The first of the Class AA quarterfinal games kicked off in the 2:00 P.M. slot and the first game in this field featured the Section 2AA champ Norwood-Young America going up against the Section 6AA champ and #1 seed Sauk Centre. It was back to being in the woods again without a flashlight as I knew virtually nothing about either squad save for the fact that I had watched Sauk Centre play in this field some four years ago when now-University of Iowa player Kali Peschel hit the game winning jumper at the buzzer in the Class AA consolation game against Providence. Ironically, her younger sister, Kelsey, is now a freshman starter for the Mainstreeters.
The Raiders; an underdog on paper anyway, didn't seem fazed by the moment or the fact that they were pitted against the number one seed in their first game as they battled toe-to-toe with Sauk Centre and forged a 13-all tie but a 6-0 burst by the Mainstreeters; highlighted by a pretty lay-up in transition by Peschel with 9:12 left, put Sauk Centre up 19-13 with 8:48 left. The Raiders could have folded right then and there but instead they embarked on a nice 6-0 push of their own; highlighted by an offensive rebound and putback by freshman reserve post Bren Fox with 6:55 that knotted the issue at 19. Much to the surprise of many at Mariucci, Norwood-Young America forged a three-point advantage at 24-21 with 5:19 left but the number-one seeded squad calmly got their mojo back. Junior guard Madison Greenwaldt drained a "3" from the right wing with 4:41 left that tied things up again at 24-all. A "3" from the right corner by senior guard Madison Moritz with 1:15 left and one free throw by sophomore reserve guard Jill Klaphake with :56.8 left had the Mainstreeters back up at the half 29-24 but they were far from out of the woods just yet.
Peschel, the freshman, put her Mainstreeter teammates on her back early on in the second half as she started out things with a "3" from the right wing at the 16:47 mark and then connected on a hard drive and finish in the lane at the 16:05 mark that put Sauk Centre up 34-26 and a "3" from the right corner by Greenwaldt at the 15:19 mark had the Mainstreeters up 37-29. Greenwaldt had the hot hand again at the 13:22 mark for a "3" to make it 40-31 and a Peschel lay-up at the 12:43 mark gave the Mainstreeters their first double-digit lead at 42-31. Two treys from the right corner by senior guard Mauren Theisen - one at the 11:41 mark and another one at the 11:02 mark - now had Sauk Centre up 50-35 and Norwood-Young America Head Coach Gary Lembcke; seeing this one slip away fast, called a timeout. Unfortunately for the Raiders, however, the Kelsey Peschel Show was far from over. A score in the paint with 8:48 left gave Sauk Centre a 20-point cushion at 57-37 and a lay-up by Moritz with 8:11 left increased the lead to 59-37. A Peschel lay-up with 7:35 left increased the Mainstreeter advantage to 61-39 which was, for all intents and purposes, the game. Sauk Centre Head Coach Scott Bergman had his squad get deliberate and slow things down and Norwood-Young America never could recover as the Mainstreeters cruised to a 67-45 victory.
Bergman afterward stated that his bench played a big factor in the second half "and we wore them down" he said. I asked him about Peschel and her willingness to put the team on her back at the beginning of the second half. "She likes to take the ball to the bucket and has no fear" Bergman said about his freshman. I also asked Peschel about the second half. She noted that their lead at the half was not all that big and felt that she needed to step up her game. She also talked about watching her older sister Kali; now playing at the University of Iowa, when she was playing for Sauk Centre. "That motivated me" she said. She also spoke of how the team's goal is to simply get better and better each day and, as the number one seed, it appears as if they have done just that.
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