INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Oak Hill called a timeout with six seconds remaining to give its subs some floor time, and the tears started flowing. With Winchester trailing by double digits and the game all but over, coach Holly Gutierrez stared into the heartbroken eyes of star player Maddie Lawrence, and then the other four sitting next to her.
"Keep your heads up," Gutierrez told them.
Winchester (26-4) came up short in the Class 2A state championship game on Saturday afternoon at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, falling 54-42 to Oak Hill. It was 364 days ago in this gym that the Golden Falcons were defeated in similar fashion — a second-half rally they simply couldn't keep pace with.