The second game of the Thursday afternoon session at Williams Arena featured the tilt between defending state champion Park Center and upstart Kasson-Mantorville which had upset a highly-regarded New Prague team on Wednesday afternoon over at Mariucci Arena. Most people, including myself, had pretty much penciled in the Pirates into the state championship game for Saturday night again but, to get there, they would first have to take care of business against this pesky Komet team that was quickly making a name for itself and, as it turned out, the task was much more difficult than anyone anticipated.
Still, any anticipated difficulty didn't seem to faze the Pirates early on anyway as the bolted out to an 11-2 lead on the strength of their fast-paced transition game that always seems to give opponents fits. A jumper along the left baseline by flashy sophomore reserve forward Fey Ayobamadele at the 14:42 mark and a score in the paint by lanky sophomore post Mikayla Hayes at the 14:15 mark that got her fouled and allowed her to sink the obligatory freebie made it 7-2. One lay-up by senior point guard Hannah Schaub at the 13:42 mark and a lay-up in transition by sophomore guard Ann Simonet at the 11:44 mark gave Park Center that 11-2 lead and the Komets seemingly appeared to be in over their collective heads at that moment. A short jumper off the glass by diminutive sophomore guard Danielle Schaub at the 10:09 mark and an Ayobamadele "3" from the left top area with 8:52 left made it 16-4 and things were definitely looking rosy for the Pirates and their fun student section. Kasson-Mantorville, however, slowly battled their way right back into the thick of things and Park Center got curiously out of synch on offense. Komet 6'2" sophomore post Kristin Scott got two free throws to go down after getting fouled with 6:05 left and then got a score in the paint with 4:53 left that trimmed the Pirate lead down to 18-12. Part of the problem for the Pirates when things started to go downhill a bit was that Hayes got tagged for three fouls in that first half and Park Center Head Coach Chris VanderHyde had no choice but to sit her for a spell to preserve her for the second half. Junior reserve guard Maddie Worden snared an offensive rebound of her own miss for a putback with 3:02 left that shrunk the Pirate lead to 18-14 and a Scott lay-up with 1:22 left had the Komets; once left for dead early on in the first half, now within a single possession trailing 18-16 which is how the first half ended and the Park Center contingent definitely did some head-scratching during the halftime break. The Pirates had a very balanced scoring attack in the first half with Hannah Schaub's four points leading the way while both Scott and Worden had six points each to pace Kasson-Mantorville. The big worry for VanderHyde at the half had to be the disparate advantage the Komets had in rebounding with a 22-11 advantage and that had to change if the Pirates wanted to get back to the big stage on Saturday night and avoid the upset.
Simonet's "3" from the left corner at the 17:14 mark of the second half had Pirate fans and the student section breathing a bit easier as Park Center's lead stretched to 21-16 but that "feel good" feeling didn't last long as the Komets picked up right where they left off. Another Scott score in the paint at the 16:25 mark and a "3" from senior guard Kari Pingel at the 15:23 mark had the Komets back to a single possession again trailing 23-21. Another Scott foray and score in the paint at the 13:22 mark got her fouled in the process and sent her to the charity stripe to sink the obligatory freebie that put Kasson-Mantorville out in front for the first time at 24-23 and a score in the paint by senior forward Danika Hodgman at the 12:46 mark upped that lead to 26-23. It was here, though, that the Pirates finally woke up and realized the seriousness of the moment. Simonet uncorked another "3"; this one from the left wing area at the 12:34 mark that tied the issue at 26. One score in the paint by freshman reserve post Azsha Michael at the 11:27 mark and a "3" from the top of the key by Hannah Schaub at the 10:04 mark had Park Center back out in front 31-28. Two scores by Scott - one with 8:14 left and another with 7:38 left tied the issue once again at 32 but the Pirates; now an experienced squad, were able to make the right moves at the right time. Two freebies by Hannah Schaub with 6:42 left and a jumper off the glass after a steal by Danielle Schaub with 6:31 left had Park Center up 36-32. Then Hayes, who was saddled with those first half fouls, showed her worth. One score in the paint with 5:36 left and a "3" from the right top area off the glass no less upped the Pirate lead to 42-34 and Kasson-Mantorville was now reeling. Komet Head Coach Ryan Heraldson called a timeout with 2:04 left to try and stem this late Pirate tide but Simonet and Hannah Schaub made insurance free throws down the stretch and a stingy Park Center defense ensured a date on Saturday night for a highly-anticipated rematch with Marshall with a 47-37 victory.
VanderHyde afterward admitted that adjustments needed to be made at the half when Kasson-Mantorville's run tightened things up. "We started the second half in zone defense and we had a bigger line-up with (Azsha) Michael in there"; referring to those three fouls that Hayes had. As far as looking ahead to the title game rematch with Marshall? "It's going to be a battle" he said smiling. "They'll be ready. We'll be ready. It'll be a great game!" Hannah Schaub talked as well about the adjustments that needed to be made including Scott who was a thorn in the side for the Pirates on this day. The senior, headed to Valparaiso next year who paced the Pirate attack with her 12 points, talked about some of the great moves she made late to help preserve the hard-fought victory. "All in the moment" she said. "It just flows!" About playing Marshall on Saturday night - AND being on the floor this time to do it instead of being relegated to the sidelines as she was a year ago? "Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed. "It just gives me chills.....I'm so happy!" Danielle Schaub thought a big key to the second half was to"play our game." Like her big sis, she, too, can't wait for Saturday night. "I'm so excited!" she said. "It's going to be fun playing them again.
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