VERSAILLES – The Versailles Lady Tigers needed two overtimes and a steady hand at the free-throw line to emerge with a 71-62 Prosperity Promotions Tiger Classic victory over the North Union Lady Wildcats of Richwood on Monday night at Versailles High School.
Despite giving up size, the scrappy Lady Wildcats—none taller than 5-foot-8—pushed Versailles to the limit in the Tiger Classic nightcap.
“I guess you want competition—there’s competition,” said Versailles coach Tracy White. “Getting a win in double overtime, you couldn’t really ask for much more. The girls who came off the bench got the job done and found a way to get the ‘W,’ even though there are some things we have to get better at throughout the game.”
Versailles took control early, winning the opening quarter 14-9 behind six points each from Rowan Schmitmeyer and Katey Litten, along with a basket from Jena Heitkamp.
A Litten three-pointer at the 5:26 mark of the second quarter extended the Lady Tigers’ lead to 21-9. North Union responded, but Versailles carried a 31-23 advantage into the halftime break, paced by nine second-quarter points from Schmitmeyer, including a perfect 3-for-3 showing at the free-throw line.
The momentum shifted sharply in the third quarter as Versailles went ice cold offensively, managing just one field goal and going 3-of-4 at the line for five points. North Union capitalized with a 9-5 edge in the period, trimming the Lady Tigers’ lead to 36-32 entering the fourth quarter.
“When things started not going our way in the third quarter, our body language got a little bit poor and we let it take over our minds,” White said. “We started playing not to lose instead of just playing basketball. Instead of adjusting, we kind of stopped playing. Hopefully we can learn from that and address it in practice.”
North Union saved its best scoring burst for the fourth quarter, outscoring Versailles 17-14 to force overtime. The teams played to a 9-9 stalemate in the first extra period, with both squads going 7-for-10 from the foul line and each adding a field goal.
The outcome was decided at the charity stripe in the second overtime, where Versailles went a clutch 11-for-12. North Union was 2-for-2 at the line and added a basket, but the Lady Tigers pulled away with a 13-4 advantage in the final period to secure the nine-point win.
The physical contest featured 56 total fouls—31 on North Union and 25 on Versailles. Four Lady Wildcats fouled out, including the team’s first- and second-leading scorers, who combined for 41 points. Versailles lost two players to fouls as well, including leading scorer Katey Litten.
North Union finished 23-of-30 from the free-throw line (76.6 percent), while Versailles went 35-of-48 (72.9 percent).
Versailles sophomore Rowan Schmitmeyer was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
“She works so hard, even during quarters when we couldn’t get anything going,” White said. “She was still trying to be a spark—getting to the rim and battling for rebounds. Her athleticism is so great, and as she continues to gain knowledge of the game and develop her skills, she’s only going to get better.”
Litten led all scorers with a game-high 25 points for the Lady Tigers.
BOX SCORE:
VERSAILLES 71, NORTH UNION 62
VERSAILLES – K. Litten 25, R. Schmitmeyer 22, K. Hager 6, J. Heitkamp 6, E. Stammen 5, M. Yagle 4, I. Barga 2, B. Bergman 1- TOTALS 15 35-48 2 71
NORTH UNION – G. Blevins 24, K. Harrah 17, G. Lindsey 9, K. McElroy 5, K. Colegrove 5, T. Martino 2 – TOTALS 12 23-30 5 62
3-POINTERS
Versailles 2 (K. Litten 2)
North Union 5 (G. Lindsey 3, G. Blevins 2)
SCORE by QUARTERS
14-17-05-13-09-13 71 Versailles
09-14-09-17-09-04 62 North Union
