MONROE - The Monroe girls basketball team's quest to repeat as Division 2 state champions got off to a rousing start, rolling to a 54-27 win over Evansville on Tuesday night in a WIAA Division 2 regional quarterfinal.
The Cheesemakers (19-2) blitzed the Blue Devils right out of the gates with a 19-0 first-quarter run. Monroe sophomore Kyleigh Sellnow buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 4 minutes, 34 seconds left in the first quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 12-0 lead.
Monroe junior Gwen Sutter zipped a pass to Emily Rufenacht, who scored down low.
Rufenacht, who scored a game-high 12 points, followed that up with a layup to push the lead to 16-0. Sellnow drilled another 3 from the wing to cap a 19-0 run.
"It feels really good to get off to a nice start," Sutter said. "It's tournament time, so we have to step it up and we did tonight."
The Cheesemakers kept the pressure on in the second quarter, with Sutter driving to the basket and nailing a running shot over the defense, which she was fouled on. Sutter converted the conventional three-point play at the free throw line to extend the lead to 24-4.
Sutter, who scored nine of her 10 points in the first half, stepped up and drilled a 3 with 1:37 left in the second quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 35-11 lead.
Monroe hosts Mount Horeb in a Verona regional semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday.
"We have to go into Thursday night with confidence," Rufenacht said. "We have beat them before. We just have to have more confidence and drive."
It was a dominating defensive game for Monroe. The Cheesemakers held the Blue Devils without a field goal for almost 10 minutes. Evansville shot 0-for-9 in the first quarter. Blue Devils senior Callie Reese broke the shooting slump with a basket at 6:46 in the second quarter.
Evansville shot just 3-for-21 in the first half and had 12 of its 19 turnovers as the Cheesemakers raced out to a 37-11 halftime lead.
"Defense is going to be key," Monroe coach Kevin Keen said.
"In the tournament, we have found that out. I thought we did a good job right off the bat defensively."
The Cheesemakers surged to a 35-point lead with a 9-0 spurt to start the third quarter. Rufenacht nailed a 3 at the start of the third quarter to extend the lead to 40-11.
Moments later, Rufenacht drilled another 3 with 5:47 left in the third quarter to give the Cheesemakers an insurmountable 44-11 lead.
Rufenacht said the key was driving to the basket often and outrunning the Devils.
Sellnow, junior Jamie Armstrong and Kylee Ritschard each scored seven points for the Cheesemakers.
"In the tournament, you have to get everyone involved and I thought we got everyone involved," Keen said. "We were able to rest our starters and hopefully keep them fresh for Thursday."
Keen expects another physical game against Mount Horeb on Thursday.
"Every game is a one-game season," Keen said. "We will have to be ready. You have to do the little things."
The Cheesemakers (19-2) blitzed the Blue Devils right out of the gates with a 19-0 first-quarter run. Monroe sophomore Kyleigh Sellnow buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 4 minutes, 34 seconds left in the first quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 12-0 lead.
Monroe junior Gwen Sutter zipped a pass to Emily Rufenacht, who scored down low.
Rufenacht, who scored a game-high 12 points, followed that up with a layup to push the lead to 16-0. Sellnow drilled another 3 from the wing to cap a 19-0 run.
"It feels really good to get off to a nice start," Sutter said. "It's tournament time, so we have to step it up and we did tonight."
The Cheesemakers kept the pressure on in the second quarter, with Sutter driving to the basket and nailing a running shot over the defense, which she was fouled on. Sutter converted the conventional three-point play at the free throw line to extend the lead to 24-4.
Sutter, who scored nine of her 10 points in the first half, stepped up and drilled a 3 with 1:37 left in the second quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 35-11 lead.
Monroe hosts Mount Horeb in a Verona regional semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday.
"We have to go into Thursday night with confidence," Rufenacht said. "We have beat them before. We just have to have more confidence and drive."
It was a dominating defensive game for Monroe. The Cheesemakers held the Blue Devils without a field goal for almost 10 minutes. Evansville shot 0-for-9 in the first quarter. Blue Devils senior Callie Reese broke the shooting slump with a basket at 6:46 in the second quarter.
Evansville shot just 3-for-21 in the first half and had 12 of its 19 turnovers as the Cheesemakers raced out to a 37-11 halftime lead.
"Defense is going to be key," Monroe coach Kevin Keen said.
"In the tournament, we have found that out. I thought we did a good job right off the bat defensively."
The Cheesemakers surged to a 35-point lead with a 9-0 spurt to start the third quarter. Rufenacht nailed a 3 at the start of the third quarter to extend the lead to 40-11.
Moments later, Rufenacht drilled another 3 with 5:47 left in the third quarter to give the Cheesemakers an insurmountable 44-11 lead.
Rufenacht said the key was driving to the basket often and outrunning the Devils.
Sellnow, junior Jamie Armstrong and Kylee Ritschard each scored seven points for the Cheesemakers.
"In the tournament, you have to get everyone involved and I thought we got everyone involved," Keen said. "We were able to rest our starters and hopefully keep them fresh for Thursday."
Keen expects another physical game against Mount Horeb on Thursday.
"Every game is a one-game season," Keen said. "We will have to be ready. You have to do the little things."
