Hailey Miller and Callie Levin dominate in Solon girls state quarterfinal win over Wahlert Catholic
It wasn't easy, but the No. 2 Solon Spartans (23-2) managed to hold off the No. 7 Wahlert Catholic Golden Eagles (18-7) to advance to the Class 3A state semifinals, 54-46.
However, the game began just how the Spartans had expected it to.
As the Spartans' defense had done all season, they did a nice job of forcing the Golden Eagles to take their shots inside the 3-point line.
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Through the first half, they hit five of their 3-point attempts compared to Wahlert Catholic, who did not make any.
However, Wahlert Catholic was happy to attack the paint, particularly when it came to getting the ball in the hands of sophomore forward Claire Lueken.
Through the first two quarters, she had 10 points, the most on the team.
Solon coach Jamie Smith said he'd give up points in the paint because it beats them hitting shots from deep.
"We don't like that they get points, but we run with it," Smith said. "We hope that they miss some inside shots, but we try to keep them from shooting 3s. They had 6 points from beyond the arc, but we had 24. There's the ball game right there."
Plus, Solon was able to respond with the play of their junior guard tandem of Hailey Miller and Callie Levin.
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Just as impactful as Lueken was for the Golden Eagles in the post, Levin and Miller gave the Spartans an edge on the outside combining for 17 first-half points.
Though they provided their team with a push, Solon's 29-22 lead wasn't safe after Wahlert Catholic came into the third quarter looking like a much more aggressive team.
In the period, they outscored Solon 13-5 to end the third quarter with a 35-34 lead.
Levin, who had four fouls on her late in the game said that she still felt confident that the team could get it together.
"I had to keep my composure and keep cheering my teammates on," Levin said. "It was still obviously hard because of the fouls, but we have a bunch of girls who can make shots. So, when we get down, we know that we are going to fight back and that is what we did."
Levin and Miller went on to have their best collective quarter of the game where they combined for all 20 of Solon's points.
Determined to keep their season alive, Miller said that she wanted to do whatever it took to win.
"We have been in this position before, so we knew that we could battle back," Miller said. "Coach [Smith] told me that I had to get to the rim, so I knew that I had to keep driving."
Solon is now on to the Class 3A state semifinals where they will face the winner of tomorrow's No. 3 West Marshall and No. 6 Sioux Center matchup on Thursday, Mar. 2 at 3:15 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Solon advances to the state semifinals with win over Wahlert Catholic
