The last Class AAAA Quarterfinal game on this afternoon featured another interesting matchup - Centennial out of the Northwest Suburban Conference and the Section 5AAAA champ by virtue of their win over Wayzata going up against Section 8AAAA champ and third-seeded STMA out of the Mississippi 8 Conference. I was anxious to see the Knights in action; especially since they knocked off highly-regard Elk River in the Section 8AAAA final (again) and also because many considered STMA as a dark horse in this field.
This contest was a bit more difficult for me to wrap my arms around and get a feel for how this might go - even though I knew that this one had the potential to be tight. After STMA had built a 7-3 lead by the 16:21 mark, the Cougars responded with a push of their own as senior guard/forward Jaycie Gerding's lay-up at the 13:54 mark tied the issue at 7. With things tied up at 9-all, Centennial went on another 4-0 push with Gerding's steal and lay-up the other way at the 11:50 mark as the exclamation mark. The Knights would close the gap to one when senior guard Bobbi Brendefur connected with a lay-up at the 11:02 mark and got fouled in the process that allowed her to sink the obligatory freebie to close the gap to 13-12. A Gerding "3" from the left wing at the 10:44 mark and two free throws by lanky 6'2" sophomore post Sarah Grow at the 10:14 mark, however, pushed the Cougars lead to 18-12 but STMA would respond with a 5-0 spurt that closed the gap to a single point with 4:42 left. Centennial would grab a three-point advantage when Grow snared an offensive rebound for a putback with 4:21 left at 20-17 but it was here that the Knights embarked on a 10-2 run down the stretch. Two free throws by junior guard Sydney Tracy with 3:25 left sliced the deficit to one point and a jumper off the glass by sophomore reserve guard Lizzy Heil with 2:52 left put STMA out in front 21-20. A Gerding lay-up with 2:36 left put the Cougars back out in front again at 22-21 with 2:36 left but a "3" from the top of the key by junior guard Kitri Zezza with 1:57 left and a Zezza freebie with 1:02 left made it a 25-22 ballgame for the Knights. From Centennial Head Coach Greg Amundson's perspective, things wouldn't have been quite so bad if STMA senior forward Jordyn hadn't sneaked into the paint for a lay-up with just :02 left on the clock before the half but she did and, as a result, the Knights held a 27-22 lead when the buzzer sounded for intermission. STMA featured a very balanced scoring attack with six points each by Zezza and Tracy leading the way. Gerding's nine points led Centennial but the Cougars sore spot in the first half was turnovers as they committed 11 of them.
STMA came out on fire once the second half started. Zezza connected with another "3"; this one from the right corner at the 17:29 mark and a lay-up in transition by Tracy after a Cougar turnover gave the Knights a ten-point 32-22 advantage. Centennial freshman reserve guard Cla34-33ire Orth tried to counter with her "3" from the right corner at the 15:45 mark but, like a thief in the night, Zezza picked the ball away from the Cougar's Gerding and went in for an easy lay-up and a 34-25 STMA lead and Centennial's Amundson had no choice but to call a timeout to get his squad settled down. Just as they had in that Section 5AAAA title game with Wayzata, the Cougars did indeed settle down and respond. A Grow score in the paint at the 12:10 mark and a Gerding lay-up at the 11:46 mark that also got her fouled and sent her to the charity stripe to sink the obligatory freebie cut the deficit down to 34-31 at the 11:46 mark and another Grow score in the paint at the 11:11 mark got the deficit cut down to a scant point at 34-33. Two more Grow scores had the deficit down to one point again trailing 38-37 with 9:28 left but it was here that STMA went on a seemingly decisive 18-5 run over the course of a five minute span that really changed the complexion of things and Tracy's lay-up in transition with 4:35 left gave the Knights a 56-42 lead and Centennial was now under the gun. Turnovers were piling up for Amundson's squad and the Cougars couldn't slow down the potent STMA attack in transition. A Gerding jumper with 2:54 left cut the deficit down to eleven at 60-49 but that's as close as Centennial could get down the stretch. A Zezza lay-up in transition with 2:23 left and insurance free throws in the waning moments sealed the deal for the Knights as STMA advanced to the semifinals on Thursday night with a 66-53 victory.
I got to speak a bit with the bubbly junior Zezza afterward. I asked her about her shooting performance on this late afternoon where she finished with 15 points and if she does this on a nightly basis. "In a tough game like this, we all just needed to step up" she said adding that "If we work well together, we can be a force." STMA Head Coach Kent Hamre spoke of the great leadership on his squad; particularly of his senior Bredenfur. "It was them....simply great leadership". Hamre also spoke briefly of the upcoming match-up with Eastview on Thursday night and spoke of what a great team they are but at the same time, seemed excited about the opportunity to roll the dice a little. On the other side of the coin, Centennial's Amundson couldn't help but point to the 22 turnovers that ultimately did his squad in. "You have to take care of the basketball" he pointed out. He also spoke glowingly of his senior leader Gerding. "She's been the glue that has held this team together" he said; adding that Gerding has had cramping issues in her legs as of late. Still, a disappointing end for a Centennial squad that I felt had a lot of potential.
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