SOUTH WAYNE - Every teacher stresses to students not to judge a book by its cover. That same age-old adage holds true on the basketball court.
When it looked like Black Hawk was in one of its bleakest moments in a shooting cold spell and down by 14 points to Randolph, the gym got quiet. That soon changed as Black Hawk stormed back and rolled to a 43-30 win over Randolph in a WIAA Division 5 regional championship on Saturday.
"It scared us," said Black Hawk sophomore Jen Wellnitz, who scored a game-high 23 points and had 14 rebounds. "We didn't know if the crowd was behind us and cheering. We didn't know if they thought we had already lost. We thought we could come back in the second half. It was a lot like the Clinton game."
In a game against Clinton in December, the Warriors rallied from a 16-point deficit to win. On Saturday, the Warriors went on a 31-4 second-half run and limited the Rockets to just nine second-half points to key the comeback.
Black Hawk (22-2) advances to play Barneveld in a sectional semifinal contest Thursday at 7 p.m. at Sauk Prairie High School.
Black Hawk senior Kayla Meier scored eight of her 10 points in the fourth quarter to put the Rockets away. Meier was thrilled with the comeback in her last game at home.
"We never want to lose on our home court," Meier said. "We take pride in playing on our home court. Our fans are always great cheering us on. We couldn't have done it without them."
It was the tale of two halves for the Warriors. Black Hawk got off to a rocky start, shooting 20 percent in the first half. The Rockets jumped out to an 11-2 lead as the Warriors made just 1 of 14 shots in the first quarter until senior Kate Quinn hit a jumper to cut the Rockets' lead to seven points at the end of the period.
Wellnitz scored on a layup with 5:23 left in the second quarter to slice the Rockets' lead to 11-8. Randolph answered with a 7-0 run sparked by Brittany Drake-Burmania's 3-pointer. Randolph sophomore Allison Pickhardt scored on a putback and senior Myriel Werner's two free throws gave the Rockets an 18-8 lead late in the second quarter. Quinn knocked down a jumper and the Warriors trailed 21-12 at halftime.
The tide turned when the Warriors stifled the Rockets in the second half, limiting them to just three baskets. Werner drilled a 3-pointer early in the third quarter to give the Rockets a 26-12 lead.
"I definitely don't think a whole lot of people outside of this locker room gave us a chance to come back and win," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "They just refused to lose. The kids got it done."
After falling behind by 14 points, the Warriors went on a 15-3 run to end the third quarter. Wellnitz drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key and banked in a shot to cut the Rockets' lead to 27-19. Senior Katie Powers and Wellnitz hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Abby Schiferl hit a jumper to slice the Rockets' lead to 29-27 at the end of the third quarter.
"We had all the looks we wanted," Flanagan said of the first-half shooting. "We just needed to finish them. We can't always control our shooting and offensive situations. (Defense) is part of the game we can control. You feel like if you can make an impact, it's on the defensive end. The girls are all well trained on defense. I thought that was the difference in the game."
Meier scored down low on two straight possessions to give the Warriors a 32-29 lead with 5:51 left. Wellnitz scored down low with 3:11 left to give the Warriors a 36-30 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
"It feels great," Meier said. "We had a lot of adversity. We got in foul trouble early. Coach told us to remember the Clinton game. We knew we could do it because we had come back from bigger deficits than before."
Black Hawk now gears up for another matchup with Barneveld. The Six Rivers East Conference rivals split two regular season games.
"Each one of us won on our home floor and now we are playing on a neutral court," Flanagan said. "We will go in and let the chips fall where they may. I think if the kids can play with the same perseverance they did tonight, it will go a long way."
When it looked like Black Hawk was in one of its bleakest moments in a shooting cold spell and down by 14 points to Randolph, the gym got quiet. That soon changed as Black Hawk stormed back and rolled to a 43-30 win over Randolph in a WIAA Division 5 regional championship on Saturday.
"It scared us," said Black Hawk sophomore Jen Wellnitz, who scored a game-high 23 points and had 14 rebounds. "We didn't know if the crowd was behind us and cheering. We didn't know if they thought we had already lost. We thought we could come back in the second half. It was a lot like the Clinton game."
In a game against Clinton in December, the Warriors rallied from a 16-point deficit to win. On Saturday, the Warriors went on a 31-4 second-half run and limited the Rockets to just nine second-half points to key the comeback.
Black Hawk (22-2) advances to play Barneveld in a sectional semifinal contest Thursday at 7 p.m. at Sauk Prairie High School.
Black Hawk senior Kayla Meier scored eight of her 10 points in the fourth quarter to put the Rockets away. Meier was thrilled with the comeback in her last game at home.
"We never want to lose on our home court," Meier said. "We take pride in playing on our home court. Our fans are always great cheering us on. We couldn't have done it without them."
It was the tale of two halves for the Warriors. Black Hawk got off to a rocky start, shooting 20 percent in the first half. The Rockets jumped out to an 11-2 lead as the Warriors made just 1 of 14 shots in the first quarter until senior Kate Quinn hit a jumper to cut the Rockets' lead to seven points at the end of the period.
Wellnitz scored on a layup with 5:23 left in the second quarter to slice the Rockets' lead to 11-8. Randolph answered with a 7-0 run sparked by Brittany Drake-Burmania's 3-pointer. Randolph sophomore Allison Pickhardt scored on a putback and senior Myriel Werner's two free throws gave the Rockets an 18-8 lead late in the second quarter. Quinn knocked down a jumper and the Warriors trailed 21-12 at halftime.
The tide turned when the Warriors stifled the Rockets in the second half, limiting them to just three baskets. Werner drilled a 3-pointer early in the third quarter to give the Rockets a 26-12 lead.
"I definitely don't think a whole lot of people outside of this locker room gave us a chance to come back and win," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "They just refused to lose. The kids got it done."
After falling behind by 14 points, the Warriors went on a 15-3 run to end the third quarter. Wellnitz drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key and banked in a shot to cut the Rockets' lead to 27-19. Senior Katie Powers and Wellnitz hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Abby Schiferl hit a jumper to slice the Rockets' lead to 29-27 at the end of the third quarter.
"We had all the looks we wanted," Flanagan said of the first-half shooting. "We just needed to finish them. We can't always control our shooting and offensive situations. (Defense) is part of the game we can control. You feel like if you can make an impact, it's on the defensive end. The girls are all well trained on defense. I thought that was the difference in the game."
Meier scored down low on two straight possessions to give the Warriors a 32-29 lead with 5:51 left. Wellnitz scored down low with 3:11 left to give the Warriors a 36-30 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
"It feels great," Meier said. "We had a lot of adversity. We got in foul trouble early. Coach told us to remember the Clinton game. We knew we could do it because we had come back from bigger deficits than before."
Black Hawk now gears up for another matchup with Barneveld. The Six Rivers East Conference rivals split two regular season games.
"Each one of us won on our home floor and now we are playing on a neutral court," Flanagan said. "We will go in and let the chips fall where they may. I think if the kids can play with the same perseverance they did tonight, it will go a long way."
