Girls sectional roundup: Wade lifts Mount Pulaski to sectional final
LEXINGTON — Senior guard Alexis Wade made two free throws to break a tie with 11.6 seconds remaining in the final quarter and second-seeded Mount Pulaski nipped No. 1 seed Cissna Park 53-52 in the semifinals of the Class 1A Lexington Sectional girls basketball tournament on Tuesday.
Cissna Park, which finished 25-6, had a chance to tie the game, but only made 1 of 2 free throws with about two seconds left before the game ended.
Mount Pulaski (26-8) moves on to the sectional title game and will play the other sub-sectional top seed — Champaign St. Thomas More at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
St. Thomas More (26-6) rolled past No. 2 Watseka 63-38 in Tuesday’s other semifinal.
Mount Pulaski led Cissna Park 13-8 after one quarter and went into halftime with a 23-16 lead. Freshman Alyson Murphy made a 3-pointer and had nine points, while Wade scored eight and junior Grace Davis had six in the half.
The Hilltoppers maintained their advantage and led 28-21 in the third period until the Timberwolves closed the quarter on a 14-8 spurt to get within one point heading into the fourth. Wade nailed two 3s and scored 10 of Mount Pulaski’s 13 points in the third. Senior Je’na Rentmeister had a 3 in the stanza for her only points of the game.
Cissna Park got a 3-pointer from Mikayla Knake that tied the game at 51-all with 43 seconds to go. That led to Wade’s game-winning free throws.
Wade finished with three 3s and a game-high 24 points. Murphy scored 13 and Davis drilled a 3 in the fourth and tallied 11.
Addison Lucht dropped in a team-high 20 points and Knake sank five 3s and scored 18 for the Timberwolves. Brooklyn Stadeli chipped in nine points in defeat.
AT ABINGDON: Taryn Wickman leads Havana
HAVANA 58, ANNAWAN 30: The third-seeded Ducks got out to a 13-point halftime lead and never looked back to advance to Thursday’s Class 1A sectional championship game.
Havana (30-4) will play No. 2 sub-sectional seed Mount Sterling Brown County for the sectional crown at 7 p.m. Brown County (30-4), with the exact record as Havana, ousted No. 1 seed Elmwood 47-35 in Tuesday’s first semifinal matchup.
Jennifer Bonnett scored eight points and Taryn Wickman and Kaydi Miller had six apiece when Havana went into intermission with a 29-16 lead. The Ducks clamped down further by outscoring Annawan 13-2 in the third period to run away with the victory.
Wickman knocked down two 3-pointers and scored nine second-half points to finish with a game-high 15. Bonnett ended with 11 and Josie Hughes netted eight points in the second half to also score 11. Miller provided eight.
Annawan concluded its season at 25-8. Jaydn Wise, Olivia Goodley and Bella Vanopdorp scored six points apiece for the Braves.
AT JACKSONVILLE ROUTT: Okawville reigns
OKAWVILLE 69, JACKSONVILLE ROUTT 34: No. 1 seed Okawville ended Routt’s season with a 69-34 triumph in the first Class 1A sectional semifinal game on Tuesday.
Okawville (30-4), ranked No. 2 in the final Associated Press 1A statewide poll, advanced to face Carlyle for the sectional title on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Carlyle, seeded third, upended No. 1 sub-sectional seed Hardin Calhoun 54-45 in the second semifinal. Sophia Hoffmann had 15 points and Emma Meyer scored 12 for Carlyle (27-5).
Alayna Kraus poured in a game-best 25 points and Megan Rennegarbe followed with 22 to pace Okawville.
Paige Creviston led Routt with eight points and Jaymee Vollmer added seven as the fifth-seeded Rockets ended the season 17-13.
CLASS 2A
AT PANA: Chloe Ashcraft scores 22 points in win
PANA 59, TEUTOPOLIS 52: The senior combination of Chloe Ashcraft and Anna Beyers came through and second-seeded Pana knocked off state-ranked Teutopolis to advance to the Class 2A sectional title game.
Pana (24-9) will play No. 1 sub-sectional seed Paris for the championship at 7 p.m. on Thursday. Paris (29-3) took care of Robinson 41-27 in the other semifinal.
Ashcraft racked up 22 points and Anna Beyers scored 17 in the semifinal. The Panthers are the only Class 2A team from the Springfield area remaining in the tourney.
Senior Kaylee Niebrugge’s 29-point effort wasn’t enough for Teutopolis, which concluded its season ranked No. 7 in The Associated Press 2A state poll. Senior Courtney Gibson scored 11 for the Wooden Shoes.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Girls sectional roundup: Mt. Pulaski, Havana advance in 1A; Pana in 2A
