Class AAA Semifinal Recap - Monticello vs DeLaSalle 3-14-13 2:00 P.M.

The second Class AAA semifinal of the afternoon pitted upstart Monticello which made the short hop on I-94 into town to take on perennial powerhouse and #2 seed DeLaSalle.  The Islanders, who struggled a bit earlier in the season, found a way to flip on the switch at just the right time to cruise into the state tournament; crushing Park Center in the Section 3AAA final.  Monticello fashioned a 24-5 record enroute to the big stage; knocking off Dassel-Cokato in the Section 5AAA final.  DeLaSalle, which won it all last year in AAA; looked to be one of the two favorites along with Richfield to win state again.  Now, with Richfield out, could DeLaSalle thrive with the target being on their back?

The Islanders got off to a good enough start in this one; building up a lead and a "3" by sophomore Patience Griffin had Monticello in a hole early.  Upstart Monticello, however, closed the gap and got to within three at 13-10 before another Islander burst made it 17-10 with 6:26 left in the first half and had Monticello Head Coach Craig Geyen calling a thirty-second timeout to calm his team down.  The Islanders extended the lead to 23-10 before a "3" by Monticello junior Grace Sawatzke briefly halted the Islander express but that turned out to be a mere speed bump for DeLaSalle as they kept the Magic at bay with numerous fast breaks off of Monticello turnovers.  A "3" by one of DeLaSalle's two standouts - senior Tyseanna Johnson - from the right wing with :03 left enabled the Islanders to take a rather cozy 34-21 lead into the locker room at halftime.  DeLaSalle used very balanced scoring to get this halftime lead; Allina Starr led the way with 9 points and was closely followed by Johnson with 7 points while Griffin tallied 6 points.  Monticello meanwhile was led by Alyssal Lentner's 8 points in the first half.

A spirited Magic team came out in the second half prepared to lay everything on the line to try and get back into this one.  Trouble was, DeLaSalle was not very cooperative in the process as they maintained the double-digit lead and increased it to as many as sixteen points by the 13:00 mark at 39-23.  Part of the problem for Monticello was dealing with the speed and athleticism that DeLaSalle has; it's simply difficult to simulate in practice.  The other problem for the Magic was that DeLaSalle's Griffin was simply on fire in the second half from behind the arc; a "3" at the 10:43 mark increased the Islander lead to 50-26  and another one at the 9:30 mark (her sixth of the day) increased the lead to 53-26.  With just under three minutes remaining, DeLaSalle Head Coach Faith Johnson Patterson slowly pulled her starters (as did Geyen) and the Islanders waltzed to a 67-42 win to set-up the Saturday night showdown in the state title game with Red Wing.