Stuttgart guard Mia Snyder passes the ball around Wiesbaden guard Katie Shea during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

WIESBADEN, Germany – Vilseck’s Lyla Ingram isn’t the type to finish her drives to the bucket.

When she dribbles down the lane, her first instinct is to dish it off to a teammate.

Yet with seconds remaining and her team trailing by one point against Kaiserslautern in Friday’s Division I semifinal of the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center, the 5-foot-7 sophomore did something out of the norm: She went to the basket.

Her shot fell through the hoop with 8.1 seconds left to help the Falcons to a 28-27 victory.

“I was terrified, but I just really thought to myself, ‘I need to get this shot for my seniors so they can win something,’” Ingram said. “I saw my teammate moved to the side of the key, and I was like, ‘Oh shoot, this is a great opening for me.’”

Ingram displayed the mentality her coach, Darci Neville, has preached to her players. The Vilseck leader said she wants her players not to harp on mistakes and instead recover quickly.

With 28 seconds left in the game, Ingram turned the ball over as the Falcons were nursing a one-point advantage. The Raiders retook the lead 10 seconds later when Shayla King sunk a pair of free throws.

“I always tell the girls, ‘Hey, if you make a turnover, get it back,’” Neville said. “When she had that turnover, it was like, ‘Hey, you just have to get it back.’

“I didn’t think she was going to go all the way, but she took it all the way and laid it in. It was beautiful.”

Ingram’s layup completed what seemed like an improbable comeback midway through the third period.

Vilseck sophomore Lyla Ingram drives against Kaiserslautern guard Elizabeth Marriott during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Kaiserslautern forward Hassa Diallo grabs the rebound against Vilseck forward Mayela Lokeni during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Stuttgart forward Serenity Sampson shoots during a Division I semifinal game against Wiesbaden at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Kaiserslautern guard Elizabeth Marriott lays up a shot against Vilseck defenders Mayela Lokeni, back left, and Lyla Ingram, back right, during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Vilseck forward Maria Smith shoots over Kaiserslautern forward Hassa Diallo during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Wiesbaden sophomore Keyoni Green shoots as Stuttgart center Khloe King comes out to defend during a Division I semifinal game at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Wiesbaden center Natalia Bergdorf shoots a free throw during a Division I semifinal game against Kaiserslautern at the 2025 DODEA European basketball championships on Feb. 14, 2025, at the Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

The Falcons (11-7) trailed 19-8 before Ingram drove at the 4:15 mark, which sparked a 7-2 run to end the frame. Five consecutive points by freshman Willa Greenwood, capped off by a three-pointer at the 4:13 mark, brought Vilseck to within one, 21-20, and Greenwood again connected on a jumper to give the Falcons’ their first lead of the game with 2:23 remaining in the game.

The rally didn’t shock both Neville and Ingram.

“We have a lot of belief in ourselves, and we trust each other,” Ingram said. “This team is great this year, and just working together has been amazing for me.”

Even more amazing for the Falcons were the sources of the offensive output.

Sophomore Giselle Villareal has been the team’s main offensive threat for most of the season, but the Raiders (14-3) shadowed her for most of the game. Generally, that task fell to senior Elizabeth Marriott, and she held Villareal in check for just five points – all of which came in the third period.

Instead, underclassmen such as Ingram – who scored all 10 of her game-high total in the second half – and Greenwood – who scored her seven points in the fourth – filled the void in crunch time.

“We tell the girls, they’re going to start shooting for Giselle when she starts making baskets,” Neville said. “So, it opens up an opportunity for everybody else to step up. It’s great when they know that and they can feel it.”

King, Marriott and Olivia Ilkka each posted seven points to lead Kaiserslautern.

Vilseck advanced to its first final in more than a decade, where it will square off with powerhouse Stuttgart. The Panthers pulled away in the second half against Wiesbaden for a 38-24 semifinal victory.

The defending champions didn’t sleep on the Warriors (10-8), despite picking up two double-digit victories during the regular season over them.

“We didn’t underestimate them at all because we knew they were coming in here to fight,” Stuttgart forward Serenity Sampson said. “But we also were coming in here to fight, and we showed that today.”

Stuttgart (15-2) used a balanced scorebook to overcome Wiesbaden.

Seven Panthers contributed, with nobody totaling more than Hannah Holmes’ nine. Mia Snyder added eight.

“We try to focus on the team,” Stuttgart coach Nathan Garrett said. “It’s not one girl or two girls that score all the points. Every game this whole tournament, it’s been spread out. With that mentality, they understand they can trust each other, and that helps them to propel the offense after playing that strong defense.”

Wiesbaden’s Katie Shea posted five points in the losing effort.

The Panthers turn their attention to the Falcons, whom, Garrett and Sampson said they won’t take lightly.

Vilseck and Stuttgart split the season series the weekend prior to the tournament, and in pool play on Thursday, a late four-point push put the Panthers on top.

The point differential in those four games: Vilseck plus-1.

“I anticipate it to be a good game,” Sampson said. “I think it’s going to be a close game, but I think if we work hard, if we give out everything, we should come out with the win.

“But it’s going to take a lot from us because Vilseck is more than what we thought they were going to be.”