For the first time in 16 years, the Norwalk girls basketball team has advanced to the regional final round.

Trailing for much of the way, the Warriors rallied to force overtime and outlasted Carlisle 57-54 in a thrilling Class 4A, Region 8 semifinal Saturday night in Norwalk. The game was heard live on kniakrls.com (KNIA3).

Norwalk, which defeated Carlisle in double overtime earlier this season, trailed the Wildcats 25-20 at halftime and 43-37 after three quarters. The Warriors outscored Carlisle 10-4 in the fourth, getting clutch three-pointers from Payton Travis and Bailey Birmingham.

Then in overtime, Travis delivered her fifth and sixth treys of the night on back-to-back possessions to help the Warriors build a six-point lead they would not relinquish. Travis, a freshman, made 6-of-10 threes on the night and scored 18 points. Birmingham hit 12-of-14 free throws and led all scorers with 23, while Ava Carlson added nine points, 12 big rebounds and three steals. She also took multiple charging fouls defensively.

First-year Norwalk head coach Joe Sigrist praised the effort of his entire team on Saturday and all season. The Warriors, who finished 6-16 a year ago, now have 18 wins and will be playing in their first regional final since 2008.

“I can’t tell you how proud I am of this team,” Sigrist said. “Eighteen wins, doing stuff that hasn’t happened in 15-16 years. When I took this job on May 26, I knew it would take a big turnaround, a commitment from everybody in the program, and these young ladies just are all heart.”

Macy Comito finished with a team-high 11 points for Carlisle, but was held to half of her season average in a great team defensive effort by Norwalk. The Wildcats end their season at 13-10.

The 9th-ranked Warriors will now travel to Council Bluffs for Tuesday night’s Region 8 final against 8th-ranked Lewis Central. The matchup of 18-4 squads tips off at 7:00 p.m. The Titans defeated the Warriors 65-58 on December 12.