March 10, 2023 at 1:00 p.m.
Both girls teams knocked out in opening round of section play
North Branch drew the fifth seed in the Section 7AAA tournament and although they were going to be in for a steep challenge if they won, facing off against a top ranked Grand Rapids team, the girls hoops’ team fell short against fourth-seeded Hibbing. They lost 52-38 on Tuesday, February 28, ending their season at 5-22.
The Bluejackets kept a steady lead throughout the contest, not allowing NB’s start guard Ella Kuhlman to get on track offensively. And when Kuhlman struggles, the North Branch offense as a whole tends to struggle.
That was the case in the section match up, as the Vikings scored only 17 points in the opening stanza, and then backed that up with just 21 in the second.
Kuhlman ended with just nine points after averaging over 17 during the regular season. Johanna Bartkey was NB’s top scorer, netting 13 points to go along with six rebounds. Kate Lattimore scored nine points and Chloe Lattimore had eight rebounds and three steals on the night.
CHISAGO LAKES GIRLS BASKETBALL
The Wildcats got to host their first round of sections, drawing the fourth seed in Section 5AAA. They took on Mississippi 8 Conference foe Princeton, who they had beat twice in the regular season, including the finale just four days prior.
But, the Tigers reversed their fortunes on Tuesday, February 28, topping the Wildcats 57-50 to end their season at 10-16.
The Wildcats dug themselves a deep hole in the first half, trailing by 13. Although they chipped away at that in the second half, they never could overtake Princeton, as Lillian Tidrick, a freshman who averaged just 11 points per game in the two losses to the Wildcats, exploded for 23 points in this contest, leading all scorers.
Senior Emily Erickson closed her CL career with a fine performance, scoring 16 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. Eva Aldrich had nine points, Ellie Hilber added eight and Abby Sufka chipped in seven points.
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