MONROE - Monroe senior Chelsea Brice understands that defense wins championships after the Cheesemakers survived a test and beat Platteville 57-41 in a WIAA Division 2 Verona regional semifinal Thursday night.
The Cheesemakers clamped down on the Hillmen by holding them scoreless for 9 minutes, 30 seconds to fuel a 17-0 run that spanned from the end of the second quarter until late third quarter.
"This is just a relief to get this first tournament game over," Brice said, who scored 17 points. "We thought we had to pick up the intensity on defense and keep them from getting open looks."
Brice limited Platteville senior Jessica Jentz to just four points after she came in averaging 10.1 points per game.
"You are always concerned about the first game after you have the bye," Monroe coach Kevin Keen said of the tournament. "You have to play a team that is fired up and has some momentum after winning Tuesday. Chelsea did a really good job on Jessica Jentz. I thought we really took charge in the third quarter and clamped down on defense."
The final score was not indicative of how hard Monroe (22-1), ranked No. 1 in the Division 2 Associated Press state poll, had to work. Platteville freshman Julia Lawinger scored 10 of her 15 points in the first half and made two of her team's four 3-pointers early on as the as the Hillmen led 15-13.
Platteville senior Maggie Droessler drilled a 3-pointer to give the Hillmen a 22-19 lead about midway through the second quarter. Platteville sophomore Megan Moss and Droessler scored on layups late in the second quarter to give the Hillmen a 26-23 lead. Monroe scored seven consecutive points to close out the second quarter highlighted by Brice's 3-pointer and a basket down low by senior Ashley Hermanson that gave the Cheesemakers a 30-26 halftime lead. Hermanson, a Nebraska-Kearney recruit, scored a game-high 18 points and had eight rebounds. Fellow senior Jamie Armstrong had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
"We just had to play better defense," Hermanson said. "In the second half, we knew we had to buckle down."
The Cheesemakers turned the ball over four times in the first four minutes of the first quarter. Monroe junior Jaclyn Ditter helped the Cheesemakers as she scored four points off the bench.
"Give credit to Jaclyn Ditter," Keen said. "She came off the bench and scored a couple of baskets to keep us alive."
Hermanson scored 12 of her 18 points in the second half as the Cheesemakers rolled to a 40-26 lead on junior Kylee Ritschard's layup with about 2 minutes to go in the third quarter.
The Hillmen didn't go away quietly in the fourth quarter. Platteville senior Emilie Kay hit a jumper to slice the Cheesemakers' lead to 46-37 with 4:43 to go. Monroe answered when Brice scored on a layup and she was fouled. She converted the conventional three-point play to give the Cheesemakers a 49-37 lead.
"Teams are not going to just give it to us," Armstrong said. "We have to prove we want it and play with emotion."
Now Monroe will turn its attention to the Division 2 Verona regional championship where the Cheesemakers will play Brodhead Saturday.
"That will be intense," Hermanson said. "It will just be a battle. It's a good rivalry game."
Monroe beat Brodhead 51-41 in the season opener.
"That's not much of a measuring stick," Keen said. "There are too many things that have transpired between now and then. We will have to play much better defense than we did in the first half tonight."
The Cheesemakers clamped down on the Hillmen by holding them scoreless for 9 minutes, 30 seconds to fuel a 17-0 run that spanned from the end of the second quarter until late third quarter.
"This is just a relief to get this first tournament game over," Brice said, who scored 17 points. "We thought we had to pick up the intensity on defense and keep them from getting open looks."
Brice limited Platteville senior Jessica Jentz to just four points after she came in averaging 10.1 points per game.
"You are always concerned about the first game after you have the bye," Monroe coach Kevin Keen said of the tournament. "You have to play a team that is fired up and has some momentum after winning Tuesday. Chelsea did a really good job on Jessica Jentz. I thought we really took charge in the third quarter and clamped down on defense."
The final score was not indicative of how hard Monroe (22-1), ranked No. 1 in the Division 2 Associated Press state poll, had to work. Platteville freshman Julia Lawinger scored 10 of her 15 points in the first half and made two of her team's four 3-pointers early on as the as the Hillmen led 15-13.
Platteville senior Maggie Droessler drilled a 3-pointer to give the Hillmen a 22-19 lead about midway through the second quarter. Platteville sophomore Megan Moss and Droessler scored on layups late in the second quarter to give the Hillmen a 26-23 lead. Monroe scored seven consecutive points to close out the second quarter highlighted by Brice's 3-pointer and a basket down low by senior Ashley Hermanson that gave the Cheesemakers a 30-26 halftime lead. Hermanson, a Nebraska-Kearney recruit, scored a game-high 18 points and had eight rebounds. Fellow senior Jamie Armstrong had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
"We just had to play better defense," Hermanson said. "In the second half, we knew we had to buckle down."
The Cheesemakers turned the ball over four times in the first four minutes of the first quarter. Monroe junior Jaclyn Ditter helped the Cheesemakers as she scored four points off the bench.
"Give credit to Jaclyn Ditter," Keen said. "She came off the bench and scored a couple of baskets to keep us alive."
Hermanson scored 12 of her 18 points in the second half as the Cheesemakers rolled to a 40-26 lead on junior Kylee Ritschard's layup with about 2 minutes to go in the third quarter.
The Hillmen didn't go away quietly in the fourth quarter. Platteville senior Emilie Kay hit a jumper to slice the Cheesemakers' lead to 46-37 with 4:43 to go. Monroe answered when Brice scored on a layup and she was fouled. She converted the conventional three-point play to give the Cheesemakers a 49-37 lead.
"Teams are not going to just give it to us," Armstrong said. "We have to prove we want it and play with emotion."
Now Monroe will turn its attention to the Division 2 Verona regional championship where the Cheesemakers will play Brodhead Saturday.
"That will be intense," Hermanson said. "It will just be a battle. It's a good rivalry game."
Monroe beat Brodhead 51-41 in the season opener.
"That's not much of a measuring stick," Keen said. "There are too many things that have transpired between now and then. We will have to play much better defense than we did in the first half tonight."
