The Southern Fulton freshman, who came in averaging 23.9 points per game, hit key 3-pointers at the buzzer in both the first quarter and the third quarter en route to scoring a game-high 23 points in the Lady Indians’ 46-29 victory.

“They came out on fire,” Northern Bedford coach Jon Ewart said. “We were not executing real well. Truthfully, I felt like I saw some nerves out of our girls, which I was surprised by. We didn’t execute. They extended their zone out, which we were prepared for, but they doubled out of it. We were not necessarily ready for that. We looked timid early on.”

Northern Bedford did not make its first field goal until the final minute of the first quarter and trailed 8-0 before it scored a point. The Lady Panthers cut the lead to 13-6 after a steal and layup by Hannah Yeatts, but Hull made a layup of her own and a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

“That just kills your momentum and gets the crowd back into it,” Ewart said. “She had a fantastic night for them. Kudos to her.”

Southern Fulton built its lead to 24-6 before forward Mae Hoopengardner picked up her third foul with 4:34 to play in the first half. The Lady Indians have just seven active players on their roster and only six usually play major minutes.

The Lady Panthers took advantage by ending the half on a 7-2 run capped by Ava Verbit’s 3-pointer that made it 26-15.

“We tried to get the ball down into the paint a little bit more,” Ewart said. “They got into some foul trouble, so we attacked the paint. We got closer, but we just couldn’t finish it out.”

Northern Bedford stayed within striking distance until Hull’s 3-pointer at the buzzer of the third quarter after a Lady Panthers turnover made it 39-25.

“We had a lot of turnovers back into the middle,” Ewart said. “Not all turnovers are equal. Those live ball turnovers kill you. They have two really athletic guards, and that Hull girl is phenomenal. She anticipates really well and helped them get some transition points and some easy baskets.”

The championship was the eighth in school history for Southern Fulton but first since 2016.

“It’s very special,” Southern Fulton coach Mina Wilt said. “The girls have put in so much work, so many hours. They really worked hard and executed well. The stat line was very spread out, which we love to see. There were different players getting hot, and you love that in games like this.”

The Lady Indians overcame a midseason injury to Claire Harvey, who was averaging more than 20 points per game.

“It was definitely tough at first to find the adjustments,” Wilt said. “As a team, I think everyone rose to the occasion. We came together to overcome that.”

Southern Fulton will host the fifth-place team out of District 3 in the first round of the state playoffs on Saturday, March 7. Northern Bedford won a game out of that position last year.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Wilt said. “I think we have a good shot to do some good things, and we have a really young team. We only have one senior, so it’s exciting to see how far the girls can do this year and get that experience.”

The Lady Panthers will travel to the third-seeded team out of the WPIAL the same day — either Aquinas Academy or Union.

“I’m really proud of our girls,” Ewart said. “Our seniors have been here every year and have a medal each year. It’s really something to be proud of. I’m really pleased with where we have the program. The coaches (both past and present) have things going in the right direction. It’s always a goal to get here. It’s something we talk about, and I am proud that we did that.”

NORTHERN BEDFORD (29): Baker 2 1-2 5, A. Yeatts 1 0-0 3, H. Yeatts 2 2-2 6, Gable 1 3-4 5, Detterline 2 0-2 4, Verbit 1 1-2 4, B. Barton 1 0-0 2, Smith 0 0-0 0, L. Barton 0 0-0 0, Bollman 0 0-0 0. Totals — 10 7-12 29.

SOUTHERN FULTON (46): Pittman 4 0-4 8, Schriever 0 0-0 0, Hull 10 1-4 23, Hixon 4 1-1 11, Hoopengardner 0 2-2 2, Smith 1 0-0 2, Ramsey 0 0-0 0. Totals — 19 4-11 46.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Northern Bedford 6 9 10 4 — 29

Southern Fulton 18 8 13 7 — 46

3-point goals: Northern Bedford 2 (A. Yeatts, Verbit); Southern Fulton 4 (Hull 2, Hixon 2).

Records: Northern Bedford (14-10); Southern Fulton (18-5).

Officials: Ed Danel, Pete Hall, Tony Rullo.