CLASS A GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT: Fargo Shanley gets past Mandan

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FARGO — In a game where points were at a premium, Fargo Shanley had two shot makers emerge when it most mattered Thursday at the Bison Sports Arena.

Rachel Weir and Haley Brenner both hits clutch shots down the stretch to help lift the Deacons to a 45-35 victory against Mandan in the quarterfinals of the Class A state girls basketball tournament.

“We had to stick it out on defense because our shots would eventually come,” said Weir, who finished with a game-high 17 points. “We knew that.”

Shanley (19-4) advanced to today’s state semifinals against Bismarck Century. Mandan (17-6) plays Fargo Davies in the consolation semifinals.

“We talk about playing within ourselves and we had some kids today that were trying to do things they are not capable of,” Mandan head coach Len Stanley said.

A Mic Longtin steal and layup staked the Braves to a 33-31 lead with 7 minutes, 45 seconds remaining in the second half. Weir and Brenner took charge from that point, combining to score Shanley’s final 14 points. The Deacons ended the game on a 14-2 run.

The Deacons limited Mandan to 25 percent (13 of 51) shooting from the floor. The Braves also committed 20 turnovers.

MANDAN (17-6): Goldade 4 2-2 10, Longtin 4 1-2 9, Schmidt 2 2-2 6, Howling Wolf 2 0-0 6, Meyer 1 0-0 2, Russell 0 2-2 2, Goetz 0 0-0 0, Burt 0 0-0 0, Olsen 0 0-0 0. Totals 13-51 7-8 35.

SHANLEY (19-4): R. Weir 5 4-8 17, Brenner 4 2-2 10, Anderson 3 1-3 7, K. Weir 3 0-0 7, Fraase 1 2-2 4, Saville 0 0-1 0, Jacobson 0 0-0 0, Greving 0 0-0 0, Hanson 0 0-0 0. Totals 16-48 9-16 45.

Half: SH 20, Mandan 16. 3-point goals: Howling Wolf 2, R. Weir 3, K. Weir. Total fouls: Mandan 17, SH 10. Rebounds: Mandan 29 (Goldade 8), SH 28 (Anderson 10). Assists: Mandan 7 (Goldade 3), SH 7 (R. Weir 4). Turnovers: Mandan 20, SH 19.

Bismarck Century 84, Fargo Davies 44

Bismarck Century couldn’t have anticipated a much better start than the one it enjoyed.

The Patriots exploded for 52 points in the first half to a fuel an 84-44 victory against Fargo Davies in the quarterfinals.

“It’s the state tournament and we’re all really excited to be playing, so coming out strong is what we expected to do,” said Patriots junior Hannah Larson, who scored all 19 of her team-high points in the first half. “A lot of games we haven’t started out well, so starting out well in this game was important.”

The Eagles (11-12) were playing in their first state tournament game in their second year as a varsity program.

“I’m sure that has something to do with it,” said Davies head coach Tonah Safranski. “It’s the first time these kids are going through this, most of them. … Until you go through it and learn how to handle each game, it’s a learning process.”

The Patriots (20-3) seized control at the outset. Century raced to a 20-point lead, scoring 22 of the game’s first 24 points. Larson scored 11 points during the opening surge that included a string of 20 consecutive Century points.

Paige Weston paced the Eagles with 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field. The 6-2 senior center also added four rebounds and two blocked shots.

DAVIES (11-12): Weston 6 1-3 13, Bolstad 2 5-7 9, Moffett 2 2-3 6, Hage 2 0-2 5, Papachek 1 2-2 5, Larson 1 1-4 3, Woodbridge 1 0-0 3, Klabo 0 0-0 0, Syverson 0 0-0 0, McCullough 0 0-0 0, Kelly 0 0-0 0. Totals 15-49 11-21 44.

CENTURY (20-3): Larson 7 5-5 19, Glatt 6 1-2 13, Jacobs 4 3-4 12, Jeske 3 0-0 8, Bohrer 3 1-2 7, Delzer 2 0-0 4, Govig 2 0-0 4, Ziegler 1 2-4 4, Jossart 1 1-2 4, Lynch 1 0-2 2, Schatz 1 0-0 2, Hopkins 0-1 2-2 2, Chase 0 2-4 2, Ely 0 0-1 0, Beck 0 0-0 0. Totals 31-58 17-28 84.

Half: BC 52, FD 18. 3-point goals: Hage, Papachek, Woodbridge, Jacobs, Jeske 2, Delzer, Jossart. Total fouls: FD 20, BC 20. Rebounds: FD 20 (Klabo 6), BC 35 (Jacobs 5, Govig 5). Assists: FD 6 (Papachek 3), BC 15 (five players with 2). Turnovers: FD 29, BC 17.

West Fargo 60, Minot 55

When the game got tense in the closing minutes Thursday, Erin Krogh never lost faith.

“I just knew that someone would step up on our team and make the big shot,” said the West Fargo senior.

