Avery Brown (13), Karrigan Dunstan (15), Selena Luong (1), Austyn Groote (25) and Jauclyn Lemke (5) under the basket, Rock Hills' Grizzlies, attempt to block a point Thursday, in the first round of sub-state basketball at Rock Hills. They fell short of a win in overtime with the Stockton, Lady Tigers. Rock Hills girls ended the season with a record of 10-4.
It was a disappointing conclusion for an otherwise standout season for the Rock Hills girls basketball team. They dropped their regular season finale to Osborne, 73-47, at Osborne, last Tuesday. They saw their hopes for a trip to the state tournament dashed when the number two seeded Grizzlies fell to number seven seed Stockton in sub-state play, 64-59, in overtime, at Mankato, Thursday.
Osborne streaked out to a 45-15 halftime lead over Rock Hills. The Bulldogs found a way to isolate Lauren Whelchel, one of the team's leading offensive players. The Grizzlies came back over the third and fourth quarters, outscoring the Bulldogs 32-28 but the deficit was too great to overcome.
Rock Hills led the Stockton Tigers 19-14 at the half way point of the game. The Grizzlies maintained the five point lead entering the final period. Rock Hills lost their offensive touch in the final period as Stockton erased the five point gap to send the game into overtime. The wheels came off for the Grizzlies in overtime as they were outpointed 11 to six to see their post-season hopes vanish. The team finished the season with a 10-5 record, their best showing in more than a decade.
Karrigan Dunstan led the Grizzlies offense against Osborne with 17 points. Lauren Whelchel dropped through 13 points. Jauclyn Lemke hit for six points. Avery Brown and Austyn Groote contributed four points each. Selena Luong posted two points. Hannah Simmelink scored one point. Lemke pulled down five rebounds. Brown and Whelchel nabbed four rebounds each. Danica Frost claimed three rebounds. Groote landed two rebounds. Luong and Simmelink grabbed a rebound apiece.
Dunstan stepped up with 21 points to top the Grizzlies scoring chart against Stockton. Whelchel registered 17 points. Lemke sent 10 points to the score board. Frost added four points. Brown finished the game with three points. Groote scored two points. Lemke secured nine rebounds. Whelchel pulled away seven rebounds. Dunstan grabbed four rebounds. Groote and Luong landed three rebound each. Frost was good for two rebounds. Brown nailed down one rebound.
It was the first winning season for seniors Dunstan and Lemke. Their hard work and leadership paid dividends this season as the team learned how to win. For coaches Jamie Harvey and Tracy Anderes, it was a vindication of their faith in the team. Losing two stalwart senior players will hurt but the underclassmen gained a wealth of experience as they head into next season and look for the winning tradition to continue.
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