The 2:00 P.M. game featured another Northwest Suburban Conference team - #2 seed Centennial - going up against another perennial powerhouse Lakeville North. Having only seen Lakeville North play once this season I really wasn't sure what to expect as this squad is relatively young dominated by juniors and sophomores. Their new Head Coach, Shelly Soule certainly needs no introduction as she starred at Lakeville during her playing days and then later on at Moorhead State during her collegiate career. In fact, I have no doubt that she could suit up and give her squad a tough go of it in practice. Centennial, as the second seed, got here by virtue of their win over Champlin Park this last Friday night and Head Coach Greg Amundson seems to have his squad primed to make a move.
Lakeville North would come out in this one on a high note; grabbing a somewhat surprising 6-4 lead by the 14:04 mark that had Centennial's Amundson calling for a thirty-second timeout to try and get his squad calmed down a bit. The Panther lead would extend to as much as 20-4 thanks to a "3" from junior forward MacKenzie Denk at the 12:48 mark and a lay-up by sophomore reserve guard Sarah Krynski at the 12:39 mark and a lay-up by senior guard Jessica Meidl at the 12:01 mark and Centennial's Amundson had to burn a full timeout to try and cool off this hot Lakeville North squad. Centennial tried to get things going when senior guard Daizjay Morris snared a steal and got a lay-up out of it and got fouled in the process. Her free throw got seven points on the board for the Cougars but Lakeville North had no intention of slowing down anytime soon. Another Denk "3" from the top of the key at the 10:01 mark and a score in the paint by Denk put the Panthers up three touchdowns at 28-7 with 9:09 left and #2 seed Centennial looked to be in a HEAP of trouble at this point.
Lakeville North maintained that nice sizable cushion and the Cougars could make only nicks and dents in it. Worse for Centennial was that the Panthers got into the bonus and that Denk was causing all sorts of problems for Greg Amundson's squad when Lakeville North had the ball. A short jumper by Denk from the right side with 5:05 left and a pretty tip-in of her own miss with 4:15 left had the Panthers up comfortably at 35-11 and Lakeville North took an astounding 37-18 lead into the locker room at halftime. Delving into some of the halftime stats made my eyes pop even further wide open. Lakeville North enjoyed a 25-8 advantage on the boards and shot a blistering 51.9% from FG range. Something had to change drastically for Centennial if they were going to get back into this one and avoid a monumental upset.
Centennial tried to come out and match the same energy and intensity level as they got a little 3-0 burst that brought them closer. Centennial was also bringing some full-court pressure to try and fluster this young Lakeville North team and a score in the paint by senior post Jill Conrad at the 15:43 mark drew the Cougars even closer trailing 37-24. Still a fairly sizable deficit to be sure but a damned sight better than what they were staring at in the first half and the Cougars looked to shrink that deficit even further. Two Conrad charity stripe shots at the 14:45 mark and a lay-up by Daizjay Morris that got her fouled in the process and allowed her to sink the obligatory free throw cut the Lakeville North lead down to 40-29. A lay-up by junior reserve forward Jaycie Gerding at the 12:38 mark along with two free throws by Daizjay Morris at the 11:54 mark and a quick Conrad score in the paint after a Lakeville North turnover suddenly had the Panther lead whittled down to 42-35 and Lakeville North's Soule knew there was no question that a timeout was necessary.
Centennial would get the lead down to a single possession before Lakeville North was finally able to go to work and try and widen its gap again. Two scores by freshman guard Temi Carda and a score in the paint by Denk upped the Panther lead to 50-42 with 7:11 left and you had to wonder if Centennial had expended too much energy in their valiant comeback attempt. The Panthers extended their lead to ten at 54-44 with under five minutes left. Centennial's Conrad attempted single-handedly to try and cut into that lead by herself as she snared an offensive rebound for a putback with 4:09 left and then knocked down two freebies with 3:47 left that shaved Lakeville North's lead down to 54-48. Lakeville North's Krynski may have made the biggest basket for this young Panther team when she connected with a jumper from the right wing with 3:29 left and got fouled in the process as well and her free throw put the lead back up to nine at 57-48. Scores by Carda and junior reserve guard Polly Sjoberg now had Lakeville North up 64-52 and it was desperation mode now for Centennial with just over a minute to play. Insurance free throws by Carda and senior guard Kendal Naatjes helped seal the deal as the Panthers survived a furious comeback attempt by Centennial to score the biggest upset so far of this 2014 Minnesota Girls State Tournament with a 69-52 victory.
Centennial's Amundson confirmed my biggest fear when he admitted afterward that "We hit a brick wall" when their comeback attempt fell short and Lakeville North was able to re-establish their cushion. Amundson's message to his team in the locker room at the half when all appeared lost was "We have to win the second half" but that huge start Lakeville North got on to begin the game with was simply too much to overcome. Amundson attributed that partly to his squad not getting back on defense and not getting rebounds. Lakeville North's Soule; greatly relieved that this one was over, explained what she told her team during that timeout when Centenial got to within a single possession: "We went over where we needed to be on defense and to keep our composure" but added that "there was a little bit of panic". Soule was also asked if her playing experience here helped her squad at all. "Absolutely" she replied. She alluded how the larger court seemed to help her team and that she told her players about some of the finer aspects of playing at Target Center where you don't have the same backdrops as you would in a smaller gym. In any event, the first shockwave of this state tournament has now been felt and you have to wonder if there'll be more.
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