Cassidy Thorson scored the go-ahead layup with a shade over two minutes remaining to help the No. 1-ranked Packers hold off Minot for a 60-55 victory in the quarterfinals.

“We played so hard the second half,” said Minot head coach Todd Magnuson. “We played a great game the second half. It would have been nice to play like that the first half.”

The Packers (22-1) are on a 17-game winning streak heading into today’s semifinals against Bismarck at the Fargodome.

West Fargo never trailed in the second half, but the Packers never pushed their lead past five points in the final eight minutes. Minot tied the score 54-54 after senior Jayd Eggert scored off a cut to the basket with 2 minutes, 15 seconds remaining.

“We couldn’t get over the hump,” Magnuson said. “We would get a tie, we’d get a stop. We just couldn’t get that extra bucket. I think if we would have got that extra bucket to go ahead, I think our momentum would have changed huge.”

Lexi Lennon had 21 points to lead West Fargo, which limited Minot senior forward Holly Johnson to seven points on 2-for-12 shooting from the floor. Johnson, who has signed to play at North Dakota State, led Minot with 17.5 points per game entering the state tournament.

Eggert, a 5-foot-11 center, scored a game-high 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field.

MINOT (16-7): Eggert 8 8-8 24, Hankla 4 0-1 8, Johnson 2 2-6 7, S. Duttenhefer 0 6-8 6, Milbrath 2 0-0 4, Bryantt 1 0-1 3, M. Duttenhefer 1 0-0 3, Bahl 0 0-0 0. Totals 18-45 16-24 55.

WEST FARGO (22-1): Lennon 7 3-4 21, E. Krogh 4 0-1 8, Thorson 3 4-4 10, Hummel 1 2-4 4, Levin 1 1-2 3, Baltezore 1 1-1 3, A. Krogh 0 1-2 1, Gooding 0 1-2 1, Miller 0 0-0 0. Totals 19-53 17-23 60.

Half: WF 29, Minot 21. 3-point goals: Johnson, Bryantt, M. Duttenhefer, Lennon 4, E. Krogh. Total fouls: Minot 18, WF 21. Rebounds: Minot 24 (Johnson 10), WF 28 (Levin 6). Assists: Minot 10 (four players with 2), WF 9 (Baltezore 4). Turnovers: Minot 20, WF 16.

Bismarck 62, G.F. Central 34

Bismarck ruled most of the second half, especially on defense.

The Demons held Grand Forks Central without a field goal in the final 11 minutes. That effort helped Bismarck pull away for a 62-34 victory in the quarterfinals.

“We struggled to find any rhythm offensively in the second half and you have to give Bismarck credit for that,” said Central head coach Brent Hintz. “They had something to do with it. … They kept playing hard and kept making things tough for us.”

The Demons (16-7) play No. 1-ranked West Fargo tonight in the state semifinals at the Fargodome.

“We were working hard the first half,” said Demons head coach Dallas Hinderer. “I don’t think it changed the second half as far as our effort. We just started to clean things up. We just got those jitters out of our system.”

The Knights trimmed the Bismarck lead to 32-27 after junior Taylor Hammer scored and inside basket with 13 minutes, 30 seconds remaining. The Demons countered with an 18-4 run that pushed their lead into double digits for good.

“We just got going … from there that kind of crushed them with some of the big plays we had as a team,” said Demons junior Naomi Rust, who scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds.

CENTRAL (9-14): Hammer 3 5-5 12, Olson 4 2-3 10, Bacon 2 0-0 5, Fennell 1 2-2 4, Johnson 0 2-2 2, Hart 0 1-2 1, Medrano 0 0-0 0, Burgard 0 0-0 0, Becks 0 0-0 0, Reller 0 0-0 0, Ray 0 0-0 0, Shirek 0 0-0 0, Lindsay 0 0-0 0. Totals 10-46 12-14 34.

BISMARCK (16-7): Rust 7 1-3 15, Engelhardt 4 0-0 8, Meier 3 1-2 8, Kiefer 3 1-1 7, Haugen 3 0-0 6, Feeney 2 0-0 5, Trolliey 2 1-1 5, Hilzendeger 1 1-2 4, Schmidt 1 0-0 2, Mann 1 0-0 2, Bergrud 0 0-0 0, Leingang 0 0-0 0, Brown Otter 0 0-0 0, Henry 0 0-0 0, Hellebust 0 0-0 0. Totals 27-59 5-9 62.

Half: BHS 31, GFC 23. 3-point goals: Hammer, Bacon, Meier, Feeney, Hilzendeger. Total fouls: GFC 14, BHS 13. Rebounds: GFC 22 (Fennell 6), BHS 29 (Rust 8). Assists: GFC 7 (Hammer 4), BHS 11 (Hilzendeger 3). Turnovers: GFC 27, BHS 15.

Peterson is a sports reporter for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, which is owned by Forum Communications Co.

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