DICKINSON - When the Heart River girls basketball team needed a scoring boost in the fourth quarter against Beach on Saturday, the Cougars turned to their top option.
Senior center Michelle Kubas dumped in 11 of her game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter to help third-seeded Heart River come away with a 58-48 semifinal victory over second-seeded Beach at the District 13 tournament Saturday at Knights of Columbus Activities Center.
"I got open looks," Kubas said. "They were playing (tight) on our guards, and I got good passes from my teammates."
Kubas finished 6 of 10 from the field including a 10 of 13 performance from the free-throw line, where she was 4 of 4 in the final 21 seconds to put the game on ice.
"She did take over," Heart River coach Dan Pender said. "You have to give credit to the whole team, but she did try to take over at the end."
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Kubas wasn't just an effective scoring option; she did it all, finishing with eight rebounds and six assists.
"Kubas played a real nice game inside," Beach coach Bob Waldal said.
Beach struggled to get its offense moving in the second half despite drawing within six points with a little more than two minutes to go in the game.
Though Heart River never took a commanding lead, the Cougars took their final lead at the 2:51 mark of the second quarter when junior guard Ashlynn Evoniuk hit a 3-pointer from the right wing to put them up 25-23.
Evoniuk finished with 13 points, Lynae Rambousek scored 11 and Kayla Jilek added 10.
"Our composure was there tonight," Pender said. "That's a really good sign to see."
Even though it scored just one field goal in the final three minutes, Heart River maintained its lead with solid free-throw shooting. The Cougars were 17 of 22 from the charity stripe.
"You have to give credit to Heart River," Waldal said. "They shot the ball well."
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Waldal said his team didn't execute on offense.
"We got caught standing around," Waldal said. "We need to do a better job of that."
Beach freshman Abby Weinreis led her team with 12 points. Freshman Brittney Dietz added 11 points.
Evoniuk and Jilek combined for three 3-pointers, which Waldal said hurt his team's game plan.
"(Heart River) executed so well," Waldal said. "If they didn't hit those shots from the outside than things would have been different, but that's not what happened."
Heart River 58, Beach 48
Beach 16 25 38 48
HR 14 32 39 58
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B: Abby Weinreis 12, Brittney Dietz 11, Jill Rising 8, Kayla Weinreis 6, Emily Hardy 4, Kayla Dolyniuk 4, Teal Waldal 3.
HR: Michelle Kubas 22, Ashlynn Evoniuk 13, Lynae Rambousek 11, Kayla Jilek 10, Candra O'Brien 2
3-pointers: A. Weinreis 2, Waldal, Evoniuk 3, Jilek 2. Free throws: B 7-10, HR 17-22. Total fouls: B 19, HR 10. Fouled out: Hardy. Rebounds: B 21 (Hardy 7), HR 27 (Kubas 8). Assists: B 14 (Waldal 5), HR 15 (Kubas 6). Steals: B 6 (A. Weinreis 3), HR 5 (Rambousek, Dorval 2). Turnovers: B 15, HR 14.
