Superarks hold off youthful Blossoms
Published 8:21 pm Tuesday, February 26, 2019
- Grand Meadow’s Jordyn Glynn races the ball up the court against Blooming Prairie in the Section 1A quarterfinals at Mayo Civic Center Tuesday night in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
ROCHESTER -— The top-seeded Grand Meadow girls basketball team didn’t flinch in the face of adversity against a young but motivated Blooming Prairie squad in the Section 1A Tournament quarterfinals in Mayo Civic Center Tuesday.
Despite being nearly doubled up on the boards and losing the turnover battle, GM pulled off a 49-43 win to knock off the No. 8 Blossoms.
Grand Meadow’s Hailey Hindt pulls up for a shot against Blooming Prairie in the Section 1A quarterfinals at Mayo Civic Center Tuesday night in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Superlarks (25-1 overall) never trailed, but things got interesting when Julia Worke hit a three-pointer to bring BP within 40-38 late in the game. Skylar Cotten, who struggled with her shooting and ran into foul trouble in the first half, answered with a clutch baseline three to put the Larks up 43-38 with 3:54 left in the game.
“I knew that I needed to lead my team. I had to be confident and I had to keep shooting, even though I was missing before,” said Cotten, who finished with 12 points and three steals.
GM led 38-30 late in the first half, but BP got back into the game behind the play of sophomore center Megan Oswald, who racked up 15 points and 15 rebounds. Oswald drew Jordyn Glynn’s fourth foul when she scored to bring BP within 38-33 with 6:42 left in the game.
Glynn finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and four steals and Riley Queensland had 16 points.
Blooming Prairie’s Bobbie Bruns looks to shoot after picking up a loose ball against Grand Meadow in the Section 1A quarterfinals at Mayo Civic Center Tuesday night in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Superlarks will take on Lyle-Pacelli in the Section 1A semifinals at 4 p.m. Saturday in Mayo Civic Center.
“I think we had some good leadership from our players with experience,” GM head coach Ryan Queensland said. “BP gave us what I thought was their best game and they did a nice job. We had a couple of mental lapses and we got undisciplined, but they kept their composure and fought back. I was proud of our effort. This isn’t the end goal, we’ve got to come back on Saturday and survive and then see what happens.”
This is the second straight year that BP (13-10 overall) has nearly pulled off an upset in Civic Center. With no seniors on the squad, and just three juniors, the Blossoms are in good shape to make progress next season.
Blooming Prairie’s Megan Oswald protects the ball after grabbing a rebound against Grand Meadow in the Section 1A quarterfinals at Mayo Civic Center Tuesday night in Rochester. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
“Even after last year, the girls came in during the summer and they got better. That will be our focus again,” Bruns said. “They want to get back here and maybe instead of playing one game here, they want to play a couple. It’s a really dedicated, hard working group of kids that are fun to be around.”
The Superlarks opened on a high note as they built up a 14-4 lead with 8:30 left in the first half after back-to-back scores by Glynn. BP worked its way back into the game when it used a six-point spurt to get within 26-24 late in the first half.
Grand Meadow 28 21 – 49
Blooming Prairie 24 19 – 43
GM scoring: Riley Queensland, 16; Jordyn Glynn, 14; Skylar Cotten, 12; Masie Voigt, 5; Hailey Hindt, 2; free throws: 61 percent (11-for-18); rebounds: 22 (Glynn, 7); turnovers: 19
BP scoring: Megan Oswald, 15; Julia Worke, 12; Bobbie Bruns, 11; Maggie Bruns, 5; free throws: 43 percent (6-for-14); rebounds: 39 (Oswald, 15); turnovers: 18
