Marian Central entered Monday’s Class 1A Hinckley-Big Rock Regional semifinal having lost 11 of its last 13 games and with only six wins this season.

So when the Hurricanes trailed Hinckley-Big Rock by as much as 14 in the first half, it was far from the first time they’ve faced adversity this season.

But No. 4 Marian Central scored 18 of the game’s final 21 points to complete the comeback for a 45-39 win over No. 5 Hinckley-Big Rock.

“We’ve had a hard season all year but we’ve built so much resilience,” said sophomore Julia Dovidio, who finished with 18 points, eight rebounds and six steals. “It shows our toughness and we can come back from anything.”

Anna Herrmann made five 3-pointers for the Royals in her final game, adding to her school record. She finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Hinckley-Big Rock coach Bob Barnett, who after the game said he’s retiring, said Herrmann comes from a great family, having taught her parents.

“She’s just a great kid,” Barnett said. “She’ll be missed. She’s got a lot of records here. Good for her.”

Barnett wrapped up his second year coaching the Royals and 42nd overall, 33rd as a head coach. He retired from teaching in 2019 and said it was time to step back from coaching as well.

He said the plan from the start was to spend two years with the program.

“I love the game, I love teaching the game,” Barnett said. “But I know it’s time.”

The Royals (11-18) led 18-5 after the first quarter and built the lead to 21-7 after Payton Murphy hit a 3-pointer early in the second quarter.

The Hurricanes (7-25) got it down to 28-27 with 2:45 left in the third after a steal by Dovidio led to a layup for Jenna Remke, who finished with 13 points.

Marian Central forced 24 turnovers in the game, 14 in the second half. The Royals’ seven fourth-quarter turnovers led to nine Hurricane points.

“You can look at the games we win and a lot of it shows our toughness,” Dovidio said. “We’re getting on the boards and rebounding, and we’re pushing in transition. I think that’s what helped lead us to the win today.”

After the Hurricanes cut it to a point, the Royals scored the next eight and led 36-28 with 7:19 left in the fourth. But the Hurricanes scored the next 13 points to take command of the game.

Dovidio cut the lead to 36-34 on a steal and layup with 3:27 left, then 13 seconds later Remke drained her only 3-pointer of the game to give the Hurricanes their first lead of the game.

It was the only tie or lead change in the contest.

“Nights like this, the shots weren’t falling, so anytime you can score off the defense it’s going to help them,” Marian Central coach Lee Brown said.

Dovidio and Lainey Remke, who finished with nine points, six rebounds and four steals, added layups to stake the Hurricanes to a 41-36 lead.

Herrmann hit a 3-pointer to get the lead down to two with a minute left, but the Royals never got any closer.

“We just stayed together collectively,” Brown said. “We went into a press, got some stops and were able to cut the deficit down. I thought the energy was great late. Girls were excited for each other, cheering, screaming.”

The Hurricanes will face No. 1 Rockford Christian at 7 p.m. Thursday for the regional title. The Royal Lions beat Ashton-Franklin Center 61-22 in the other semifinal on Monday.

The winner will advance to the Class 1A Indian Creek Sectional.

“I hope we can play well,” Dovidio said. “I know we can play well. I just hope we come out with even more defensive intensity than we did today and we play like we know we can.”