Neuqua Valley’s Tia Poulakidas steps out of comfort zone in the clutch. ‘Great players have to make great plays.’

Neuqua Valley senior center Tia Poulakidas didn’t want history to repeat itself.

It sure looked like it was about to happen during the Class 4A Downers Grove South Regional semifinals on Monday night, when the fourth-seeded Wildcats found themselves trailing upset-minded Oswego East in the fourth quarter.

“No one wants their season to end this early,” Poulakidas said. “Last year, we were in a similar situation where we had played Plainfield East earlier in the season and we saw them again first game of regionals, and we lost that game.”

Neuqua Valley had beaten the 13th-seeded Wolves in the regular season, so the Rochester-bound Poulakidas wasn’t wrong to feel a sense of déjà vu.

“Thinking about how I felt after (the 2022 regional loss), I did not want that to happen my senior season,” she said. “I know I’m playing in college, but these girls mean everything to me, and I don’t want it to end.”

Neuqua Valley’s season — and Poulakidas’ high school career — won’t end just yet. She scored two consecutive baskets, via two entirely different methods, to give the Wildcats the lead for good in a grueling 56-50 victory.

Neuqua Valley (20-10) will play fifth-seeded Downers Grove North (21-8), which beat 12th-seeded Downers Grove South 58-50, in the regional championship game on Thursday.

“Great players have to make great plays,” Neuqua Valley coach Mike Williams said. “You have to find ways to do it, and I think Tia right now doesn’t want this to end.

“She got the ball in her hands and just took charge.”

Sophomore guard Maggie Lewandowski scored a game-high 21 points for the Wolves (7-23), including a go-ahead 3-pointer in the fourth quarter.

Poulakidas, who finished with 15 points to share team-high honors with junior guard Caitlin Washington, answered by driving the length of the lane for a layup that gave Neuqua Valley a 46-45 lead with 2:49 remaining.

“That drive felt kind of a blur to me,” Poulakidas said. “I just ended up at the basket. It was a little like too wide open because usually I don’t get a lot of drives. Most of my layups are off of rebounds or post moves.”

Poulakidas wasn’t done scoring in what are unorthodox ways for her. After junior guard/forward Kylee Norkus made a steal, Poulakidas sank a 16-foot jumper to make it 48-45 at the 2:11 mark.

“I was so proud of Tia,” Washington said. “She puts so much work in, and I’ve seen her confidence grow as the season goes on.

“If she does that consistently, I think she’s going to be a problem for a lot of teams to stop later down the road.”

The Wildcats didn’t trail again. Norkus, who had 14 points, seven rebounds and four steals, made four straight free throws, and freshman guard Nalia Clifford hit two more to ice the win.

“I’ve been in a lot of situations where someone will pass it out to me when they’re down low and I’ll completely brick it,” Poulakidas said. “But I did not want that to happen.

“I was just thinking in my head, ‘I’m going to make this shot. My team needs it.’ Hearing the bench behind me getting excited was awesome.”

Poulakidas isn’t afraid to take big shots, but she hasn’t always been able to make them.

“She’s come on the short end of the stick a couple times,” Williams said. “The Carmel game she had a big three that went in and out, so she was due.

“She made the best of it right now. She’s got to do that. We have confidence in her.”

The Wildcats have a chance to win their first regional title since 2016. But Poulakidas knows it won’t be easy.

“We have to get in practice, keep working and come out a lot stronger than we did this game,” she said.

Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.