The high-noon showdown on Saturday was the Class A Championship Game between #1 and #2 seeds - Maranatha Christian Academy and Ada-Borup - two programs that have been here before AND have both won state championships before. This game would be a stark contrast of styles - the frenetic, fast-paced up and down style of Maranatha Christian Academy and slower, deliberate style of Ada-Borup. Which style would win out?
With Ada-Borup getting out to an early 6-3 lead, the Mustangs battled right back and a jumper from the left corner by willowy 6'0" forward Jaclyn Jarnot at the 15:33 mark just inside the arc cut Cougar's lead down to 6-5. But a 6-0 Ada-Borup push; highlighted by a rebound and putback by sophomore guard Elizabeth Birkemeyer at the 14:13 mark made it 13-5 and the Cougar lead got to double digits at 17-7 by the 12:38 mark. A lay-up in transition by senior forward Miki Lee at the 12:10 mark and one freebie by senior forward Haley Poehler increased the lead to 20-7 and those lime-green socks that the Mustangs were wearing certainly weren't bringing them much luck up to this point anyway. More importantly, though, Maranatha Christian Academy was having considerable difficulty on both ends of the floor with the bigger, stronger Cougar front line and that really threw a monkey wrench in the Mustang's half-court sets. A lay-up by junior reserve forward Morgan Miller with 8:35 left stretched the Ada-Borup lead out to 26-10 before before Maranatha Christian Academy recovered a bit. Senior guard Lexi Lee connected with a jumper from the left elbow with 8:00 left and one free throw by Jacklyn Jarnot with 7:02 left trimmed the deficit a bit but after a score in the paint by Cougar senior forward Miki Lee with 6:34 left and a lay-up by junior reserve forward Morgan Miller with 6:01 left the Ada-Borup lead was now stretched out to 32-13 in the Mustangs were clearly in the danger zone by this point. However, Maranatha Christian Academy managed to recover and they finally started to find their groove offensively. Two free throws by junior guard Ashley Lewis with 5:22 left was followed by successive lay-ups in transition: one by Lexi Lee with 5:00 left and another by junior guard Alaina Jarnot with 4:46 left and suddenly the Mustangs started looking like their old selves; scoring in bunches and the Cougar lead was cut to 32-19. A jumper by Lexi Lee from the left elbow area with 1:55 left and a three-point bomb by Jacklyn Jarnot from the right corner with :51 left now had Maranatha Christian Academy trailing by only ten at 40-30 and it arguably could have been closer than that once the halftime buzzer sounded. Ada-Borup had a relatively balanced scoring attack; led by Miki Lee's 14 points while Lexi Lee led the way for the Mustangs with her 17 points. But the really big factor from the halftime stat sheet was rebounds where Ada-Borup held an astounding 24-13 edge. That HAD to change for Maranatha Christian Academy if they were going to bring this all the way back.
The Mustangs did not get the hot start that they had hoped for once the second half started. One score by Poehler; a jumper in the lane at the 16:27 mark and a lay-up by junior guard Lexi Nelson at the 15:31 mark upped the Ada-Borup lead to 44-30 and a score off of an inbounds pass by Birkemeyer at the 14:45 mark maintained that fourteen point edge at 46-32. And it's not like Maranatha Christian Academy didn't have opportunities to draw closer in the early stages of the second half but a bevy of missed shots; including lay-ups and "bunnies" that could have easily brought the Mustangs within reasonable striking distance, ultimately doomed Maranatha Christian Academy. As such, the Cougars kept their opponent at bay with smart play and rebounding on both ends of the floor. A score in the paint by Poehler at the 12:14 mark and two free throws by senior forward Lexi Merkens with 8:58 left kept Ada-Borup in the safe zone up 57-42 and that safe zone was maintained on a short jumper by Miki Lee with 8:40 left. The Mustangs, though, made one last counter move to throw a few seeds of doubt into their opponent. A steal and lay-up by Lexi Lee with 7:12 left and a short jumper after a steal by Alaina Jarnot with 6:31 left brought Maranatha Christian Academy a bit closer and a free throw by Lexi Lee with 2:45 left cut the Cougar lead down to eleven at 71-60. Alas, that was as close as the Mustangs could get and they never could find that one "big" shot that might have drawn them to within single digits. Insurance free throws by Merkens, Poehler and Miki Lee down the stretch gave Ada-Borup yet another Class A championship with a 82-65 victory.
While the team celebrated yet another state championship with parents in the concourse and I was not able to get a word with Ada-Borup Head Coach David Smart as I had anticipated, I did get to speak with Cougar senior forward Haley Poehler who was nice enough to come down toward the locker room area afterward. About winning the championship her response quite simply was "It feels awesome....unbelievable!" she exclaimed; adding that the reality really hasn't sunk in yet. I asked Poehler about her squad's unrelenting efforts on defense and rebounding as well. "We couldn't give them those second shots" she replied. "We had to get those rebounds." Indeed, while it was Miki Lee who led the Cougar attack in the scoring column with her 22 points, it was Poehler's 18 rebounds that were as equally important. For Maranatha Christian Academy, a disappointing finish to a great 29-4 season and you can bet that they'll be back in the mix next year with the Jarnot sisters and others back. Lexi Lee, however, who finished with a game-high 32 points will graduate and move on this spring and she will be missed.
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