NORWICH – After three years watching another team hoist the championship trophy, Norwich reclaimed the top spot in the Norwich Pennysaver Tournament.

The Purple Tornado (2-0) held Oxford scoreless for 8 1/2 minutes in the second half, and went on to a 46-37 victory on Saturday night.

“We played absolutely lights-out on defense in the second half,” said Norwich first-year coach Josh Bennett. “I can’t say enough about how hard these girls work. If we can play the kind of defense we played tonight, I think we can compete with anyone.”

In no uncertain terms, Oxford was equal to Norwich for the majority of three quarters, and led 31-29 with 5:15 left in the third quarter on Kelli Whitehill’s layup.

That hoop was the last of the quarter for Oxford, and foul trouble to starting forward Haley Witchella further impacted the Blackhawks’ offense.

Witchella picked up her fourth foul with the scored tied at 3-31-31 with just over two minutes left in the third quarter. Norwich quickly pounced on the opportunity as tournament MVP Hannah Runyon hit a 15-footer after a feed from Bryn Loomis to unlock the tie. Runyon then pulled up and hit a three-pointer to make it 36-31 with 17 seconds left in the quarter.

“Haley wasn’t out for very long, but that was enough for Norwich,” said Oxford coach Chris Palmer. “Hannah stepped up and hit a couple of shots, and she definitely deserved the MVP award.”

Norwich extended the lead to 39-31 before Oxford broke its scoreless spell with 4:29 left in the third quarter on Alyshia Crawford’s put-back basket.

Loomis answered that basket driving and pulling up for a short deuce, and Molly DeMellier cemented the win with her third three-pointer of the game. DeMellier fueled the Norwich offense in the second half with nine points, and she added two three balls in the first half to finish with a varsity- and game-high 15 points. “When Molly squares up and gets into a groove, she can really shoot the ball,” Bennett said.

Runyon, who finished with 13 points, picked up her fourth foul early in the fourth, and Norwich played extended minutes without its point guard and leading scorer. In that time, Oxford failed to make a dent in the NHS advantage. “This game is a perfect example of what we can do if everyone plays their role and does their job,” Bennett said. “Hannah went out, and people stepped up to make plays when we needed them.”

Witchella, an all-tournament pick, finished with 14 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocked shots. Alyshia Crawford added four steals and three assists to go with her all-tournament selection.

“We were thrown right into the fire this year, and think we come out stronger after this week,” Palmer said, whose club beat highly rated league opponents Walton and Greene before Saturday’s loss. “We would have loved to be 3-0, but 2-1 against two teams in our league that will be among the best in our league, and going against a STAC school is always tough. I liked the way our girls played, and there is a lot to be happy about.”

Greene secured a 47-33 consolation game victory over Sidney scoring the game’s final 14 points.

Sidney trailed the Trojans 26-13 at halftime, and were behind by 15 early in the third before a pair of Stephanie Simonds free throws at the end of the quarter closed the margin to three points.

Katelyn Philpott’s drive to the basket with 5:26 remaining in the game tied the contest at 33-33.

Erin Smith, who scored a game-high 21 points, hit the fourth of her five three balls to break the tie, Smith then added an up-and-under basket in the paint, and finished off a 5-for-5 day from behind the three-point arc in the game’s last minute.

“We had a turnover-plagued third quarter,” said Greene coach Dave Gorton. “We were stronger with the ball in the last quarter, we drove to the basket, and we finished.”

Andrea Day added nine points, and Liz Wentlent dished out 10 assists to go with four steals.

Philpott led Sidney with 10 points.

Norwich and Oxford advanced to the finals of the Norwich Pennysaver Tournament with victories in Friday’s semifinal games over Sidney and Greene respectively.

Oxford senior Alyshia Crawford scored 15 of her game-high 18 points in the second half leading her club to a 39-32 win. Witchella added 13 points for the Blackhawks, who knocked off the defending Section IV champion Trojans.

Norwich never trailed Sidney, and built its lead to as many as 17 points before prevailing, 50-39.

Hannah Runyon’s game-high 20 points led Norwich. Runyon just missed a triple-double adding 10 rebounds and nine assists.

Finals