INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.  -- Saturday’s mega matchup featured North Central (IN) (19-2), the sixth ranked team nationally, and Newark (16-1), No. 1 Division I team in Ohio. Sharp shooting by junior Ramiah Elliott led the Panthers to a 48-46 victory over the Wildcats, snapping Newark’s 31-game win streak.

North Central was off to a hot start in the first, leading 11-3 with three minutes left in the quarter. Junior Tanyuel Welch was unstoppable for the Panthers with nine points. Despite North Central’s best efforts, Newark’s offense started firing on all cylinders sparked by two three pointers from junior Maddie Vejsicky. The Panthers took a 16-14 lead headed into the second quarter. 

To cut down on the hot three point shooting by the Wildcats, North Central came out in an extended 2-3 zone. Junior Gwen Stare and senior Abby Derwacter were extremely efficient in the high-low game, leading to six points. Newark outscored the Panthers 12-10 on the quarter to tie the game at 26 heading into halftime. 

Due to Newark’s efficiency against the 2-3 zone, North Central came out of halftime in a 1-3-1 , proving to be a huge hurdle for the Wildcats. North Central pulled away in the third quarter by holding Newark to just three points - a three from Emma Shumate. In the quarter, Newark refused to guard Elliott, allowing the Panthers to burn several minutes off the clock. Newark trailed, 40-29 headed into the final frame after a back-breaking four-point play from Welch on a possession where the Panthers held the ball for three minutes.

The Wildcats made defensive adjustments heading into the fourth quarter and came out in a full court man press which proved to be a challenge for North Central. Turning a barrage of Panther turnovers into layups, Newark cut the lead to one point with 3:22 left in the game. Elliott strung together four straight points for the Panthers which proved to be the difference in the game. Newark had a chance to tie or win with just over one second left but the attempt by Stare was no good. Elliott led all scorers for the Panthers with 22 followed by Welch with 20. Newark was led by Vejsicky with 16 and Shumate with 12. 

Losing its first game of the season to the top team in Indiana and the No. 6 team in the nation, Newark can reassert its dominance over Ohio when the Wildcats travel to highly talented Reynoldsburg on Friday. With veteran senior guard Peyton Lunsford out on Saturday, the Wildcats really missed her leadership, defense and three-point shooting. Newark may need her back in the lineup to return to its tip top form. 

Tanyuel Welch (5’10 G / North Central / 2022) - The 5-foot-10 junior guard is a two-way stud who impacts the game at a very high level. Welch was in attack mode from the opening tip and provided North Central with a huge boost offensively. We love the way she can attack a defense with her shifty ball handling while she also showed the ability to knock down jump shots from the mid-range and three-point line. Welch is one of the best point guards that we’ve scouted all season, as she has tremendous size, heart, IQ, toughness and diverse scoring ability. 

Ramiah Elliott (6’0 F / North Central / 2022) - While Newark’s game plan was to leave Elliott out on the perimeter and make her beat them with the three-point ball, that’s exactly what she did as she led all scorers with 22 points. Elliott’s jump shooting seemed to energize North Central in the second half as she buried a three at the top of the key late in the third quarter after the Panthers held the ball for a long period of time, bringing the crowd to its feet and fueling a run that helped extend the lead to 11 points. Elliott showed the ability to knock down threes, hit two mid-range jumpers and had a couple crucial steals and transition buckets in the fourth quarter that led to the win. 

Maddie Vejsicky (6’0 G / Newark / 2022) - In the absence of Peyton Lunsford as of late, Vejsicky has really stepped up her play and provided Newark with key scoring. That was the case once again tonight as the junior led all Wildcats with 16 points. Vejsicky has a quick trigger on the three-point line that’s very hard to guard with her size and length. The junior came up with a couple big steals in the fourth quarter and showed the ability to finish in transition. While this Newark team has a core of talented upperclassmen, Vejsicky may not get the volume of shots that her talent may deserve, however, she will no doubt be one of the top senior scorers in the area a year from now. 

Tanyuel Welch (5’10 G / North Central / 2022) - The 5-foot-10 junior guard is a two-way stud who impacts the game at a very high level. Welch was in attack mode from the opening tip and provided North Central with a huge boost offensively. We love the way she can attack a defense with her shifty ball handling while she also showed the ability to knock down jump shots from the mid-range and three-point line. Welch is one of the best point guards that we’ve scouted all season, as she has tremendous size, heart, IQ, toughness and diverse scoring ability. While she was bit by the turnover bug a little bit in the fourth quarter, Welch made winning plays all game long and was extremely valuable for her team on Saturday. We are not sure of Welch’s recruiting status, but she certainly looks the part of a big-time Division I lead guard.

Emma Shumate (6’1 G / Newark / 2021) - Shumate continues to be one of the best all around basketball players in every single gym. Saturday, against a talented team, was no different. Her on ball pressure in the full court press was daunting for opposing ball handlers and was a major key to Newark's comeback. Late in the fourth, she had two big blocks leading to extra possessions for Newark. The West Virginia signee tallied 12 points tonight, scoring from all levels, including three three pointers. After a tough challenge against North Central, the 270 team is excited to see where Shumate and the Wildcats can go in the upcoming state tournament - as Newark has not lost a game to an Ohio opponent since Jan. 4, 2020.