TROY — The Lady Chieftains got stung by some misfortune.
Bellefontaine was defeated 47-40 by Bethel in a Division IV girls basketball sectional contest Thursday at Troy High School.
Bellefontaine ends the season with a record of 12-11.
The first half was a back and forth affair with late scores in each period putting Bellefontaine in front.
After Bethel started the third period strong, Bellefontaine rallied to go ahead by two late in the quarter. They would struggle from there, as Bethel used foul trouble by the Lady Chiefs to get to the line and slowly stretch its advantage.
Bethel advances to face Northridge in a district semifinal on Tuesday at Troy.
Hailee Lamb and Tiffany Boop led Bellefontaine with 11 points each. Rylie Reames had seven.
“When we chose the tournament matchup, we chose Bethel for a reason,” said BHS coach Meghan Ashcraft. “We matched up well with them. We thought we would be able to handle this and move on.”
“Defensively, it just wasn’t there tonight,” she said. “We weren’t rocking on all cylinders tonight. There was no communication, help was lacking. And offensively we struggled. That’s happened a couple times to us this season.”
Bethel got 18 points by Caitlyn Jefferson, 11 from Jocelyn Stegner and nine by Maddie Montgomery.
Gabbe Hoon hit a shot in the opening minute of play for the Chiefs. Bethel answered with scores by Montgomery and Jefferson, plus a free throw by Izzy Halleg.
Quinlan Zedeker hit a three pointer near the midpoint and Hoon scored about a minute later. The Bees got scores by Montgomery to answer each of those, as the lead swung back and forth.
With just 20 seconds to go, Shawna Burnell scored off an inbounds play. After a Bethel miss, Lamb got one just before the buzzer for an 11-10 lead.
A jumper from the baseline by Boop and a three by Reames helped keep Bellefontaine in front as Bethel managed to get baskets.
Lamb made one of two free throws with 5 1/2 minutes to go, putting Bellefontaine up by three, 17-14.
A 7-0 burst by the Bees gave them the lead with two scores by Jefferson and a three by Stegner.
Boop then twice got free for 3-point attempts and drained both, using the glass on one.
After Bethel tied it, Bellefontaine had just enough time to get a final score by Reames to lead 25-23.
Bethel found its momentum to begin the third period. A three-pointer by Jefferson was followed by two more scores to go ahead by five.
Bellefontaine called timeout with 5:16 left. They would control the next stretch, outscoring the Bees 8-1. Lamb started with a score, followed by Boop. Lamb then intercepted a pass and took for an easy layup to tie it. A jumper by Reames with 1:42 left put the Chiefs ahead.
Montgomery drew Bethel even, then free throws made it 35-33 Bees going to the fourth.
Hoon picked up her fourth foul to start the period. Stegner made one of two shots.
Bellefontaine had trips to the line by Hoon and Lamb but came up empty.
After a three-pointer by Stegner finally broke a dry spell for both teams with 4:30 to go, Zedeker fouled out a short time later.
Bellefontaine stayed in range with a layup by Lamb and a free throw by Boop.
Bethel then began draining time off the clock with about two minutes to go. They got a basket by Emma Evans, then Jefferson made six free throws in the final minute.
Bellefontaine got scores by Emma Whitaker and Lamb, but could not close the gap any further.
“We’ve had an up and down season,” Ashcraft said in reflection. “I just thanked our seniors. They’ve been a great group of girls and I thanked them for sticking it out and guiding the younger girls. We had small numbers this year and it was a lot of work.”
Completing their careers for Bellefontaine were Quinlan Zedeker, Tiffany Boop, Gabbe Hoon, Rylie Reames and Laila Butler.