Vikings top LQPV; one step from state

Minneota had its foot on the accelerator all night and eventually wore down top-seeded Lac qui Parle Valley on its way to a 48-35 victory in the Section 3A-North championship Friday night at Southwest Minnesota State University.
The victory avenged two previous losses to the senior-dominated Eagles this season.
"We wanted to push the ball on offense and pressure them on defense in an attempt to wear them down," said Minneota coach Al Panka. "I told the girls it might not come in the first half, but if we continued to make them work hard on defense, it would come."
Minneota now faces Southwest Minnesota Christian (24-5) in the Section 3A championship on Friday, March 10 at SMSU. Southwest Christian defeated Edgerton 66-50 in the 3A-South championship Friday night.
Southwest Christian beat Minneota 62-49 on Feb. 9 this season.
The Vikings' up-tempo strategy and suffocating man defense worked to near perfection against LQPV, forcing the Eagles into a season-high 21 turnovers and limiting them to a season-low in points and shooting percentage (10 of 48 shots for 21 percent).
The Vikings (20-8), seeded No. 2 in North half of the section, previously lost to Lac qui Parle Valley (25-3) 55-44 on Jan. 17 on the road and 54-41 in the Camden Conference championship on Feb. 20. Minneota starts just one senior, while LQPV has four seniors in the starting lineup.
Grace Hennen led the way for the Vikings with 15 points. Faith Myhre had 13 points, Kenadi Arndt 10 points and 10 rebounds, and Ireland Stassen 7 points, 12 rebounds and 4 steals. Kiersyn Hulzebos hit a three-pointer off the bench.
In a back-and-forth first half, LQPV went into the locker room holding a 22-21 advantage. The Vikings built a 16-11 lead after Grace Hennen scored on a drive to the basket with 7:24 remaining, their biggest lead of the half.
Taylor Shelstad, who led the Eagles with 15 points, then sank a three-pointer to make it 16-14. Kenadi Arndt's layup increased the Vikings' lead to 18-14 before Isabel Gerdes hit a triple and Camryn Lee cashed a pair of free throws to give the Eagles a 19-18 lead.
Myhre's three-pointer with 2:19 put Minneota back on top, 21-19. The Eagles then scored the final three points of the half on a layup by Rylee Lund and a free throw by Ayanna Gipson.
Camryn Lee, a 6-1 senior and 1,000-point scorer, was held to only four points in the first half and scoreless in the second half.
"We tried to push the ball as much as we could and then move the ball around to get open looks and make them work hard on defense," said Arndt. "My main goal was to make (Lee) make her work for her points but try not to get in foul trouble. We would double on her in the middle and we were able to keep her from scoring."
With Myhre scoring 10 of her 13 points in the second half, including a pair of three-pointers, the Vikings started gaining control. With the game tied 27-27, Myhre brought the bench to its feet by splashing a three-pointer, and then hitting an off-handed baby hook shot less than a minute later, to put the Vikings up for good, 32-27 with 8:01 remaining in the game.
"My great grandpa (Jim DeCock) passed away recently and he was a big basketball lover," Myhre said. "He always told me 'Just keep shooting'. I thought of him out there when I was making some shots so I just kept shooting."
Myhre, playing her best overall game of the season, hit 5-of-9 shots from the field, including 3 of 5 from behind the arc, finishing two points shy of her career high.
The Eagles whittled the deficit to 32-30 on a Shelstad triple, but Myhre answered right back with her second trey.
Hulzebos then nailed a three-pointer for a 38-32 lead. After Shelstad sank two free throws, Stassen muscled inside for a basket to give the Vikings a 40-34 lead.
The Eagles lost junior guard Isabel Gerdes, a three-point threat, early in the second half to a knee injury. She tore the ACL in her left knee against Dawson-Boyd on Saturday, but tried to play on it after icing and stretching it last week. She ended up with six points, hitting a pair of three-pointers in the first half.
"We knew they were a little short-handed," Panka said. "And playing on a college floor that it 10 feet longer, we wanted to try and wear them down and it worked."
Panka subbed often in an attempt to keep his players' legs fresh.
"I told the girls that every time we got the rebound or a turnover, to sprint the floor," Panka said. "(LQPV) is a great team and they make you earn everything."
The Eagles would get no closer than four points the rest of the way and were forced to foul in an attempt to get back in the game. Grace Hennen drained five straight free throws in the closing minute to put the game away.
Myhre said after the game that the reason they were able to keep pushing the ball and playing hard on defense was because of the players that don't see as many minutes as the starters.
"These girls push us every day in practice," she said. "We owe a lot of credit to them. They don't always get in a game or don't play a lot sometime, but they are just as valuable as those who do. They are the reason we are able to play hard and not get tired."
The Eagles made only two field goals in the second half, both by Shelstad, and hit 9 of 13 free throws.
"I don't think too many people thought we would make it this far," Panka said. "But the girls have worked hard and made it happen."

