Bircher’s clutch scoring surge propels Highland girls past Waterloo for regional crown
Highland girls basketball coach Clint Hamilton has full confidence in Jordan Bircher making big plays when the game is on the line.
Friday night on the biggest stage to date, Bircher, a freshman guard, came up huge again, scoring seven points in the final two minutes to erase a two-point deficit and lift HHS to an electrifying 52-49 win over Waterloo in the IHSA Class 3A regional championship at Highland High School.
Highland (24-7), which beat Waterloo for the third time this season, advances to face Mattoon in a Class 3A sectional semifinal at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, at Centralia High School.
Helping keep the season alive for Highland seniors Grace Wilke and Addison Crask gave great satisfaction to Bircher, who scored seven of her eight points in winning time.
“It means a lot to me, and I know it means a lot to the seniors to be able to keep going (in the playoffs),” Bircher said.
HHS jumped out to a 15-8 with 3:05 left in the first quarter thanks to an Abby Schultz bucket and a Sophia Fleming three-ball from the right elbow.
A 7-0 Waterloo run capped by a Sam Lindhorst layup at the buzzer trimmed the Highland lead to 17-15 at the end of the first quarter.
The clubs traded triples late in the second quarter as a Wilke three gave HHS a brief 26-24 advantage, but a Sam Lindhorst trey in the final minute of the half puts Waterloo ahead 27-26 at intermission.
Wilke — the Lady Bulldogs’ leading scorer — was held in check with seven points as Waterloo focused its defense on her. However, Taylor, the Lady Bulldogs’ post, came alive in the second half, scoring eight of her team-high 14 points after halftime, including a big three-point play with 2:25 remaining, cutting Waterloo’s lead to 46-45.
“I just kept going through the defenders, and that’s how our coaches have been working us (in practice) and I think our post-entrance passes have been a lot better,” Taylor said. “We’ve been implementing some (new) things and have scouted (them) and practiced, and it helped us tonight.”
After Taylor’s bucket, Waterloo standout Norah Gum got fouled at the other end and hit one of two free throws to make it 47-45.
‘The kid’s cold-blooded for a freshman’
That’s when Bircher responded with a powerful drive into the right side of the lane, scored, drew the foul, and knocked down the free-throw for a three-point play to give the Lady Bulldogs a 48-47 lead.
Gum answered with free throws putting Waterloo back in front 49-48 with 1:26 left.
“I was looking to at least score and maybe get an and-one there where you shoot free throws,” Bircher said. “It felt pretty good (to get that shot).”
Hamilton praised Bircher’s big-time plays done the stretch.
“The kid’s cold-blooded for a freshman,” Hamilton said. “We had a home game (one time), and she missed a couple of free throws late, and we lost the game; after the game, I told her to keep shooting, and tonight, you see why.”
HHS remains poised
Highland stayed calm as Bircher knocked down four foul shots in the 29.5 seconds. Waterloo’s shooting went cold in the final minute as HHS celebrated its first regional championship since beating Jerseyville to win it in the 2019-20 season.
Gum led Waterloo with game-high 16 points, while Kristin Smith scored 11 points and Lindhorst added 10. Waterloo finished its season at 19-10.
Highland wrestling
Highland sophomore wrestler Tyson Rakers qualified for the IHSA Class 2A individual tournament with hopes of being a top-eight finisher this weekend.
Unfortunately, Rakers was unable to make the cut as he finished short of the top eight placers in the Class 2A 138-pound division Friday, Feb. 17.
Rakers lost to Gage Shipp of Galesburg in his first-round match and then had his state appearance stopped in his first-round wrestle-back match by a loss to Sammy Schult of Lemont.
Rakers finished his sophomore season with a 39-12 slate.
