The first of the Class AAA quarterfinal games took place early Tuesday evening at Target Center and this one featured the number one seed Hutchinson going up against unheralded TR (Thief River) Falls from the northwest part of the state. Being unfamiliar with both of these squads, I was going to have to watch this one unfold although there was likely little doubt that the number one-seeded Tigers would be big favorites going into this game.
From the outset, it became obvious that the gameplan for the underdog Prowlers was to work the ball inside often and early to their two "bigs" - 6'1" sophomore post Tiahna Nicholson and 6'3" senior forward/post Jenna Tadych and that one-two punch proved to be quite a headache early on for heavily-favored Hutchinson. One short turn-around jumper at the 16:23 mark and a score in the paint at the 14:58 mark - both by Nicholson - had TR Falls up 6-3 and a short jumper in the lane off the glass by Tadych at the 13:49 mark made it an 8-3 ballgame. A jumper from the free throw line by Nicholson at the 12:23 mark made it a 10-3 Prowler lead and a Nicholson lay-up with 7:40 left had the Prowlers up nine at 13-4. While there was no need for Hutchinson to panic, they struggled mightily from the perimeter early in this contest as working the ball inside was a tough proposition with the two TR Falls "bigs". A "3" from the left wing by senior guard Meleah Biermaier with 5:07 left helped the Prowlers maintain the nine-point cushion at 18-9 but Hutchinson slowly scratched and clawed their way back. A lay-up by sophomore reserve forward Liz Lansink with 3:31 left and a lay-up in transition by fellow sophomore reserve guard Gabby Hahn with 3:07 left got the Tigers back to within a single possession trailing 18-15. The Prowlers were able to get the lead back to five points at 22-17 when Biermaier knocked down two free throw shots with 1:51 left but Hutchinson had another late first half burst left in them. A "3" from the right corner by freshman reserve guard Elizabeth Wortz with 1:20 left cut the TR Falls lead down to two points at 22-20 and although the Prowlers were able to get the lead to five points at 27-22 going into the locker room at the half, things did not feel nearly so good for the Prowlers as they did early on in this contest.
A score in the paint by Tadych at the 17:26 mark and a "3" by sophomore guard Kylea Praska at the 16:48 mark stretched the lead out to seven at 32-25 and had TR Falls feeling a bit better about itself but the number one-seeded Tigers were not going to let those good feelings last forever as the quickly and efficiently cut away at the Prowler cushion and eventually took their first lead at 35-34 since the early moments of the game at the 12:17 mark on two free throws by Hahn. Hutchinson would hold a two-point edge at 43-41 when the first sign of real trouble hit the Prowlers as their Twin Towers of Tadych and Nicholson both had four fouls on them and the situation put TR Falls Head Coach Jeff Loe in quite a predicament. Two Biermaier free throws with 6:38 left and a lay-up in transition by junior guard Morgan Kurth with 6:05 left had the Tigers up 48-44 and when both Tadych and Nicholson fouled out, TR Falls looked, for all intents and purposes, dead in the water. Kurth, who had a solid second half performance for Hutchinson on this day, connected on a lay-up with 4:31 left that drew a foul and allowed her to sink the obligatory freebie with 4:31 left helped maintain the four-point edge at 50-46 and another Kurth lay-up with 3:55 left now had the Tigers up 52-46 and doom and gloom appeared to be the only hope for TR Falls now. Amazingly, the Prowlers battled their way back when all appeared lost. Praska uncorked a "3" from the right wing area with 3:09 left and a lay-up after a steal by senior guard Kelsey Kainz with 2:15 left suddenly tied the game at 53 a piece. Two free throws by the Tigers junior reserve guard Paige Wiehr with 2:02 left looked to stabilize the issue for Hutchinson now up 55-53 but TR Falls' Praska was sent to the line as well with 1:53 left for two free throws which again tied the game at 55 a piece. Wiehr would respond again for her Tiger teammates with a jumper with 1:32 left but then Praska unleashed a deadly trey with 1:15 left that thrust TR Falls back into the lead for good at 58-57. Hutchinson would turn the ball over on its next possession and with :45 left, Praska got fouled and her two free throws with :45 left now made it a 60-57 game. Still plenty of time left for Hutchinson on their next possession but their three-point attempts came up dry when they absolutely needed something and the Prowlers Kainz was fouled on a defensive rebound with :21.6 left. While she missed the front end, her back end attempt found its mark for a 61-57 TR Falls lead. Wiehr got a lay-up to go down with :06.6 for Hutchinson to cut it to a 61-59 game and when the Prowlers Biermaier was unable to knock down free throw attempts with :05.9 left, Hutchinson had one last gasp of a chance but a missed jumper by senior forward Erin Corrigan sealed the Tigers fate and TR Falls scored a huge upset by a count of 61-59 over top-seeded Hutchinson.
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