The second game of the Saturday afternoon session at Williams Arena was the Class AA Championship Game; a highly-anticipated match-up against #1 seed Sauk Centre going up against #2 seed Dover-Eyota which handled Roseau with ease last night. With the short turn-around time after yesterday, how much would each team have left in the tank for this one? Presumably both were fired and up and ready to go but it would be interesting to see how each side would hold up for 40 minutes.
The Eagles established a 4-2 advantage by the 14:46 mark in what was becoming a defensive slugfest of a contest but Sauk Centre took a bit of a hit early on when freshman guard Kelsey Peschel picked up 2 fouls by the 15:29 mark and Mainstreeter Head Coach Scott Bergman had no choice but to sit his star pupil for a spell. Dover-Eyota stretched their lead to 8-2 by the 12:51 mark when junior post Megan Hintz scored in the paint but Sauk Centre; which struggled mightily from the perimeter in the early going, finally shook off some cobwebs. One score by senior reserve guard Mauren Theisen in the paint at the 12:11 mark and one free throw by Peschel; back in the game by this point, cut the Eagle lead down to 8-7 and then a coast-to-coast lay-up by the fearless Peschel allowed the 'Streeters to poke their nose out in front for the first time at 9-8 at the 11:16 mark. A "3" by Mauren Theisen from the left corner at the 10:53 mark gave Sauk Centre a 12-10 advantage. The Eagles would tighten things up and two free throws by senior guard/forward Brandi Blattner gave Dover-Eyota a slim 18-16 advantage with 6:23 left. The Mainstreeters were forced to be a bit more patient on offense than they would prefer and a stingy 2-3 zone defense that Eagle Head Coach Brian Harris employed likely played a big role in Sauk Centre's unusual hesitations on offense. Dover-Eyota would get their lead to 23-19 on a score by Hintz in the paint with 5:56 left and one Blattner free throw with 5:01 left but a "3" from the top of the key by freshman guard Maesyn Theisen with 4:26 left brought the Mainstreeters right back into the fray trailing 23-22. The Eagles would re-establish a three-point edge at 27-24 when Blattner connected with a short shot off the glass with 2:47 left but this is where things REALLY started to get interesting and the fireworks started. Dover-Eyota appeared to be in prime position to take a bit of an edge with 1:30 left and up 28-26 - and in the double-bonus as well. A Hintz lay-up in transition with :43 left that got her fouled and allowed her to sink the obligatory free throw put the Eagles up 31-28 but a "3" from the right wing by Maesyn Theisen with :33 left knotted the issue at 31-all. Dover-Eyota looked to go up ahead into the locker room at the break when sophomore reserve forward Madison Field connected with a lay-up with :09 left but a long pass downcourt to the Mainstreeter's Mauren Theisen allowed her to get a lay-up on a late-reacting Eagle defense that got her fouled in the process and allowed her to sink the obligatory free throw giving Sauk Centre a 34-33 lead once the buzzer finally did sound ending the first half. Blattner's 13 points paced Dover-Eyota while Maesyn Theisen's 17 points paced Sauk Centre in a wild first half. Dover-Eyota, though, had a big edge in rebounding at 32-20 and that had to be a sore spot with the Mainstreeter's Bergman.
Dover-Eyota re-established a three-point edge at 39-36 in the opening minutes of the second half and that Eagle lead would stretch to 43-39 when sophomore reserve guard Haley Finstuen connected with a lay-up at the 12:21 mark. Right back came Sauk Centre. One trey by junior guard Madison Greenwaldt at the 11:11 mark frm the right top area and another from Maesyn Theisen at the 10:41 mark suddenly had the "Streeters back out in front 45-43. This wild back-and-forth affair would continue over the next six minutes. Dover-Eyota would get their nose back out in front; holding a precarious 51-50 lead with 7:14 left but when Maesyn Theisen drained a "3" from the left top area with 6:44 left and when junior post Rebecca Weir knocked down two charity stripe shots with 5:46 left, the Mainstreeters were now out in front 55-51. But, as legendary NFL Films narrater John Facenda once said, "Great teams aren't always great, they're just great when they have to be." And the Eagles stepped up their game and showed their true grit and embarked on a game-clinching 20-3 run to get the win - and state title. Hintz knocked down two charity stripe shots with 4:53 left that trimmed the deficit to two points and an offensive rebound and putback by Blattner, who dominated the boards in this decisive game-ending stretch, tied the game at 55-all. With 4:03 left, Hintz got into the paint for a score and got fouled in the process and the obligatory freebie now had Dover-Eyota up 58-55 and that sequence of events seemed to have an incredibly deflating effect on the Mainstreeters as they never could recover. With 3:33 left, Blattner again snared an offensive rebound for a putback that shoved the Eagle lead up to 60-55 and there was no looking back from there. A score off of an inbounds pass by junior guard Madison Nelson with 2:52 left padded the cushion at 62-55 and two free throws by Hintz with 1:10 left along with a Nelson lay-up with :53 left sealed the deal and gave Dover-Eyota the Class AA title with a 71-58 victory.
Blattner's 25 points led the way for Dover-Eyota while Hintz was right behind with her 24 points. The thing that really stood out to me though, was the dominating performance that the Eagles had on the boards; just in the second half alone with a 39-12 advantage. Those types of things help you win championships. Maesyn Theisen led the way for Sauk Centre with her 23 points in the losing effort.
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