for that matter, Newtown High School’s girls’ basketball — it seems — just can’t be denied.

The Nighthawks, seeded ninth in the Class LL state tournament, dug themselves out of a 19-point hole to shock the No. 5 Hillhouse Academics of New Haven, 65-60, in the semifinals at Sheehan High on March 9. With the win, the Hawks advance to the championship game — Friday, March 16 at 8 pm, at Mohegan Sun Arena. The Hawks will play against No. 10 Mercy of Middletown, a winner over No. 6 Manchester in the other semifinal (visit casciac.org for complete tournament information).

Newtown senior captain Riley Wurtz scored 15 of her team-high 26 points in the fourth quarter. Wurtz, alone, outscored Hillhouse 15-8 in the final period as the Hawks put up a whopping 28 points in the final eight minutes to complete an improbable comeback. They scored 46 points in the second half. It was a magical night that included Wurtz becoming the program’s all-time points leader when she scored from in close with 2:55 remaining in the third quarter. She went on to surpass the old mark by 19 and holds the record with 1,293 — with a chance to add to that total in the biggest game of her career.

“This is one of the best days of my life,” said Wurtz, adding that the team members work so well together.

“It’s unbelievable. I knew we could do it from the start and, in the end of the day, we had more heart. It took all of us to win,” said junior Erin Kenning, who had eight points in the win.

Held to two points in a span of roughly eight minutes late in the first and early in the second quarter, the Hawks fell behind — way behind. But the seemingly insurmountable lead the Academics held was erased behind Newtown’s strong, turnover-causing defense and some late-game sharpness on offense by the underdogs.

“We just have so much heart that anything’s possible with us,” said senior captain Jess Lynch, who dropped in a dozen points.

Newtown had strong fan support — far more than Hillhouse had — and it gave the Hawks a boost, according to Wurtz. “Our fans definitely gave us some momentum,” she claimed.

Newtown trailed 34-15 late in the first half but scored twice in the waning seconds, thanks to a steal, to get a little momentum, and pull to within 15. Hillhouse held a 52-37 lead after three quarters at which time the Hawks began to climb back into it. They finally got the lead back to single digits on Wurtz’s 3-pointer from the corner, making it 54-47, with 4:32 to play.

Kenning banked home a 3-pointer from dead on to make it 54-50 at the four-minute mark. The scoring continued. A Wurtz steal and layup brought NHS to within a basket with 3:35 to play. Hillhouse ended a 13-2 NHS run for a 56-52 lead, but Newtown quickly reclaimed its momentum. After the teams traded hoops, Wurtz brought Newtown back to within two at 58-56 with just 2:07 remaining. A Wurtz steal and bounce pass to a wide-open Cassie Ekstrom underneath led to a game-tying Ekstrom shot — making it 58 apiece with 1:40 left. Ekstrom used patience to avoid a defender before putting up the shot. The Academics wouldn’t lead again.

Hillhouse’s West Virginia-bound Bria Holmes — who led all scorers with 29 points, and was dominant in slashing through defenders to get to the rim all night long — missed the front end of a one and one free throw scenario. Newtown’s Carly Iwanicki came up with a big rebound to give the Hawks a chance for their first lead since the opening minutes of the game. NHS didn’t cash in right away, but forced a turnover and Wurtz was fouled. She calmly sank the front end of the one and one, finally putting Newtown over the hump at 59-58, with 1:05 left. Wurtz hit the second freebee for a two-point lead.

Newtown’s Bridget Power pulled down a timely defensive rebound at the other end, and was fouled. She hit one free throw for a 61-58 edge with 46 seconds left. Wurtz — with help from Lynch on a double-team effort — came away with a steal and raced to the basket for two points and a 63-58 lead with 35 seconds remaining. Power, a junior captain who finished with 15 points, added two late free throws for a seven-point lead, and Nighthawks were on their way.

So what adjustments did the Hawks make that led to their turnaround? “We actually didn’t change anything. We know that we’ve been based on heart and effort, and hard work — and no team works as hard as we do, anywhere. And we just showed it again tonight, that we will give as much effort as possible to be successful,” Newtown Coach Jeremy O’Connell said. “The kids work so hard for each other. They do absolutely everything for each other — and that’s why we win.”

“It feels like nothing I’ve ever felt before,” Power said of the comeback. “We work our butts off — the comeback is all just because we run so hard. It’s difficult for any team to keep up with us.”

Newtown had beaten No. 24 Amity of Woodbridge in the opening round, No. 8 Trumbull in the second round, and top-ranked and unbeaten Danbury in the quarterfinals. Hillhouse, a Class L team a year ago, was a state champion last winter. The Hawks won 17 of 20 regular season games before an early exit — in the quarterfinal round — from the South-West Conference tourney.

The Nighthawks enter into the state’s pinnacle game feeling pretty good about their chances.

“We’ve showed that we can play with anyone all year. We have Riley Wurtz. No one else in the state does,” O”Connell said. “It’s going to take a lot of effort. We’re going to have to hit shots, rebound, run. But that’s what we’ve needed to do all year. We’re not going to change anything. We’re going to play Newtown basketball — we’re going to get a victory.”

The NHS coach added the he believes his team is the best one out there. “If we play our game, we’ll win,” he promised.

“I think we have a really good chance to win,” Lynch added.