Minneota 48, LQPV 35
LQPV....................................22 13 - 35
Minneota..............................21 27 - 48

Team Statistics
Field-goal shooting (good-attempt-pct.): Lac qui Parle Valley 10-for-48, 21 percent; Minneota 17-for-52, 33 percent ... 3-point shooting (good-attempts-pct.): Lac qui Parle Valley 4-for-19, 21 percent; Minneota 5-for-17, 29 percent ... Free-throw shooting: Lac qui Parle Valley 11-for-16, 69 percent; Minneota 9-for-21, 43 percent ... Rebounds: Lac qui Parle Valley 26, Minneota 34

LQPV Individual Statistics
Scoring (total points): Claire Borstad 0, Caleigh Conn 0, Isabel Gerdes 6, Ayanna Gipson 1, Kayla Jahn 2,Kya Kranz 0, Camryn Lee 4, Jalyn Lee 4, Rylee Lund 3, Taylor Shelstad 15 ... 3-pointers: Gerdes 2, Shelstad 2 ... Rebound leaders: C.Lee 11, Shelstad 6, J.Lee 5 ... Assist leaders: not available .... Steal leader: C.Lee 2, J.Lee 2, Shelstad 2, Gerdes 1, Lund 1

Minneota Individual Statistics
Scoring (fg-att, ft-att, pts): Kenadi Arndt 4-13 2-8 10, Emma Bottelberghe 0-1 0-0 0, Dakoda Hennen 0-4 0-0 0, Grace Hennen 5-11 5-8 15, Kiersyn Hulzebos 1-4 0-0 3, Megan Krog 0-1 0-0 0, Faith Myhre 5-9 0-0 13, Ireland Stassen 2-9 2-5 7 ... 3-pointers: Myhre 3, Hulzebos 1, Stassen 1 ... Rebounds: Stassen 12, Arndt 10, D,Hennen 4, G.Hennen 3, Myhre 3, Hulzebos 1, Bottelberghe 1 ... Assists: Arndt 2, G.Hennen 1, Stassen 1 ... Steals: Stassen 4, Arndt 2, D.Hennen 2, G.Hennen 2, Hulzebos 1 ... Blocked shots: Arndt 2
Section 3A-North
FIRST ROUND FEB. 23
Dawson-Boyd 55, Lakeview 51

QUARTERFINALS FEB. 25
(At Montevideo)
Lac qui Parle Valley 54, Dawson-Boyd 20
Russell-Tyler-Ruthton 57, YME 51
MACCRAY 45, Wabasso 33
Minneota 49, Canby 38

SEMIFINALS FEB. 28
(At Montevideo)
Lac qui Parle Valley 56, RTR 38
Minneota 56, MACCRAY 46

FINALS March 3
(At SMSU, Marshall)
Minneota 48, LQPV 35
Section 3A-South
FIRST ROUND FEB. 23
Murray CC 52, Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda 37

QUARTERFINALS FEB. 25
(At Worthington)
SW MN Christian 71, Murray CC 30
Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 53, Hills-BC 39
Edgerton 64, Red Rock Central 23
Westbrook-WG 46, Adrian/Ellsworth 29

SEMIFINALS FEB. 28
(At Worthington)
SW MN Christians 66, TMB 52
Edgerton 53, Westbrook-WG 41

FINALS March 3
(At SMSU, Marshall)
SW MN Christian 66, Edgerton 50

Section 3A
CHAMPIONSHIP MARCH 10
(At SMSU, Marshall)
Minneota vs. SW MN Christian, 8 p.m.