MONROE - Monroe came up short in their effort to pull a second straight upset, as the 10th seeded Cheesemakers lost to second-seeded Edgewood, 55-36.
Monroe hung with the Crusaders during the first quarter, trailing just 10-7 after the first eight minutes of play. Edgewood broke the game open in the second quarter, though, outscoring Monroe 17-3.
"In the second quarter, they did a good job of getting to the free throw line. They had some good penetration and post ups and they converted their opportunities," said Monroe coach Sam Mathiason. "We had a hard time finding any offense. I thought we had some good opportunities, but we didn't convert."
Senior Heather Barta led Monroe with eight points. The next leading scorer for the Cheesemakers was senior Briana Katzenberger, who scored seven. Amanda Klemm scored 16 to lead Edgewood.
The loss was Monroe's third to Edgewood this season. Mathiason said that he thought this was Monroe's best performance of the year against the Crusaders.
"We knew we would have to do a good job against their pressure. I thought we did pretty good, we only turned it over a few times," he said. "They have lots of people who can score. They had three in double figures tonight. This was their 14th win in a row. They're playing as well as anybody."
The Cheesemakers finished the season with a record of 2-22. Mathiason said he was proud of his team's effort both in this game and throughout the season.
"I was proud of the effort we gave," he said. "We could have come out and not played in the second half. We cut it to 12 at one point in the 4th. We could have folded and we didn't. That's kinda been the story all year. We could have hung our heads, and this just shows the character of the players. Thank the seniors for working hard and trying to get better every day."
Brodhead 60, Edgerton 43
BRODHEAD - Junior Carly Mohns scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Brodhead girls basketball team to a 60-43 win over Edgerton in a WIAA Division 3 regional semifinal Friday night.
With the win, fifth-ranked Brodhead (22-1) advances and will host Clinton in a regional final at 7 p.m. today.
The Cardinals led just 13-8 at the end of the first quarter. The Cardinals outscored the Crimson Tide 16-8 in the second quarter to take a 13-point lead at the half.
Brodhead coach Brad Pickett said the Cardinals didn't start slow.
"I think both teams came out ready to play," Pickett said. "Edgerton is a really good team and they are probably more deserving than a No. 8 seed. We grinded out this win. Against good teams that is what you have to do."
Brodhead junior Rachel Heller scored nine points and senior Mariah Ahrens added eight points.
Pickett said one of the Cardinals' strengths has been their team is deep. The Cardinals also got six points from Kylie Moe and Meg Duffield.
"That has been one of the strengths of our team this season," Pickett said. "That obviously won't change because it's the tournament."
Brodhead has beat Clinton 53-46 and 54-39 in two meetings this year. They are looking to win a regional championship tonight and move one step closer to state.
"We will have to defend," Pickett said. That is obviously what makes us go. We have to do a good job on the boards and make sure they are one (shot) and done."
Cambridge 42,
New Glarus 34
NEW GLARUS - New Glarus knocked off Cambridge twice in the regular season, but the Glarner Knights were unable to defeat the Blue Jays for a third time, as they fell to their Capitol South-rival, 42-34.
Things started out promising for New Glarus, as they held a 10-5 lead after a quarter of play. The second and third quarters weren't as kind to the Glarner Knights, as they managed to score only 11 points between the two quarters to find themselves down 31-21 entering the fourth.
"We started out strong. It was 16-15 at halftime," said New Glarus coach Megan Scheele. "We struggled in the third quarter shooting and they hit a lot."
Sierra Watrud was the leading scorer for New Glarus with 10 points. Other leading scorers for the Glarner Knights were Courtney Feller with nine points and Cassie Feller with eight.
"Cassie Feller had a very nice first half. She gave us a spark right off the bat. She's a senior and she came out ready to go," Scheele said.
New Glarus finished the season with a 13-11 record.
"This was a tough way to go out. We beat Cambridge twice, so we knew we could beat them," Scheele said. "Our seniors will be missed, but now we'll see what we can take from this season going forward to next year."
Darlington 49, Belleville 36
DARLINGTON - The Darlington girls basketball team advanced to the regional final with a 49-36 win over Belleville.
Darlington led 14-10 after the first quarter, and 28-19 at halftime. The Redbirds won the third quarter 11-10, before outscoring the Wildcats 10-7 in the fourth to seal the victory.
"First half, came out with a press, tried to make it up tempo, and tried to work it inside," said Darlington coach Riley Fitzsimons. "They had 18 turnovers in the first half. Defensive pressure was a big key."
A pair of seniors did the bulk of the damage for Darlington offensively. Cassidy Chambers led the Redbirds with 21 points and Claire Scott added 18.
