Vikings motor into 3A final
After a back-and-forth first half, Minneota came out for the second half on a 12-0 run and went on to defeat Lac qui Parle Valley 68-49 in the Section 3A-North final on Monday night in Minneota.
"We talked about making a slight adjustment against their pick and roll but most of it was just executing our defensive strategy more consistently," said Minneota coach Chad Johnston. "We would sometimes go over the screen and then sometimes we would go over the screen. In the second half, we did a better job of going over the screen and not giving up easy three-point attempts."
Abby Hennen, who scored her 2,000th career point on Friday, led all scorers with 29 points. The senior was recently named to the Class A All-State First Team along with junior teammate Natalee Rolbiecki, who scored her 1,000th career point last Thursday.
Lac qui Parle Valley (15-5) stayed with the top-ranked Vikings in the first half, never trailing by more than four points and even leading briefly early in the game.
With the game tied 17-17, Hennen snapped the cords with the first of her five 3-pointers. But the Eagles countered with a 3-pointer by Macie Lund for a 20-20 deadlock.
Hennen then drained another trey on the Vikings' next possession, and after an LQPV turnover, Rolbiecki took a turn and sank a 3-pointer for a 26-20 advantage.
Taylor Shelstad then connected beyond the arc to make it 26-23; a strong of five straight 3-pointers between the teams that caused fans from both teams to stand and applaud.
After the close first half, the Vikings turned it up a notch in the second half, outscoring LQPV 34-17 the rest of the way. Hennen and Rolbiecki had five points each in the 12-0 run to start the second half and the Eagles' upset hopes were dashed.
Minneota went to the free-throw line 37 times, making 24 for 65 percent. The Eagles sank 13 of 15 free throws.
Rolbiecki finished with 12 points, while Jeren Rost had nine points, McKenna Yost seven, Abby Rost five, Kennedi Jurrens three and McKenzie Tolk two.
Ireland Stassen, who has missed several games recently with an injury, returned and saw limited action, sinking one free throw and contributing two rebounds and a steal.
"It's good to have Ireland back," said Johnston. "We wanted to limit her time a little tonight since it was her first night back, but hoping for things to be back to normal on Thursday night."
Minneota (21-0) will face 3A-South champion Southwest Christian in the Section 3A championship at 7 p.m. Thursday in Pipestone. Those teams met earlier this season with Minneota winning 55-46.
"SWC is quality team. We will have to make sure we play a good game," said Johnston. "They do present us with some defensive mismatches so we need to emphasize the little things in this game.
"They have a quality post player who is a four-year starter with girls on the perimeter that compliment her well and have the potential to get hot from the outside. We need to have another great defensive effort against them."
Minneota 68, LQPV 49
LAC QUI PARLE VALLEY (total points) - Macie Lund 4-6 3-3 13, Addie Bonn 0-2 1-2 1, Taylor Shelstad 3-14 2-2 10, Cassidy Olson 4-6 2-2 10, Alex Stitt 0-8 3-3 3, Cameron Lee 4-5 2-2 10, Toree Bungarden 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 16-48 13-15 49.
MINNEOTA (FG, FT, Pts) - Abby Hennen 8-21 8-13 29, Grace Hennen 0-0 0-0 0, Kennedi Jurrens 0-2 3-4 3, Natalee Rolbiecki 4-12 2-4 12, Abby Rost 0-8 5-6 5, Jeren Rost 3-11 3-4 9, Ireland Stassen 0-1 1-4 1, McKenzie Tolk 1-3 0-0 2, McKenna Yost 2-7 2-2 7. Totals 18-65 24-37 68.
Halftime: Minneota 34, LQPV 32
3-pointers: LQPV 4-14 (M.Lund 2, Shelstad 2). Minneota 8-24 (A.Hennen 5, Rolbiecki 2, Yost 1).
Rebounds: LQPV 29 Bungarden 7). Minneota 35 (A.Rost 10, A.Hennen 7, J.Rost 7, Jurrens 3, Rolbiecki 3, Yost 3, Stassen 2).
Assists: LQPV not available. Minneota 9 (A.Rost 3, Yost 2, A.Hennen 1, Jurrens 1, J.Rost 1, Tolk 1).
Steals: LQPV 4 (Bonn 1, M.Lund 1, Shelstad 1, Stitt 1). Minneota 10 (Rolbiecki 4, A.Hennen 3, J.Rost 2, Stassen 1, Yost 1).
Turnovers: LQPV 16, Minneota 8.