CAREY, Ohio — For Perrysburg girls basketball to defeat Toledo Whitmer in a Division I district semifinal Thursday, the Yellow Jackets knew they were going to have to limit 6-foot-1 senior center Mackenzie Royal-Davis.

Much of that responsibility was left to Perrysburg 5-11 sophomore forward Hayden Siebenaler, and Siebenaler played her role well.

While Royal-Davis still got her double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, Siebenaler scored a game high 16 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead the Jackets to a 50-35 victory.

The Yellow Jackets used a zone defense on the perimeter with Siebenaler battling it out underneath with Royal-Davis.

Perrysburg coach Todd Sims said there was no strategy, but there was a gameplan and that was a big part of it.

“I don’t have to give these guys much of a strategy. A gameplan, of course,” Sims said. “They know what to do for the most part, so I don’t have to say things that they already know.”

Siebenaler added, “I just stick to the gameplan. We have a gameplan and we stick to it. It got us a great win, it got me over Royal-Davis, and we’re just very proud and I’m proud of that.”

Royal-Davis can dominate on the block and low post, but it helps that Siebenaler is quick and she can jump as well as most 6-footers.

“I thought Hayden Siebenaler played great,” Sims said. “She’s tough to guard, she’s really active, did a great job on the boards.

“(It’s her) speed and athleticism — I mean, she is a sophomore, but she is super athletic, she’s fast, and she is what other post players do not like to guard. They want to guard other post-like players, and Hayden is super active, so it drives them nuts.”

It’s a lot to ask out of Seibenaler, two inches shorter and two years younger.

“You know it can be tough because I’m a size down from her but I can make it work,” Siebenaler said. “I have the quickness and I can get around. She might have strength, but I can run and I can jump.”

Perrysburg (19-6) advances to take on Fremont Ross (20-4) in a district final at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Carey High School with the winner advancing to the regional tournament in Sandusky. Whitmer saw its season end at 13-11.

The Yellow Jackets and Panthers were playing their rubber match with the two teams splitting their two Northern Lakes League Buckeye Division games during the regular season.

Perrysburg’s tournament win looked like a repeat performance from their 40-31 victory over Whitmer at Memorial Fieldhouse in West Toledo on January 18.

In that league game Whitmer took a 9-2 lead out of the gate, and the Panthers did the same thing in the tournament game, grabbing an early 10-3 lead.

Whitmer led 18-13 with three minutes remaining in the first half, but Perrysburg closed the half on a 9-0 run with junior guard Hayley Griggs scoring a transition layup at the buzzer off a defensive rebound by Siebenaler, giving the Jackets a 22-18 lead at the break.

Just 56 seconds into the second half, Royal-Davis was whistled for her third foul after pushing a Perrysburg player trying to get an offensive rebound, and 20 seconds later she got her fourth personal, this time called for a reach on a Perrysburg guard.

“When she picked up three fouls, I told her, you’re a senior, I’m going to trust you a little bit, but she had that urge, that reach-in foul,” Whitmer coach Leon Kynard said.

“You could see it (momentum) kind of swing, and he (Sims) started running his stuff, getting her away from the block and forcing her to give up shots.”

Coach Kynard removed Royal-Davis from the game with his team down just four, 22-18, and Perrysburg took advantage, going on another 9-0 run to take a 31-18 lead.

Once coach Kynard put Royal-Davis back in less than three minutes later, the Panthers worked their way back to a six-point, 33-27 deficit, with four of those points scored by Royal-Davis.

However, Royal-Davis was whistled for another reach-in foul with 5:29 remaining in the game, her fifth and final personal, and it allowed Perrysburg’s offense and defense to get back into rythym and remain that way until the final horn.

Without Royal-Davis, Whitmer did not pull down a single rebound in the fourth quarter and they were held to five field goals in the second half.

The difference from when Royal-Davis was in the game compared to when she was not was night and day.

“When she’s in the game, she is the one other teams key on, but she can create her own shot, inside or out and she’s a force to be reckoned with on the rebound,” coach Kynard said.

“At the next level, somebody is going to get a great player. Somebody is going to come along and snatch her up,” continued Kynard, adding that a couple local colleges and a school in Boston are interested, but she has not committed yet.

Perrysburg finished the game shooting 53% (18-for-34) from the field, including 11-for-16 (69%) in the second half. The Jackets were 12-for-18 from the free throw line and committed just six turnovers.

Griggs had 10 points, five rebounds and three steals, junior guards Chloe Kilbride and Ayla Turk scored seven points apiece, and sophomore guard Addy Byrne scored six points.

Perrysburg 5-10 sophomore forward Sophie Mitchell, who shared the responsibility of guarding Royal-Davis, had four points and five rebounds. Perrysburg held a 26-22 advantage off the glass.

Whitmer senior forward Jada Shoup had eight points and four rebounds, sophomore Madison Finch scored five points, Bralynne Dunn and Addy Johnson scored three points each, and junior forward Nicole Kynard added two points.

The Panthers shot 33% (13-for-39) from the floor, including just 5-for-19 (26%) in the second half, and they were 6-for-8 from the charity stripe and had nine turnovers.

Now the Jackets turn their attention toward Fremont Ross, 59-50 winners over Toledo Start (9-13) in the first semifinal Thursday.

The Jackets and Little Giants met in an NLL divisional crossover game on Perrysburg’s floor December 12, and Ross came away with a 55-36 victory.

“You can’t win it if you’re not in it. We’re in it now,” Sims said. “I’ll think about it tomorrow morning, not tonight, and then I’ll come up with a gameplan, we’ll practice, and then we’ll start swinging on Saturday and see what happens.”

Siebenaler added, “We are going to work hard, we are going to give it our all, and we’re going to come back stronger. We are definitely way better than when we played them before and we can do it.”