SOUTH WAYNE - Barneveld senior Hannah Whitish put on a shooting clinic, drilling seven 3-pointers and scoring a game-high 35 points, to power the top-ranked Golden Eagles to a 70-29 win over Black Hawk on Friday.
Barneveld (20-0, 9-0 Six Rivers East), No. 1 in the Associated Press Division 5 state poll, won the conference title for the fifth straight year. Barneveld has now won 48 straight conference games.
Whitish, a University of Nebraska recruit, scored 10 points in the Eagles' 22-0 run to open the game.
"Whitish did whatever she wanted to do," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "That is how good she is. She's going to Nebraska for a reason."
Whitish scored 23 points in the first half and hit five 3-pointers. Black Hawk (12-8, 8-2) was stymied by the Eagles' suffocating press defense. The Warriors committed eight turnovers and only took four shots in the first 7 minutes. The Warriors went through about a 9-minute scoring drought before senior Aleigha Sigafus scored on a putback to make the score 22-2.
The Warriors finished the game with 22 turnovers.
"We knew they (Barneveld) missed some shots when we played in Barneveld and the game was called tighter and that kept it close," Flanagan said. "They are good. If they are allowed to extend their pressure and use their hands that is why they are beating teams in Division 5 and in our conference by so much. We got a glimpse at why they are ranked No. 1 and how they have beat Edgewood and Prairie du Chien. Just look at their resume."
Sigafus had a double-double with a team-high 10 points and 14 rebounds. She added four steals. Barneveld made it tough on Sigafus by running double teams at her and using halfcourt traps at the top of the key that made it challenging for the Warriors to get the ball inside.
"We worked really hard," Sigafus said. "They are just a lot tougher. They are strong and fast. It's definitely frustrating at times. My coach always says you have to keep playing and going for rebounds. You have to keep fighting."
Handling the pressure became a challenge for the Warriors.
"At the end of the day if you can't pass and catch it doesn't matter what type of scheme you have," Flanagan said. "We had a hard time with those fundamental skills."
Barneveld sophomore Jessica Walker knocked down a 3-pointer right before the buzzer sounded to give the Eagles a 44-17 lead at the half.
The Eagles started the second half with an 11-0 run. Whitish hit a 3-pointer with 14 minutes, 22 seconds left in the second half to give the Eagles a 55-17 lead.
Whitish knocked down another 3-pointer and had two steals and layups to extend the Eagles' lead to 66-25 with 9:18 to go.
Despite the loss, Flanagan is still confident the Warriors can make a run in the tournament.
"The only way we would see (Barneveld) again is in Green Bay," Flanagan said. "I don't want to lose sight of the season we have had. We are so much improved compared to last year. There is not a team in our sectional like (Barneveld)."
Fall River may be the No. 1 seed in Black Hawk's Division 5 sectional. Since the Warriors beat Randolph when the Rockets were ranked, Flanagan sees an opportunity in the seeding meeting he will have Sunday.
"I think if everything goes like it should we should be the No. 2 seed," he said. "Just look at our body of work. We beat Randolph head-to-head and that is supposed to be the tiebreaker."
Sigafus is looking forward to the regional tournament. She's confident the Warriors can make a run.
"I think we are ready," Sigafus said. "We have five seniors on this team. We don't want it to end. We are ready to fight."
Barneveld (20-0, 9-0 Six Rivers East), No. 1 in the Associated Press Division 5 state poll, won the conference title for the fifth straight year. Barneveld has now won 48 straight conference games.
Whitish, a University of Nebraska recruit, scored 10 points in the Eagles' 22-0 run to open the game.
"Whitish did whatever she wanted to do," Black Hawk coach Mike Flanagan said. "That is how good she is. She's going to Nebraska for a reason."
Whitish scored 23 points in the first half and hit five 3-pointers. Black Hawk (12-8, 8-2) was stymied by the Eagles' suffocating press defense. The Warriors committed eight turnovers and only took four shots in the first 7 minutes. The Warriors went through about a 9-minute scoring drought before senior Aleigha Sigafus scored on a putback to make the score 22-2.
The Warriors finished the game with 22 turnovers.
"We knew they (Barneveld) missed some shots when we played in Barneveld and the game was called tighter and that kept it close," Flanagan said. "They are good. If they are allowed to extend their pressure and use their hands that is why they are beating teams in Division 5 and in our conference by so much. We got a glimpse at why they are ranked No. 1 and how they have beat Edgewood and Prairie du Chien. Just look at their resume."
Sigafus had a double-double with a team-high 10 points and 14 rebounds. She added four steals. Barneveld made it tough on Sigafus by running double teams at her and using halfcourt traps at the top of the key that made it challenging for the Warriors to get the ball inside.
"We worked really hard," Sigafus said. "They are just a lot tougher. They are strong and fast. It's definitely frustrating at times. My coach always says you have to keep playing and going for rebounds. You have to keep fighting."
Handling the pressure became a challenge for the Warriors.
"At the end of the day if you can't pass and catch it doesn't matter what type of scheme you have," Flanagan said. "We had a hard time with those fundamental skills."
Barneveld sophomore Jessica Walker knocked down a 3-pointer right before the buzzer sounded to give the Eagles a 44-17 lead at the half.
The Eagles started the second half with an 11-0 run. Whitish hit a 3-pointer with 14 minutes, 22 seconds left in the second half to give the Eagles a 55-17 lead.
Whitish knocked down another 3-pointer and had two steals and layups to extend the Eagles' lead to 66-25 with 9:18 to go.
Despite the loss, Flanagan is still confident the Warriors can make a run in the tournament.
"The only way we would see (Barneveld) again is in Green Bay," Flanagan said. "I don't want to lose sight of the season we have had. We are so much improved compared to last year. There is not a team in our sectional like (Barneveld)."
Fall River may be the No. 1 seed in Black Hawk's Division 5 sectional. Since the Warriors beat Randolph when the Rockets were ranked, Flanagan sees an opportunity in the seeding meeting he will have Sunday.
"I think if everything goes like it should we should be the No. 2 seed," he said. "Just look at our body of work. We beat Randolph head-to-head and that is supposed to be the tiebreaker."
Sigafus is looking forward to the regional tournament. She's confident the Warriors can make a run.
"I think we are ready," Sigafus said. "We have five seniors on this team. We don't want it to end. We are ready to fight."
