St. Paul's Anna Thede (left) fights for a loose ball with Lincoln Christian's Makylee Ailes during the Class C-1 girls state basketball semifinals Friday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star
Lincoln Christian's Olivia Hollenbeck (left) embraces teammate Ashlynn Ailes after their victory over St. Paulduring a Class C-1 girls state basketball semifinal Friday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
It was a tale of two halves, but Lincoln Christian proved it can do whatever it takes to add a tally to the win column.
The Class C-1 top-ranked Crusaders (23-3) rode the momentum of eight three-pointers in the opening half to race to a 16-point lead at the break. They then switched gears and pounded the ball inside to 6-foot-4 senior all-stater Olivia Hollenbeck and 6-foot senior Alexis Johnson while cashing in on free throws over the final quarter to secure a 68-59 win against No. 3 St. Paul on Friday morning in the semifinals of the girls state basketball tournament at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Lincoln Christian’s torrid outside shooting eventually opened up room in the paint as the Crusaders returned to the state title game for the fourth time in five seasons.
The girls state basketball tournament has arrived. Here's your one-stop resource for navigating the brackets through Saturday.
“We’ve been talking all year about having confidence shooting the ball,” Crusader senior guard Barrett Power said. Power, who netted three of Christian’s eight three-pointers in the opening half, finished with 19 points.
“Some days they fall, and today was one of those days,” Power said. “But we knew in the second half we have a really big weapon in Liv (Hollenbeck) we could go to inside.”
Hollenbeck was more than willing to shoulder the load, scoring 13 of her team-high 22 points after the intermission. She converted 11 free throws — all in the second half — and tallied a game-high 13 rebounds. The Crusaders were 18-of-27 from the line in the fourth quarter alone.
Nick Orduna on Christian's win against St. Paul.
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“Liv had an excellent game yesterday, so we knew they’d have to put a little bit of focus on the inside and force other girls to do some scoring,” Crusaders coach Nick Orduna said. “At times we’ve struggled with that, but it was really cool to see girls step up on the perimeter and knock some shots down.”
Six different Crusaders knocked down threes as Christian bolted to a 35-19 lead at half. St. Paul (24-3), led by senior Brooke Poppert’s 22 points, whittled the lead down to five with 33 seconds remaining, but could get no closer.
“St. Paul is a good, physical team,” Power said. “We knew we had to grind it out on defense, getting stops, then hopefully go down and score on offense when we could.”
Said Orduna, “Having been ranked No. 1 all year, it kind of puts a target on your back. Teams coming after us, giving us their best shot … and here we are in the finals. It’s such a blessing and we’re so thankful for another opportunity.”
Lincoln Christian will play North Bend Central in the state title game at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Devaney Sports Center.
Photos: Lincoln Christian, North Bend Central nab wins in state semifinals
St. Paul's Anna Thede (left) fights for a loose ball with Lincoln Christian's Makylee Ailes during the Class C-1 girls state basketball semifinals Friday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Lincoln Christian's Olivia Hollenbeck (left) embraces teammate Ashlynn Ailes after their victory over St. Paulduring a Class C-1 girls state basketball semifinal Friday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.