Section 5AAAA Semifinal Game - Roseville vs Champlin Park 3-3-18

The second semifinal on this Saturday afternoon pitted Roseville out of the always-tough Suburban East Conference against Champlin Park out of the Northwest Suburban Conference.  The Raiders hat put together a fine year as they were 21-7 and finished just behind Cretin-Derham Hall for Suburban East Conference honors.  The Rebels had also seemingly taken the next step as well as they had finished the regular season at 22-4 and finished just a game behind Centennial for Northwest Suburban Conference North Division honors.  Champlin Park in fact was ranked eighth in the state and there were some who thought that the Rebels might be able to make their first visit to the State Tournament since 2007 when Natalie Gigler helped lead Champlin Park to the big stage.  This would be my first look at both teams this season and considering that things would seem rather anti-climactic after Park Center's upset of top-seeded Centennial in the first game, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. 

It would be Roseville getting off to a very good start in this one as a score in the paint by lanky 6'1" sophomore post Jayda Johnston at the 17:45 mark got the Raiders going.  Freshman post Tamia Ugass connected with a lay-up at the 17:07 mark and one Johnston free throw at the 15:42 mark pushed Roseville's lead to 5-0 and Rebel Head Coach Josh Steck; concerned that his squad was firing blanks up to this point, called a timeout to talk things over with his team.  The Raiders, however, pushed their early lead to 8-0 on a "3" from the left wing area by junior guard Jada Hood at the 15:02 mark before Champlin Park could finally get untracked.  Two free throws by senior guard Erica Hicks at the 14:15 mark and a steal and lay-up the other way by sophomore reserve guard Miyah Dubose at the 11:51 mark had the deficit down to five points at 9-4 and a "3" from the right wing area by senior reserve forward Megan Munneke at the 10:05 mark kept the Rebels in that four-point range down 11-7. 

Roseville attempted to stretch out its lead again when sophomore reserve forward Josie Haug got into the paint for a score at the 9:23 mark but it was here where the Rebels finally started to find their groove and they went on a 19-2 bonanza that had them in excellent shape.  Strong senior forward Gabby Mocchi dropped two free throws after getting fouled with 8:59 left and one more by sophomore guard Izzy Quick with 7:36 left got Champlin Park back to within a single possession down 13-10.  Dubose was able to get a lay-up after a steal in the backcourt with 7:31 left and a Quick lay-up in transition with 7:18 left finally propelled the Rebels to their first lead of the afternoon at 14-13.  But Champlin Park was just getting started.  Speedy senior guard Amanda Pollard unleashed a "3" from the left corner with 7:03 left and less than thirty seconds after that Pollard would connect with a lay-up to get the Rebel lead to 19-13.  With 5:31 left, Pollard would again strike from three-point land; draining a bomb from the right top area to push the lead to 22-15 and now Roseville Head Coach Jeff Crosby was clamoring for a timeout to try and slow this Rebel drive.  Still, Pollard would drop two free throws with 5:08 left and two more with 5:03 left that had Champlin Park in excellent shape up 26-15.  But basketball can be a funny game with runs; particularly this time of the year and the Raiders closed out the first half on a 14-3 rush.  Hood uncorked her second trey of the game - this one coming from the right wing area - with 4:34 left and a score in the paint by Johnston with 4:12 left suddenly had the deficit down to a much more manageable six points at 26-20.  Johnston would strike again with 2:07 left and drew a foul in the process and her ensuing "and one" drew Roseville closer down five at 28-23.  Then senior guard Sarah Hvidhyld banged home a "3" from the left top area with 1:39 left and with 1:00 left Hvidhyld struck again from behind the arc; dropping a bomb from the left corner that had this game tied up at 29 a piece.  The Rebels came up empty in the last minute of play as both teams shuffled off to their respective locker rooms and a vast amount of uncertainty now hanged over Anoka Gymnasium as to how this one was going to go. 

