The Middletown Madison girls had spent a half watching No. 5 seed Fenwick outwork and outplay them.

Mohawks senior Josey Harding was more than happy to return the favor in the second half.

The 6-foot center dominated after the break, scoring all 12 of her points while snaring five of her game-high 11 rebounds as the Mohawks claimed the Division III sectional basketball title with a 44-30 triumph Saturday.

The No. 1 seed, Madison will play for a district title next Saturday at Springfield High School with the time and opponent to be determined.

“Coach (John Rossi) told us at halftime to get the ball down low,” Harding said. “Fenwick was outplaying us, giving us a heck of a game so we all needed to step up.”

Fenwick trailed 17-13 at half due to a dominant effort on the boards, outrebounding the taller Mowhawks 22-11.

The second half was different, as Harding and the Mohawks regained the paint by a 18-11 margin while scoring 18 points inside.

“They made adjustments at half and it is hard to adjust back with their size,” Fenwick coach Donn Burrows said. “But our girls played as hard and as well as they can. I am extremely proud of them.”

Madison, which improved to 22-2, used a 11-0 run in the third quarter to grab a commanding 30-15 lead.

Fenwick responded, cutting the lead to 34-28 early on the final stanza but a seven minute dry spell doomed the Falcons, who finished 12-12.

“We won ugly but it is better to win ugly than lose pretty,” Rossi said. “Fenwick outplayed us so give them the credit.”

Both teams struggled shooting the ball with Fenwick hitting 11-of-39 from the floor and Madison managing a mere 16-of-57 from the field.

Madison didn’t help its cause by making 9-of-18 from the foul line.

Senior Leah Brubaker led the Falcons with 11 points.

Meghan Miller had 12 points, five assists and four steals for Madison while Olivia Philpot added nine points.