SECTION GIRLS BASKETBALL: No. 3 Rabbits fall short to No. 2 Eagles, 59-55
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MARSHALL - It came down to the final minutes between the No. 2 seeded Lac Qui Parle Valley Eagles and the No. 3 seeded Wabasso Rabbits during the Section 3A sub-section semifinals, but in the end it was the Eagles who edged the Rabbits to move on, as Wabasso fell 59-55 on Tuesday at Southwest Minnesota State University.
With the Minnesota weather taking a toll on a lot of winter sports teams, Wabasso coach Neil Dolan still saw big improvements from the team despite not being able to practice as much as they would have liked to this season.
"We had a tough season with the snow and the flu, but we still have seen a lot of improvements throughout the season," said Dolan. "The girls toughed through the last five or six games, because they didn't have practice. So, the improvements that they did have and their ability to gut out wins and work hard says a lot about those girls. That they can do it without spending a lot of time in the gymnasium."
A strong start from both teams indicated that it was going to be a battle until the very last minutes of the game. The Eagles took a quick 5-4 lead over the Rabbits as Wabasso couldn't get into the early groove it wanted to. After a couple strong shots from Allison Fenger under the basket, the Rabbits used that as fuel to keep going, but the Eagles continued to hold the lead and went on a seven-point run that was ended by Madison Guetter as the Rabbits trailed 12-8 with 11:04 left in the half.
Wabasso lacked the strength they needed on the offensive end and that carried over onto the defensive end, missing a couple of key rebounds, but that started to turn around after Guetter's 3-point shot put the Rabbits down just one at 15-14 with 7:59 left on the clock. LQPV would pick it up on the offensive end over the next couple of minutes, growing its lead to 21-15 with 5:24 remaining in the half, but the Rabbits' zone defense helped slow the tempo down before Wabasso got a few baskets to cut the deficit to six at 27-21 going into halftime.
Coming out of the break, the Rabbits were ready to start the second frame with more energy and pace, showing it right away, but neither team could find a connection at the basket and it wasn't until nearly two minutes into the second half that the first points were seen. Much like the first half, Guetter continued to make her impact on the offensive end and helped contribute to the Rabbits' efforts in the opening minutes of the second. Wabasso started to put more pressure on the ball on the defensive end and that caused the Eagles to move the ball more which led to a few mistakes on LQPV's end as Jenna Frank used that to tie up the score at 32-32 with 11:41 left in the game.
Both teams then began to trade points over the next several minutes, as neither side could establish a lead greater than a few points. Sarah Franta started to come alive when she found an opportunity on the arc and put the Rabbits in the lead 37-36 before continuing to add on to the Rabbits lead and to make it 39-36 with 9:28 remaining on the clock. The Eagles took the lead back at 42-39 but Guetter responded with a 3-pointer before Wabasso took a slim 51-50 lead with 4:10 to go.
LQPV used every opportunity they had to take the lead back, which they did, at 53-51 with 2:33 left on the clock. The Rabbits started to lose their momentum on the floor in the next couple of possessions and missed shots and passes led to timeouts to help Wabasso regain their composure. Unfortunately for Wabasso, it couldn't get a final run going, as the Eagles would hang on in the closing minutes for the four-point victory.
The Rabbits finish their season with an overall record of 21-4 and graduate five seniors, including Guetter, Frank, Rothmeier, McKenna Nelson and Jasmine Doyle.