Deshler felt slighted.

Winners of eight state championships, including last year’s Class 4A girls title, and seven under Jana Killen since 2003, Deshler has been ranked No. 2 behind Good Hope all season.

Never discount Killen’s Deshler team.

Deshler built an 18-point lead then held on to beat top-ranked Good Hope 63-60 in Class 4A girls Northwest Regional semifinal action at Wallace-Hanceville’s Tom Drake Coliseum on Monday.

“We thought about them since we won state last year,” said Deshler’s Chloe Siegel. “We knew the road to Birmingham would go through them.”

A prolific 3-point shooting team – the Tigers made nine 3-pointers – Deshler used a different script to earn the victory, flexing its inside muscle.

The Tigers (29-4) outrebounded Good Hope 38-19, including a 13-5 advantage on the offensive boards as 6-foot-3 post player Ali Henson led Deshler with 19 points and 17 rebounds.

“We took what they gave us,” Killen said. “We didn’t have this so we took that.”

National career-leading 3-point shooter Siegel with 500-plus long-range bombs, didn’t even attempt a 3-pointer until 6:28 left in the third quarter. She made both 3-point attempts and found others open, adding five assists to go along with eight rebounds.

“Everybody else was making 3s,” Siegel said. “My mindset was defense.”

Good Hope didn’t go quietly.

Trailing 61-43 after a pair of Raegan Rickard free throws with 5:51 left in the game, the Raiders closed the gap to 62-59 on running 8-footer by Ivey Maddox.

“We started playing a little tentative and we can’t do that,” Killen said. “We have to go for the win.”

Good Hope missed a tying 3-pointer with 11.5 seconds left and Henson made a free throw with 9.4 seconds remaining. Good Hope’s Rudi Derric made the first of two free throws with .07 on the clock and her purposeful miss on the second was secured by Siegel for the win.

Star of the Game: Deshler’s Ali Henson dominated inside with a game-high 17 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end.

Stat sheet: Deshler – Raegan Rickard scored 14 points with two 3-pointers, five assists and eight rebounds; Cooper Thompson had 11 points with three 3-pointers.

Good Hope – Ivey Maddox game-best 21 points with five rebounds; Heather Tetro had a game-best five 3-pointers and four assists.

By the numbers: Deshler – Shot 52.3 percent (23 of 44) for the game, 9 of 20 from 3-point range.

Good Hope – Shot 40.4 percent (19 of 47), 8 of 26 3-pointers.

They said it: “It was a great game, everything I thought it would be. No lead was safe on either side.” Deshler’s Killen

Next up: Deshler plays Priceville for the regional championship on Thursday.