"Chambers had 12 in the first quarter. She went 5 for 6 from the free throw line in the first half; that was a big key," Fitzsimons said. "Mallory Busch also had a big three in the second quarter."
The Redbirds (17-6) turn around today with a rubber match at home against rival Mineral Point with the regional title on the line. Darlington beat the Pointers, 45-35, on Dec. 27, but Mineral Point won the most recent meeting, 47-40, on Feb. 8. In both instances, the home team emerged victorious. Fitzsimons said the Redbirds just need to worry about playing their game.
"We need to keep Claire out of foul trouble and try to work it inside; keep pressure on the ball," he said. "Just keep doing what we do and don't make stupid mistakes."
Benton-Shulls. 62, Argyle 54
BENTON - Sixth-seeded Argyle came close to upsetting third-seeded Benton-Shullburg, but the Orioles weren't able to hold on to a fourth quarter lead, as they fell to the Zephyrs, 62-54.
Argyle trailed 30-24 at halftime before outscoring the Zephyrs 16-6 in the third to take a 40-36 lead into the final quarter.
"We started off down six at half and went on an eight point run off of our press, and then obviously we held them to six in the third," said Argyle coach Kurt Ritschard. "We were playing good 'D', staying true to what we were doing. We made some adjustments to our press."
Benton-Shullsburg's offense came roaring back in the fourth, though, scoring 26 points, compared to 14 for Argyle, to make the comeback.
"Their best player, Blaire Lutes, got to the rim and the foul line," Ritschard said about the fourth quarter. "She scored nine of her 22 in the fourth."
Senior Kayla Ostby led the Orioles with 17 points. She was joined in double figures by sophomore Jenna Langmeier, who scored 16.
"Kayla and Jenna played their best games all year. They were our go-to girls tonight," Ritschard said.
The loss brings Argyle's season to a close. The Orioles finished the season with a 13-11 record. Benton-Shullsburg advances to the regional final with a 22-2 record. Although it was a tough loss, Ritschard said he couldn't have been happier with his team's effort.
"It was a tough way to end the year," he said. "I thought we played phenomenally tonight. We gave 110 percent, left it all on the line. I was really happy with our effort."
This season was a step in the right direction for the Argyle program, as they improved from a 7-16 mark a year ago. Ritschard said that he likes where the program is headed.
"I am very proud of the progress our team made this year," he said. "I really enjoy the direction the program is headed. We were able to win a playoff game, which hasn't been done here in some time."
Monroe hung with the Crusaders during the first quarter, trailing just 10-7 after the first eight minutes of play. Edgewood broke the game open in the second quarter, though, outscoring Monroe 17-3.
"In the second quarter, they did a good job of getting to the free throw line. They had some good penetration and post ups and they converted their opportunities," said Monroe coach Sam Mathiason. "We had a hard time finding any offense. I thought we had some good opportunities, but we didn't convert."
Senior Heather Barta led Monroe with eight points. The next leading scorer for the Cheesemakers was senior Briana Katzenberger, who scored seven. Amanda Klemm scored 16 to lead Edgewood.
The loss was Monroe's third to Edgewood this season. Mathiason said that he thought this was Monroe's best performance of the year against the Crusaders.
"We knew we would have to do a good job against their pressure. I thought we did pretty good, we only turned it over a few times," he said. "They have lots of people who can score. They had three in double figures tonight. This was their 14th win in a row. They're playing as well as anybody."
The Cheesemakers finished the season with a record of 2-22. Mathiason said he was proud of his team's effort both in this game and throughout the season.
"I was proud of the effort we gave," he said. "We could have come out and not played in the second half. We cut it to 12 at one point in the 4th. We could have folded and we didn't. That's kinda been the story all year. We could have hung our heads, and this just shows the character of the players. Thank the seniors for working hard and trying to get better every day."
Brodhead 60, Edgerton 43
BRODHEAD - Junior Carly Mohns scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Brodhead girls basketball team to a 60-43 win over Edgerton in a WIAA Division 3 regional semifinal Friday night.
With the win, fifth-ranked Brodhead (22-1) advances and will host Clinton in a regional final at 7 p.m. today.
The Cardinals led just 13-8 at the end of the first quarter. The Cardinals outscored the Crimson Tide 16-8 in the second quarter to take a 13-point lead at the half.
Brodhead coach Brad Pickett said the Cardinals didn't start slow.
"I think both teams came out ready to play," Pickett said. "Edgerton is a really good team and they are probably more deserving than a No. 8 seed. We grinded out this win. Against good teams that is what you have to do."
Brodhead junior Rachel Heller scored nine points and senior Mariah Ahrens added eight points.
Pickett said one of the Cardinals' strengths has been their team is deep. The Cardinals also got six points from Kylie Moe and Meg Duffield.
