OREGON — For the third year in a row, the Cheesemakers are bound for the state tournament in Green Bay. 

“It’s a crazy feeling. That’s the goal every season and we did it,” senior Emily Benzschawel said after Monroe defeated Milton 62-51 in a WIAA Division 2 sectional final at Oregon High School March 2. Two days prior, the Cheesemakers dominated DeForest 71-54 at McFarland High School in the sectional semifinal.

Stepping up for Monroe once again was senior guard Sydney Hilliard. A future Wisconsin Badger, Hilliard scored 31 points in both sectional games — and missed just three field goals combined in the two contests. She was 12 of 13 from the field against Milton and 10 of 12 in the DeForest game.

“I’m kind of used to the type of crowd, so to say, because we’ve done it for three years now. I’ve just gotten more comfortable and I am ready to shoot and be aggressive,” Hilliard said.

In the DeForest game, the Cheesemakers started out with an extra spark that caught the Norskies off guard. Monroe opened the game with a full-court press and made 4 of 5 shots in the opening five minutes to take a 12-2 lead.

“We practiced (the press) a little bit leading up to this game. I think it was a tone-setter, because it got them a little scared to make a pass or dribble,” Hilliard said.

The Cheesemakers led by 11 five times during the first half and went on a 19-8 run in the early minutes of the second half to push their lead to 17.

“(DeForest runs) so many things where we were trying to prep but we didn’t know what or how they were going to run. I thought our kids did really well with picking up the movements and beating them to spots and getting deflections and turnovers early. That built a little bit of confidence and we could settle in,” Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said.

Monroe closed the game on an 8-0 run that included a perfect 6-for-6 mark from the line in the final 1:39.

Emily Benzschawel had 23 points and five rebounds in the game, while younger sister Megan had 11 points, 12 boards and three steals. Hilliard added nine rebounds.

“Our two seniors, Sydney and Emily, they are not ready for the season to be done and they are going to do everything they can to push us on. Every time it seemed like DeForest was going to make a run, one of those two answered and was knocking down a shot,” Mathiason said. “Megan was active. She did a good job getting to the right spot and getting some rebounds and on defense of getting big and not picking up fouls with those blocks.”

In the state-clinching win over Milton, it was Megan Benzschawel that provided Hilliard with some offensive assistance. The sophomore forward had 18 points, nine rebounds and four steals, while Hilliard had seven rebounds and four assists. Grace Tostrud scored nine points and collected eight boards.

“We told the girls before the game that they (Milton) are in this game and they are not going to just give it to you. You have to go out and compete hard. That second half we were able to get a couple turnovers, hit a couple of shots and get that margin that we could stretch it enough to give us a little bit of breathing room,” Mathiason said. Monroe had beaten Milton by 23 and 25 points earlier in the season. “We knew that it wasn’t going to be easy even though when we beat them a couple of times that maybe seemed easy.”

Many of the Cheesemakers struggled offensively. Taking away Megan Benzschawel and Hilliard, Monroe shot just 5-for-32 (15.6 percent) from the field and 1-for-17 (5.8 percent) from beyond the arc. Emily Benzschawel, with a career shooting percentage above 45 percent, was just 1-for-12 in the game, and 0-for-5 from deep.

“You just have to keep a level head and move on to the next play. If you do that, it will go your way,” Emily Benzschawel said. “If the shot isn’t falling, you just have to grab the rebound, or make a good pass.”

Monroe started the game 0-for-9 on 3-pointers, but carried a 30-23 lead into the locker room. An 8-0 run to open the second half gave the Cheesemakers enough breathing room to stem any more offensive droughts to come. Milton remained pesky, however, always threatening to bring its deficit back to single digits. 

“Our goal is always to start off fast in the second half, and I think we’ve done a really good job with that,” Hilliard said. “I knew they weren’t going to go away. They battled really hard the whole way.”

Monroe will play Whitefish Bay March 8 at approximately 3:15 p.m. in a D2 semifinal game at the Resch Center, just a block away from Lambeau Field. Two-time defending champion Beaver Dam will play Hortonville at 1:35 p.m. in the first game of the session.

“I’m happy for this group to get another opportunity,” Mathiason said.