SOUTH WAYNE - This juncture is getting a bit too familiar for sports fans in South Wayne. Ergo, the Warriors are eager to break the trend that's formed this time of year.
This Thursday's WIAA Division 4 sectional semifinal in Evansville marks the third straight ball sport season that doesn't involve a metal bat that has found Black Hawk staring down Burlington Catholic Central with a season on the brink.
"You approach them like you would any athletic team that presents matchup problems," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "We can't get too worried about who they are. You could try to use that as a motivator, but it could be a distraction, too."
After the Hilltoppers lost just one game to the Warriors in the volleyball postseason, the culmination of the hoops season is so far, so familiar.
Black Hawk snakebit Pecatonica, 53-47, Saturday to win a regional title, making this the second straight year the Warriors have done so after losing both regular-season meetings to the Vikings. Despite fouling out late, Paige Butler dropped in 19 points to lead the way.
A year ago, Catholic Central used a 19-3 second quarter to snuff out any hopes of an upset in its 67-42 sectional semifinal win.
"It comes down to staying aggressive within the game," Flanagan said. "They really put some pressure on us and we may have folded."
A sophomore then, Butler went 3-for-5 from beyond the 3-point arc and finished with 15 points, continuing her breakout campaign right down to the last dying ember of Black Hawk's postseason flame.
Gabi Lehner also dealt out four assists in the season-ending loss, and now she and her classmate Butler look to make right what twice in a row has gone wrong.
They won't be at a lack for assistance, as senior Aryn Wellnitz never has shied away from clutch situations and her big, little sophomore sister Kim is a bully in the post already as a sophomore and has shown a propensity to hit clutch free throws.
However, the Hilltoppers have come into their own as a multisport powerhouse from the Midwest Classic Conference and don't seem to be threatened by any "down years" in the near future. Recruiting is a taboo word in preps, but the private school is an unquestioned destination for athletes that stand a cut above the norm.
As for the current campaign, Henry Fleck has a bench full of talent. Three of his players score 10 or more points per game, most notably junior guard Alexa Deacon (12.5) and 6-foot, 2-inch, punishing senior Carol Henney (12.3). Junior forward Michelle Smith pitches in 10.4 per tilt and is one of five Hilltoppers who stands at least 5-11. Said size was integral as Central squashed Willams Bay in their regional final, 46-15, on Saturday.
Henney was simply unconscious around a different net a few months ago when Black Hawk's volleyball season came to an abrupt halt at Williams Bay High School.
But the Warriors are all too familiar with this opponent and have heard far too many times that the Hilltoppers are the current cream of the crop. They'd like to interject that they enter the fray boasting a 10-game winning streak of their own.
So on Thursday, they'll look to slash and burn their way to the finals. If they should find a way to scale the Hilltopers, they would meet the winner between Hustisford and Sheboygan County Christian to battle for a trip to state on the floor at Fort Atkinson High School on Saturday night.
"We may not be as awe-struck this time around," Flanagan said. "We have a sense of just how much better we are. That extra year has paid dividends and we're just a different ball club."
This Thursday's WIAA Division 4 sectional semifinal in Evansville marks the third straight ball sport season that doesn't involve a metal bat that has found Black Hawk staring down Burlington Catholic Central with a season on the brink.
"You approach them like you would any athletic team that presents matchup problems," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "We can't get too worried about who they are. You could try to use that as a motivator, but it could be a distraction, too."
After the Hilltoppers lost just one game to the Warriors in the volleyball postseason, the culmination of the hoops season is so far, so familiar.
Black Hawk snakebit Pecatonica, 53-47, Saturday to win a regional title, making this the second straight year the Warriors have done so after losing both regular-season meetings to the Vikings. Despite fouling out late, Paige Butler dropped in 19 points to lead the way.
A year ago, Catholic Central used a 19-3 second quarter to snuff out any hopes of an upset in its 67-42 sectional semifinal win.
"It comes down to staying aggressive within the game," Flanagan said. "They really put some pressure on us and we may have folded."
A sophomore then, Butler went 3-for-5 from beyond the 3-point arc and finished with 15 points, continuing her breakout campaign right down to the last dying ember of Black Hawk's postseason flame.
Gabi Lehner also dealt out four assists in the season-ending loss, and now she and her classmate Butler look to make right what twice in a row has gone wrong.
They won't be at a lack for assistance, as senior Aryn Wellnitz never has shied away from clutch situations and her big, little sophomore sister Kim is a bully in the post already as a sophomore and has shown a propensity to hit clutch free throws.
However, the Hilltoppers have come into their own as a multisport powerhouse from the Midwest Classic Conference and don't seem to be threatened by any "down years" in the near future. Recruiting is a taboo word in preps, but the private school is an unquestioned destination for athletes that stand a cut above the norm.
As for the current campaign, Henry Fleck has a bench full of talent. Three of his players score 10 or more points per game, most notably junior guard Alexa Deacon (12.5) and 6-foot, 2-inch, punishing senior Carol Henney (12.3). Junior forward Michelle Smith pitches in 10.4 per tilt and is one of five Hilltoppers who stands at least 5-11. Said size was integral as Central squashed Willams Bay in their regional final, 46-15, on Saturday.
Henney was simply unconscious around a different net a few months ago when Black Hawk's volleyball season came to an abrupt halt at Williams Bay High School.
But the Warriors are all too familiar with this opponent and have heard far too many times that the Hilltoppers are the current cream of the crop. They'd like to interject that they enter the fray boasting a 10-game winning streak of their own.
So on Thursday, they'll look to slash and burn their way to the finals. If they should find a way to scale the Hilltopers, they would meet the winner between Hustisford and Sheboygan County Christian to battle for a trip to state on the floor at Fort Atkinson High School on Saturday night.
"We may not be as awe-struck this time around," Flanagan said. "We have a sense of just how much better we are. That extra year has paid dividends and we're just a different ball club."