The beginning of the second half seemed to mirror the beginning of the first as the Raiders used an 8-0 run to build a lead of their own again.  Hood connected with a one-handed jumper off the glass at the 17:52 mark to push Roseville out in front again and back-to-back three-point bombs - one by junior guard Kaylee Nelson from the right wing area at the 16:30 mark and one from Hvidhyld from the right corner at the 15:35 mark - suddenly had the Raiders up 37-29 and although Champlin Park's Hicks was able to bang home a "3" of her own from the left wing area at the 15:00 mark, Steck did not like the early developments thus far and called a timeout to re-evaluate things.  To their credit, the Rebels once again were able to close the gap.  A short turnaround jumper off the glass by junior post Makayla Johnson at the 13:52 mark got Champlin Park back to within a single possession again down 37-34 and a drive and finish by Quick at the 13:20 mark trimmed the deficit down to just one point at 37-36.  Pollard kept the Rebels in that one-point range with her short jumper at the 12:21 mark and a "3" from the right corner by Munneke at the 11:53 mark capped this 12-2 Champlin Park run that allowed them to poke their nose out in front by a 41-39 count.  The Raiders tied the game on a Johnston score in the paint at the 11:16 mark but when the Rebels' Hicks drained a "3" from the left top area at the 10:54 mark to give Champlin Park a 44-41 lead, things seemed to be pointing the Rebels way. 

Suddenly, inexplicably, Champlin Park's fortunes took a turn for the worse and the Raiders unleashed a 12-2 that changed the complexion of this one for good.  Nelson drained a "3" from the right corner at the 10:12 mark to tie the game at 44 and another "3" by Hood from the left top area at the 9:28 mark pushed Roseville out in front for good at 47-44.  A Johnston lay-up with 7:33 left pushed the lead to 49-44 and a score in the paint by Haug with 4:40 left got the lead to seven at 51-44.  Champlin Park's Hicks finally ended her squad's extended drought with a lay-up with 4:14 left but a lay-up by the Raiders' Johnston with 3:38 left maintained the seven-point edge at 53-46 and now the Rebels had their work cut out for them if they wanted to keep their season alive.  Pollard drilled a "3" from the left wing area with 3:15 left and a Mocchi lay-up in transition after a steal with 1:59 left at least had Champlin Park back within a single possession down 53-51 with seemingly a mountain of time left.  Curiously, however, the Rebels never could quite seem to get that one big shot or one big stop that might have allowed them to get even or get ahead again.  Roseville increased its safety net to four points on a score in the paint by Haug with 1:48 left at 55-51 and two Johnston free throws with 1:29 left upped the lead to five points at 57-52.  Hood would add one free throw with :43.5 left to get the lead to six at 58-52 before the Rebels could cut into a bit on a Dubose lay-up with :36.3 left.  Champlin Park's Steck called a thirty-second timeout in hopes of forcing a steal or a stop that would quickly get his squad back to within a single-possession again.  Sadly for the Rebel contingent on hand this day, that never happened.  Roseville's Nelson was fouled with :36.3 left and she got one free throw to go down and after a foiled Champlin Park possession, the Raiders' Hood would be fouled with :31.8 left where she dropped one freebie.  Hood would get one more free throw for insurance with :21.9 left for a 61-54 Roseville lead before the Rebels could try and make one more last stand.  Mocchi would connect with a lay-up with :14.2 left and Munneke would connect with a short jumper from the left side with just :01 left but it would be the Raiders moving on with a 62-58 victory. 

Considering the youthful Roseville roster that features only one senior (Hvidhyld), this game in some ways was perhaps an even bigger upset than Park Center's win over Centennial given the experience that Champlin Park had with five seniors who depart on a down note with state tournament hopes crushed.  Hicks had eclipsed Gigler as Champlin Park's all-time scoring leader this season and Hicks had indicated earlier that this will be the end of her competitive basketball career as she intends to focus on academics when she attends St. Cloud State next fall which I think is a bloody shame.  And you also can't help but feel badly for Pollard, Mocchi and reserve Sydney Fields who had it all come to an end today.  Roseville had only two players in double-figures scoring-wise on this day but both finished with 17 points a piece - Johnston and Hood who both had marvelous afternoons.  Champlin Park was led by Pollard with her 17 points while Hicks added 12 points in her final game.