“It always feels good to move on to the next round. We worked hard to be here, so we are just taking it one game at a time while we are here,” Marshall senior Reese Drake said. “I love these girls, I have played with them for a long time … It’s bittersweet. We look forward to being the older girls, but it’s also tough knowing this is your last time that we’re all together.”

Marshall made an early difference with a tenacious offensive rebounding effort, something senior Guard Taleigha Bigler said was a part of Marshall’s plan. The Tigers outrebounded the Eagles 42-16 overall and 18-3 on the offensive glass, leading to 17 second-chance points.

“Just to make those second-effort plays, I think it gave us a bit more momentum than them [Totino-Grace] at the beginning, and I think that really helped us out,” Bigler said.

Marshall maintained its double-digit lead for the rest of the game once obtained, sparked by a 16-point lead at the break.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Marshall forward Avery Fahl guards the perimeter during a Class AAA quarterfinal game against Totino-Grace.

Avery Schneekloth led Marshall with 18 points, five rebounds and two steals, while Bigler had a team-high 14 rebounds with two steals and 8 points. Avery Fahl had 17 points, going 5 for 9 from deep with six boards, while Drake followed with another 16 points and team-highs of seven assists and five steals.

The only time Marshall trailed was a 3-0 start by Totino-Grace, but Drake took matters into her own hands for a quick 5 points in response between a 3 and a layup off a steal from the press to put the Tigers ahead.

Another Drake steal off an Eagles’ inbound pass led to a Schneekloth layup as Marshall continued to embark on a 13-0 run for its first 10-point lead, 13-3.

Fahl also had the hot hand in the opening half with a trio of corner 3-pointers, the last of which gave Marshall a 34-21 lead.

Marshall continued to aggressively crash the boards on the offensive end and kept up its press that helped force 10 first-half turnovers with seven steals.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Marshall guard Reese Drake drives to the basket.

Both the Eagles and Tigers shot competitively from the perimeter in the first half, making five and seven shots from the arc, respectively. Both teams finished with nine 3s.

Totino-Grace head coach Travarus Bennett noted that he felt as if it was an off-shooting night for the Eagles from the perimeter, and that they didn’t fully capitalize on extra possessions. He also credited Marshall for its thorough gameplay.

Bigler, Drake, Danielle Nubile, Schneekloth and Fahl all had at least one 3-pointer.

“It’s fun being able to trust everyone on our team to be able to take a shot from the 3-point line,” Bigler said. “That’s really cool this year. We can pass it off to anyone, and you know they can hit one when we need it.”

Bigler closed the half with a steal and layup to give Marshall a 40-24 lead at halftime.

Photo by Samantha Davis: Marshall forward Avery Schneekloth goes up for a layup during the first half of a Class AAA girls basketball state tournament game against Totino-Grace.

Marshall already had a 23-6 edge on the boards in the first half, 10-1 in offensive rebounds.

Totino-Grace saw offensive spurts and attempted to continue chipping away, cutting Marshall’s lead down to 11 midway through the second half, but the Tigers quickly regrouped following a timeout and eventually took back a comfortable lead, 60-40 with about five minutes remaining.

A feed from Drake inside to Schneekloth, followed by a Nubile post-up gave Marshall much-needed buckets to get the Tigers’ offense flowing again, which carried through the rest of the night.

“I think you have to tip your hat off to Totino-Grace, because they did not go away, and they certainly could have,” Marshall head coach Dan Westby said. “They kept battling and, boy, they shot really well from the 3-point line, that kind of kept them in it … They got it down to [11] at one point, and I think that’s as close as they got. But, just that’s one of the benefits of having an experienced group like we have, is they’ve seen just about everything thrown at them at some point. They put us at ease as coaches because of, like I said, they’re pretty experienced.”

Fahl, Drake and Bigler all credited Westby and the coaching staff for the game preparation and extensive scouting they do on opponents to prepare Marshall. Totino-Grace players Ava Litecky, Amelia Saylor and Maria Radabaugh also all said how they felt that Marshall was heavily prepared, citing that the Tigers knew all of the Eagles plays as they were called out.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Marshall student section cheers on its girls basketball team during the Class AAA quarterfinals against Totino-Grace.

Totino-Grace made its return to the state tournament after a one-year hiatus, last in 2024, and won the title in 2022.

This is Marshall’s second-straight state appearance, fourth in the past six years, and 15th overall. The Tigers defeated No. 2 Jordan 84-69 last week to repeat as Section 2AAA champions.

A rematch with the Re

With Wednesday’s win, Marshall (26-4) will now compete in a rematch of last season’s state championship and will take on No. 2 Benilde-St. Margaret’s in the semifinals today.

The two last played one another in the final game of the season last year for the title, with the Tigers coming up short 73-57. The Red Knights have won the state championship three years in a row; 2023, 2024 and 2025.

Photo by Samantha Davis: The Marshall girls basketball team's bench reacts to a basket during the first half of a Class AAA state tournament game against Totino-Grace, Wednesday at Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis.

In the final Class 3A regular-season coaches polls, Benilde-St. Margaret’s was ranked third and Marshall was fourth.

BSM defeated No. 7 Rock Ridge 88-53 in the quarterfinals on Wednesday before Marshall’s game, and move to 24-6 on the season.

“They [BSM] are awfully good and awfully deep. They played 10 kids today, and they didn’t miss a beat whenever they substituted,” Westby said ahead of the rematch. “They push the ball so well, and their defensive pressure is really, really good. It’s going to be a lot to deal with, but we’re going to get together and see if we can come up with a game plan. But, like the kids said at the beginning, we’re just thankful that we get another opportunity to play.”

The winner of today’s game will return to the state championship on Saturday to take on the winner of No. 1 Stewartville and No. 4 Cretin-Derham Hall, who play at 12 p.m. today, while the loser will move to the consolation bracket to compete for third place, also on Saturday.

Today’s semifinal game is slated for 2 p.m. at Williams Arena in Minneapolis at the University of Minnesota campus. Tickets are available for purchase online at mshsl.org/tickets.

Photo by Samantha Davis

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