Made the quick run over to Park Center High School after I got off work on this Monday afternoon to take in the first annual Holiday Tournament hosted by the reigning 2014 state champs. The first game on this day featured a conference and crosstown rival - Champlin Park - taking on Rogers out of the Mississippi 8 Conference. I got into the Park Center gymnasium right around the 13:11 mark of the first half with the Rebels holding a 5-4 lead.
Both teams would trade one-point leads over the next two minutes and, after Champlin Park sophomore guard Allison Gerads put her team ahead 9-8 on her short jumper at the 11:10 mark, the Royals answered as senior forward Marina Nowak got into the paint for a score and got fouled in the process and the ensuing freebie now had Rogers up 11-9 at the 10:55 mark. Two more charity stripe shots by sophomore forward Megan Secrist made it a 13-9 game for the Royals before Champlin Park could creep back to within one on one free throw and a score in the paint by lanky 6'3" junior post Hanna Crymble with 9:08 left. But a 5-0 Rogers push highlighted by a score off of an inbounds pass by Secrist with 8:53 left and a short jumper by senior guard Taylor Paulsrud with 8:25 mark made a 17-12 game. Champlin Park would cut the Royal advantage down to two points at 19-17 when Gerads nailed a "3" from the left corner with 7:01 left but another 5-0 run by Rogers made it 24-17 with 6:17 left when Paulsrud knocked down a "3" from the right corner. The Rebels would flirt with comeback attempts over the next three minutes and, trailing 28-22 with under four minutes left, Champlin Park finally made their move. Two Crymble free throws with 3:13 left and a jumper in the lane by senior reserve forward Catera Etheridge with 1:53 left drew the Rebels to within two trailing 28-26 and a lay-up by freshman reserve forward Gabrielle Mocchi with 1:24 left tied the game. Crymble maneuvered into the paint for a score with :55 left to put Champlin Park ahead for the first time since early in the contest and two Mocchi free throws with :20.6 left consolidated the late first half comeback by the Rebels who took a 32-28 lead in the locker room at the half.
That late first half collapse by Rogers didn't seem to weigh too heavily on the minds of the Royals coming into the second half as they battled and stayed close with their opponent from the Northwest Suburban Conference. Two free throws by freshman reserve guard Erica Hicks and a "3" from the top of the key by fellow freshman Mocchi had Champlin Park up 39-33 at the 14:03 mark but Rogers would trim the deficit to a scant point less than a minute later at 39-38. A "3" from the left wing by Gerads at the 12:54 mark, however, along with a lay-up in transition by Hicks at the 12:12 mark extended the Rebel lead to 44-38 and Rogers Head Coach Karlee Anderson; not liking the look of things at this juncture, called a timeout.
But the stoppage in play did not get the immediate result that the Royals had hoped for as Champlin Park slowly extended their lead. A drive into the lane and finish by junior guard Megan Witte at the 11:27 mark upped the Rebel lead to 46-40. A free throw with 9:40 left and a turnaround jumper in the lane by Crymble with 8:38 left extended the Champlin Park advantage to eight points at 49-41 and the Rebels appeared primed to seize the moment. A quick 6-0 run by Rogers, however, zapped all those good thought and when Nowak was able to drive down low and finish with 7:20 left to get the Royals to within two, it was now Champlin Park Head Coach Jake Kuppe's turn to call a timeout and do some serious yelling and chewing in the huddle. The Rebels appeared initially to have benefitted from that woodshed session with their head coach as Witte helped spark a 5-0 run to up the lead to 52-47. But Rogers would respond with a 5-0 run of their own; highlighted by a "3" from the right wing by senior guard Taylor Anderson to tie the game at 52-all and, with the Royals now being in the double-bonus as well, Champlin Park could have easily been in some serious doo-doo at this point. To their credit, however, the Rebels held firm as free throws from Witte with 4:35 left and senior guard Kacie Tomniczak with 4:16 left plus two more from Crymble after she was fouled in a transition opportunity helped Champlin Park establish a 58-54 lead with 3:54 left. The clincher came with 3:07 left when Mocchi made a hard drive and finish with 3:07 left and got fouled in the process and her free throws made it a 61-54 ballgame. The Rebels; now being very patient with the ball, knew that Rogers would have to foul in order to stop the clock. Hicks and Gerads would both knock down free throws to keep the lead at seven at 65-58 with 1:18 left and Ethridge was able to knock down three more to help close the deal for Champlin Park as they advanced into Thursday's championship game with a 69-60 victory.
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