SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

SPENCERVILLE — It wasn’t Van Wert’s night.

The Lady Cougars fell to Defiance 28-14 in the upper bracket of  Wednesday night’s Division II sectional semifinals at Spencerville High School.

The Lady Cougars committed 23 turnovers, including 10 in the first quarter, shot 16 percent from the floor, 44 percent from the free throw line and were held scoreless in the first and fourth quarters.

Defiance didn’t fare much better, scoring single digits in each quarter, shooting 26 percent from the floor, 40 percent from the free throw line, and committing 10 turnovers.

Van Wert outrebounded the Lady Bulldogs 27-20.

Down 9-0 at the end of the first quarter, Van Wert outscored Defiance 10-6, but trailed 15-10 at halftime. The Lady Cougars were down 20-14 after three quarters, before being outscored 8-0 in the fourth quarter.

Ally Jackson led Van Wert with 6 points, while Jamison Clouse scored 5, and Abby Jackson finished with 3.

The loss ended Van Wert’s season at 6-17, while Defiance improved to 15-8. The Lady Bulldogs will play Kenton (16-6) for the upper bracket sectional championship Saturday night.

Box score:

Defiance    9    6   5   8–-28

Van Wert   0  10   4   0–-14

Defiance (28) — Morgan Wytik 6, Zariah Scott 4, Laney Baldwin 1, Caroline Turner 2, Emily Poling 5, Morgan Porter 8, Natalie Wichman 2.

Van Wert (14) — Ally Jackson 6, Jamison Clouse 5, Abby Jackson 3.