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Class 3A girls basketball state tournament

Quarterfinals-

Sartell-St. Stephen 38

North Branch 34

It was quite a ride for the North Branch girls basketball team this season. Unfortunately, sooner or later, it had to come to an end. It did last Wednesday in Minneapolis in the first round of the girls class 3A state tournament. Playing Sartell, despite a fourth quarter comeback, the Vikings fell to the Sabres 38-34, finishing their season at 23-7 overall.

As expected, the Vikings were slowed by nerves in the beginning. Things went a little smoother for Sartell as they opened up a 12-6 lead after the first eight minutes of the game. After the first quarter North Branch found themselves in an early hole that was about to get deeper. That’s because Sartell increased their lead in the second. Despite scoring 11 points in the quarter, the Vikings gave up 14 as the Sabres pushed their lead to 26-17 at the half.

“I think we were pretty nervous and we missed some early shots that we needed to make,” said Dan Schindler, North Branch head girls basketball coach. “At halftime we talked about doing a better job of rebounding and picking up our defensive intensity.”

The adjustment worked as the Vikings took over the game thanks to their defense. After allowing 26 points in the first half, North Branch held the Sabres to just four points in the third quarter. It was a golden opportunity to get back in the game. Unfortunately, North Branch was equally as quiet on the offensive end, scoring just six points in the quarter. The Sartell lead was seven after three, 30-23.

“The whole game we could never get into an offensive rhythm. We seemed nervous the whole game and could never settle down,” mentioned Schindler. “I think it’s difficult shooting at the Target Center with an open background. Most of the state tournament games were low scoring and I think that is the reason.”

On the defensive end, North Branch continued to control the game in the fourth as they chipped away at the Sartell lead. Thanks to their defense, the Vikings opened the quarter by scoring the first five points, trimming the deficit to two. But that’s when it happened. Normally solid from the free throw line, the Vikings went cold from the charity stripe down the stretch. Within two at 30-28, North Branch got four cracks from the free throw line to change the score and missed all four. In all, the Vikings missed 10 free throws in the second half.

That was as big of an opening as Sartell was going to give them. After failing to convert from the line, breathing a breath of fresh air, the Sabres finished the Vikings off by out-scoring North Branch 8-6 the rest of the way to grab a 38-34 win.

With the win, Sartell advanced to the second round of state while North Branch was eliminated from the tourney.

“It was a great season and one I will always remember,” remarked Schindler. “This group really worked hard to improve this year and they deserved their trip to the state tournament. The effort was certainly there, we just missed too many shots and way too many free throws.”

Stegmeir led the Vikings with 13 points while Gabi Olson chipped in with nine. In addition, Jenny Anderson scored two points and pulled down nine rebounds.

“We certainly had some great memories from the week,” mentioned Schindler. “It was sure fun seeing all our great fans and band at the game. I would like to thank them and everyone who supported us this year. The parents have been great and have been there for us all season. My four seniors (Jenny Anderson, Megan Stegmeir, Jenny Stenberg and Ashley Klein) were great leaders and that leadership kept the team working all year. We will miss them next year.

“Thanks to the fire department for the escort out of town and it was sure neat having the bus drive inside the Target Center to let us out,” continued Schindler. “I have the best assistant coaches in the state in Brian Hasleiet, Kristen Hetland and Adam Lamoureux. I don’t think we get to the state tournament without their outstanding efforts. The girls also met the Timberwolves and had a great week at the tournament. Even though it was our fifth time at state, they are all very special.”

Special. That’s a good note to end the season on.

Sartell-St. Stephen 38

North Branch 34

1 2 3 4 F

North Branch 6 11 6 11 34

Sartell 12 14 4 8 38

Scoring-

Stegmeir 13, Olson 9, Good 8, VandenHeuvel 2, Anderson 2.

Notes:

-The Vikings were greeted with several year-end awards last week. First, Jenny Anderson was named to the class 3A all-state team. The honor is given to the top 10 players in class 3A from around the state. Anderson finished her career sixth all-time in scoring at North Branch, second all-time in rebounding and first in blocks. As for Anderson’s head coach, after being named section co-coach of the year, Dan Schindler was named class 3A state coach of the year.

In June, Schindler will be inducted into the Girls Basketball Hall of Fame. The honor is given by the Girls Basketball Association.

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