"That has been one of the strengths of our team this season," Pickett said. "That obviously won't change because it's the tournament."
Brodhead has beat Clinton 53-46 and 54-39 in two meetings this year. They are looking to win a regional championship tonight and move one step closer to state.
"We will have to defend," Pickett said. That is obviously what makes us go. We have to do a good job on the boards and make sure they are one (shot) and done."
Cambridge 42,
New Glarus 34
NEW GLARUS - New Glarus knocked off Cambridge twice in the regular season, but the Glarner Knights were unable to defeat the Blue Jays for a third time, as they fell to their Capitol South-rival, 42-34.
Things started out promising for New Glarus, as they held a 10-5 lead after a quarter of play. The second and third quarters weren't as kind to the Glarner Knights, as they managed to score only 11 points between the two quarters to find themselves down 31-21 entering the fourth.
"We started out strong. It was 16-15 at halftime," said New Glarus coach Megan Scheele. "We struggled in the third quarter shooting and they hit a lot."
Sierra Watrud was the leading scorer for New Glarus with 10 points. Other leading scorers for the Glarner Knights were Courtney Feller with nine points and Cassie Feller with eight.
"Cassie Feller had a very nice first half. She gave us a spark right off the bat. She's a senior and she came out ready to go," Scheele said.
New Glarus finished the season with a 13-11 record.
"This was a tough way to go out. We beat Cambridge twice, so we knew we could beat them," Scheele said. "Our seniors will be missed, but now we'll see what we can take from this season going forward to next year."
Darlington 49, Belleville 36
DARLINGTON - The Darlington girls basketball team advanced to the regional final with a 49-36 win over Belleville.
Darlington led 14-10 after the first quarter, and 28-19 at halftime. The Redbirds won the third quarter 11-10, before outscoring the Wildcats 10-7 in the fourth to seal the victory.
"First half, came out with a press, tried to make it up tempo, and tried to work it inside," said Darlington coach Riley Fitzsimons. "They had 18 turnovers in the first half. Defensive pressure was a big key."
A pair of seniors did the bulk of the damage for Darlington offensively. Cassidy Chambers led the Redbirds with 21 points and Claire Scott added 18.
"Chambers had 12 in the first quarter. She went 5 for 6 from the free throw line in the first half; that was a big key," Fitzsimons said. "Mallory Busch also had a big three in the second quarter."
The Redbirds (17-6) turn around today with a rubber match at home against rival Mineral Point with the regional title on the line. Darlington beat the Pointers, 45-35, on Dec. 27, but Mineral Point won the most recent meeting, 47-40, on Feb. 8. In both instances, the home team emerged victorious. Fitzsimons said the Redbirds just need to worry about playing their game.
"We need to keep Claire out of foul trouble and try to work it inside; keep pressure on the ball," he said. "Just keep doing what we do and don't make stupid mistakes."
Benton-Shulls. 62, Argyle 54
BENTON - Sixth-seeded Argyle came close to upsetting third-seeded Benton-Shullburg, but the Orioles weren't able to hold on to a fourth quarter lead, as they fell to the Zephyrs, 62-54.
Argyle trailed 30-24 at halftime before outscoring the Zephyrs 16-6 in the third to take a 40-36 lead into the final quarter.
"We started off down six at half and went on an eight point run off of our press, and then obviously we held them to six in the third," said Argyle coach Kurt Ritschard. "We were playing good 'D', staying true to what we were doing. We made some adjustments to our press."
Benton-Shullsburg's offense came roaring back in the fourth, though, scoring 26 points, compared to 14 for Argyle, to make the comeback.
"Their best player, Blaire Lutes, got to the rim and the foul line," Ritschard said about the fourth quarter. "She scored nine of her 22 in the fourth."
Senior Kayla Ostby led the Orioles with 17 points. She was joined in double figures by sophomore Jenna Langmeier, who scored 16.
"Kayla and Jenna played their best games all year. They were our go-to girls tonight," Ritschard said.
The loss brings Argyle's season to a close. The Orioles finished the season with a 13-11 record. Benton-Shullsburg advances to the regional final with a 22-2 record. Although it was a tough loss, Ritschard said he couldn't have been happier with his team's effort.
"It was a tough way to end the year," he said. "I thought we played phenomenally tonight. We gave 110 percent, left it all on the line. I was really happy with our effort."
This season was a step in the right direction for the Argyle program, as they improved from a 7-16 mark a year ago. Ritschard said that he likes where the program is headed.
"I am very proud of the progress our team made this year," he said. "I really enjoy the direction the program is headed. We were able to win a playoff game, which hasn't been done here in some time."
