Tigers fall hard in 1A semis

By PAUL DUNLAP

Journal Sports Editor

MINNEAPOLIS -- One quarter of a basketball game can make or break a team.

Friday afternoon, it broke Springfield .

Eden Valley-Watkins outscored Springfield 19-5 in the third quarter, turning a tie game at half into a 61-38 win in Class 1A state girls semifinal action at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena.

The Tigers, now 25-3 on the season, move on to face Kenyon-Wanamingo (28-3) at 10 a.m. today at the U of M's Sports Pavilion for third place. The Eagles (29-2) will face undefeated and top-ranked Fosston (28-0) for the 1A championship at noon at Williams Arena.

"I thought we played real well the first half ... did a lot of things we wanted to do," Tiger coach Paul Arnoldi said. "We slowed it down a little bit, took the ball out of (guard Mandy Pearson's) hands, but in the second half she took control for them."

Pearson ended with 25 points, seven rebounds, five assists and six steals for Eden Valley-Watkins. Teammate Katie Huschle finished with 15 points, five boards and four assists, and 6-foot-1 post Alison Sogge added 13 points and eight rebounds.

The Eagles scored the first two baskets of the game, but the Springfield defense didn't allow another point until 1:18 remained in the opening quarter. Ashley Marks got Springfield going with a jumper, setting off a 9-0 run that ended with a Sara Anderson three-point play. Amy Lipetzky's 13-footer gave the Tigers an 11-6 lead after one.

"We were just moving the ball pretty well," Arnoldi said of his team's first-half success. "We got some easy baskets off the (zone) trap, and created some things that worked for us. The second quarter and half, (Eagles') defense was much more tough."

Defense continued to dominate into the second quarter. Brittany Feser kept Springfield on top with two baskets and a free throw, but a 6-0 EV-W run late in the quarter pulled the game even at 18 en route to a 22-all tie at the half.

"We felt good at that point (halftime)," Arnoldi said. "We made some adjustments in our zone defense to control (Huschle) in the corner, and thought we'd be able to play some man-to-man defense and slow them down that way. It wasn't the case."

Pearson, who scored eight first-half points, began the second half with two assists -- to Sogge and Huschle -- to give EV-W its first lead since early in the first quarter. The lead grew to 35-24 courtesy of nine straight points from Pearson and Sogge before Lipetzky broke the string with a pair of free throws at the 3:14 mark. Pearson accounted for 10 third-quarter points as the Eagles pulled away to a 41-27 lead after three.

"She just kept going to the basket in the second half," Arnoldi said of Pearson. "She created some things for her teammates, she scored ... we tried a lot of different things defensively, but just couldn't stop her."

The Tigers continued to have trouble hitting shots, missing several from close range as Taryn Runck's four free throws provided the only offense early in the fourth. By the time Anderson made two free throws with 2:49 left, Pearson and Huschle had pushed the Eagle lead to 51-31 with eight straight points. The closest Springfield came after that was 55-38 on an Anderson 3-pointer and a Marks steal and layup.

Anderson led Springfield with 12 points in the loss. Teammate Marks had eight points, and Lipetzky and Runck combined for 13 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots.

"(Eden Valley) is a very good team, no question about it," Arnoldi said. "We weren't able to stop them, and their trap (defense) in the second half we had a hard time with."

Can his team rebound today and win the third-place hardware?

"Oh yeah, I think so," he said. "We've got a great group of seniors, a great group of leaders, and I'm sure they'll be ready to play."