BEAVER DAM — After a magical run to the WIAA Division 5 state championship in 2024, the Albany-Monticello Space Stallions came up one win short of returning to the Resch Center to defend their title. Struggles shooting in the game, including a final 10 minutes a nearly non-existent offense, led to a 57-43 loss to Oshkosh Lourdes in the Sectional 4 final at Beaver Dam.

“We wanted to get back to the Resch Center, but today just wasn’t our turn,” senior guard Abby Hollis said.

Lourdes is no slouch on the court, and the added size advantage the Knights bring adds an extra plight to overcome.

“I think their length just caused us so much trouble in the end,” said AM coach Derik Doescher. “At the end of the day, we knew we’d fight and be gritty, we just don’t have a lot of size, and that was our downfall tonight.”

AM has just two players 5-9 or taller. Lourdes five, include two centers that stand 6-2 with wingspans wider yet.

Lourdes used it size sufficiently on the defensive end, deploying a 3-2 zone with a high perimeter trap. While the Space Stallions were able to consistently pass the ball to an open player, very rarely was that receiver in an optimal scoring position, outside of maybe the first few minutes of the game. That’s where Anna Ellinger caught the Knights off guard with four of AM’s first six points, with Dalana Trumpy adding another tough bucket in the post.

“For me, scoring doesn’t come that easily,” Ellinger said. “For me, that was my hype moment. It was like the peak of the game for me.”

Abby Hollis, one of the state’s top three-point shooters, could not get herself in a rhythm either. She didn’t make her first basket until the second half and finished with six points — less than half her per-game average.

Trumpy led the Space Stallions with 12 points in her final basketball game.

“Always play your heart out,” Trumpy said. “That’s what I did tonight, so I can’t be mad about it.”

Molly Olson, a junior guard, finished with nine points on three 3-pointers, while her younger sister, Heidi, a freshman, had 10 points and hit two big second half threes.

Lourdes led 23-20 at halftime, closing the frame on a 7-2 run over the final five minutes. That scoring streak would foreshadow what was to come in the second half.

The Knights scored the first five points right out of the gate after halftime, and Doescher quickly called a timeout to stop slow the building momentum. His team responded with a 10-4 run that included both of Hollis’ threes.

“I was stressed out just trying to get it to go, and Dash kept telling me from the sidelines to just shoot the ball and trust myself,” Hollis said. “Once I got it to go I felt pretty good.”

Heidi Olson tied it at 36 with a three-pointer, then gave AM a 39-37 lead by splashing another triple with 10:06 remaining.

“We were trying to move them around as much as possible to get them a little bit tired and wear them down, just play fast pace and run out offense,” Molly Olson said.

From there, no one foresaw a 20-4 closeout run by Lourdes, which already had three players in foul trouble.

“We made that run and took a lead, but we just couldn’t find buckets because we didn’t get a lot of shots up. Their length was causing problems, and they just wore us down,” Doescher said.

With 33 seconds remaining and trailing by 14, Doescher conceded and replaced his starters with his reserves. When the final buzzer sounded, the waterworks doubled their intensity.

“It’s really hard going back two times to the Resch Center. We knew it was going to be hard, we knew we were going to have to work for it,” Trumpy said. “But it hurts that we’re not going back there.”

Hollis gets a reminder from dad

With Lourdes players and fans celebrating on the far end of the court, cutting down the nets and posing for pictures with the sectional championship plaque, AM’s players found the welcoming arms of their teams, family and friends. 

Hollis was embraced for an extended amount of time by her father, Brandon, one of the assistant coaches of the team. While she showered his shirt in tears, he showered her with words of comfort, encouragement and pride.

“He told me to keep my head up – I’m better than that,” Abby Hollis said. “I’ve done a lot. I’ve made myself better, I’ve helped get the program where it is with all the girls on our team. We’ve built such a great culture.”

Hollis herself will get to step on the court at the Resch Center this week. Her 40% three-point shooting this year earned her a spot in the WIAA’s 3-point Challenge. She’ll be joined by Belleville’s Toria Devoe (47.6%) and eight others in a division-less competition on March 15 prior to the state championships.

“My favorite moment of basketball was probably when I ran to my dad after winning a game. Winning that state championship was probably the best moment of my life,” Abby Hollis said. “I’ve had so many good memories with this program that’ll be great to look back on, but right now it kind of stinks.”

Sectional Semifinal a rout

In the sectional semifinal, the Space Stallions obliterated 10-seed Madison Country Day 68-23 on March 6 at Clinton High School. 

Country Day had only three players score on the night, while AM wore out a fresh pencil to a nub with balanced scoring. Trumpy had 16 points, Hollis, Heidi Olson and Ellinger each had 10, and Molly Olson added nine points. 

AM led 41-11 at halftime and took a 40-point lead at 53-12 with 14:23 remaining. Doescher put in the reserves to finish off their young, less experienced foe. 

Country Day has just eight players on its roster, with no seniors and just one junior. Their three postseason wins in the regional round were the first three playoff victories in program history.

Earning their stripes

While Hollis, Trumpy and both Olson’s were known commodities as they entered high school basketball, Ellinger was instead a project. 

“Anna is not the most athletic basketball player in the world, but man, she makes up for it with her heart and her grit. What a tough kid. Her heart, her grit, her personality was such a positive — she’s a bubbly kid. Those are things you never replace,” Doescher said. “And she’s come up with big moment after big moment in the tournament the last few years. It’s not always pretty with Anna, but you don’t want it to be pretty, because the sloppier it is, but better off we’re going to be.”

She worked hard to earn her minutes throughout her career, but by the end was not just a starter, but a regular contributor.

“I regret nothing. I left it all out there, so there’s nothing else I can do about it,” Ellinger said. The key to her success, she said, was her teammates, who are her close friends. “I’m grateful to be able to play with all my friends. That’s why I play sports. I have always felt valued by my teammates. I couldn’t ask for better teammates, honestly. Everyone’s so uplifting. As soon as we (Albany) combined with Monticello, we were all friends. It was great.”

As the program transitions to the offseason, some of the younger players in the program will be looking up to the few experienced returners — specifically Molly and Heidi Olson.

“Everyone here works super hard. We just have to come back hungry and ready to fight,” Molly said. “We’re going to need some younger girls to step up. But I think we will play hard, just like we always do.”

Heidi Olson was third on the team in scoring at 10.2 ppg, just ahead of Molly (9.9 ppg), who was the team’s lone first-team all-conference selection this year. Heidi was an honorable mention pick.

“Molly, she’s going to have to be that senior leader. Heidi, if this year wasn’t valuable to her, then I don’t know what is,” Doescher said. “I mean, being a freshman and helping us win a conference championship, a regional championship and getting the opportunity of playing in the sectional finals. Hopefully she learns from it; she grows from it.”

The senior class, though, was a special group, Doescher said. They were there when the co-op began and led the team to a state title amongst other great success. In their two years together as one school, Albany-Monticello has a 53-5 record (.913).

“These seniors, they are going to be irreplaceable. You can bring girls in and try and replace them, but Trumpy, Ellinger, Hollis — those aren’t just names of great basketball players, but great athletes and have been leaders in this program.”