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GIRLS STATE HOOPS: Bishop Garrigan Beats MMCRU, 52-49, To Win 1A Title

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By the IGHSAU

Even without a big game from star center Audi Crooks, Bishop Garrigan of Algona still had enough to win a state championship.

But it sure wasn’t easy.

Everyone played a role as Bishop Garrigan erased the disappointment of championship game losses the last two years with a 52-49 victory over MMCRU for the Class 1A title and a wrap to the 2022 state tournament.

Four clutch free throws from all-tournament captain Molly Joyce and a last-second block by Abbie Capesius lifted the Golden Bears (25-3) to that elusive title after MMCRU had stormed back from a 12-point deficit to tie it.

MMCRU (26-2) had upset three-time defending champion Newell-Fonda in the semifinals and almost pulled off another stunner. But the Royals fell just short and left with the satisfaction of an outstanding season and the school’s first appearance in the championship game.

Joyce finished with 18 points to lead all scorers. Crooks added 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but that was a modest scoring night for the 6-foot-3 junior, who is being recruited by Division I college programs from across the country. She had scored 57 points in the first two games at state.

Capesius finished with seven points and five rebounds, Meredith Tigges hit a couple of 3-pointers for six points and Emma Grandgenett scored five.

Taylor Harpenau and Mya Holmes each scored 11 points for MMCRU, Emily Dreckman added 10 and Kora Alesch and Ellie Hilbrands scored eight apiece. Hilbrands also grabbed 10 rebounds.

Bishop Garrigan appeared to be in control with a 46-34 lead and less than 5 minutes to play. But the Royals stormed back with 12 straight points, sparked by consecutive 3-pointers from Holmes and Harpenau, to pull into a tie at 46 on Alesch’s baseline jumper with 2:40 to play.

The Golden Bears then went to their insurance policy, getting the ball inside to Crooks, and the right-hander banked in soft left-handed layup for a 48-46 lead. She then rebounded a miss at the other end and Bishop Garrigan went into a delay game to force the Royals into fouling.

Joyce, who had missed the front end of two 1-and-1 opportunities during MMCRU’s late rally, swished four in a row and Capesius blocked a last-second 3-point shot to close it out.

Crooks, Dreckman and Harpenau also made the all-tournament team, along with Macy Sievers of Newell-Fonda and Kamryn Kurt of North Linn.

 

 

 

 

By the IGHSAU

DES MOINES—Bishop Garrigan of Algona is getting another chance to win that elusive state championship. And this time, the Golden Bears will see someone different in the final game.

Audi Crooks and Molly Joyce delivered their usual big-time performances to lead Bishop Garrigan past North Linn 74-57 and into the Class 1A championship game.

The second-seeded Golden Bears (24-3) lost to Newell-Fonda in each of the past two championship games. But when they get to Saturday’s 7 p.m. title game they’ll find fourth-seeded MMCRU as the opponent. MMCRU ended top-seeded Newell-Fonda’s three-year championship run with a 66-62 victory in the other semifinal.

Crooks, the 6-foot-3 junior pursued by Division I programs against the country, scored 25 points and hauled in 16 rebounds. She made 10-of-15 shots and is now 25-for-33 in the tournament with 57 points.

Joyce, the junior point guard who is playing the best basketball of her career, also scored 25, handed out five assists, made three steals and sank 12-of-13 free throws.

Abbie Capesius (nine points) and Zoe Montag (nine points on 3-for-4 from 3-point range) also made solid contributions for the Golden Bears, who built a 13-point lead in the third quarter, then fended off a late rush from sixth-seeded North Linn (23-2), which made it to state for the seventh time in nine years.

The Lynx did just about everything they could to make it a game. They went 7-for-12 on 3-pointers, shot 50 percent overall and kept their turnovers to a minimum. But it just wasn’t enough against the talented Golden Bears, who outrebounded North Linn 36-14 and came up with 16 offensive rebounds, which led to an 18-3 advantage in second-chance points.

Kamryn Kurt led North Linn with 19 points on 7-for-10 shooting, including 4-for-4 from 3-point range. Macy Boge added 12 points and Ellie Flanagan scored 10.

Flanagan drove for a layup at the start of the fourth quarter and Chole VanEtten converted a three-point play after making a layup over Crooks, drawing the Lynx to 54-50. It was 56-52 after Flanagan drove for another hoop, but North Linn got no closer and Bishop Garrigan was nearly perfect at the free throw line, making 15-of-16 in the final 5:10.

The Golden Bears finished 22-for-25 on free throws and shot 48 percent from the field.

 

MMCRU beats Newell-Fonda

MMCRU ended Newell-Fonda’s championship run and now has a chance to win a title of its own.

The upstart Royals handled Newell-Fonda’s pressure, shot the ball well and made their free throws at the end in beating the three-time defending champions 66-62 in the Class 1A semifinals.

In the state tournament for just the second time, MMCRU (26-1) will go after its first state championship at 7 p.m. Saturday in the final game of the 2022 state tourney. It will be just the third time in the last 10 years that Newell-Fonda hasn’t been in the finals.

The top-seeded Mustangs (24-2) usually harass teams into submission with unrelenting pressure defense that produces turnovers and points in bunches. But they never had a run of more than five points in this one and the Royals often beat the pressure for layups.

MMCRU – it stands for Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn/Remsen-Union -- also had a height advantage with Ellie Hilbrands and Emily Dreckman, both 6-foot seniors, and outrebounded Newell-Fonda 35-26. And in a remarkable twist, the Royals had more points off turnovers than the Mustangs, 15-11.

Hilbrands led the winners with 22 points, including 2-for-2 from 3-point range and 6-for-6 at the free throw line. Taylor Harpenau added 17 points and Dreckman had 12 points and 13 rebounds. Junior guard Kora Alesch did most of the ballhandling and finished with 11 points and six assists.

Macy Sievers, the only senior starter, led Newell-Fonda with 14 points and seven assists. Sophomore Kierra Jungers and freshman Kinzee Hinders each scored 11 and junior Laney Hogrefe added 10. The loss snapped a 10-game state tournament winning streak, which matched the third longest of all-time, and was just the fourth setback for the Mustangs in their last 134 games.

The MMCRU players showed early on they would not succumb to Newell-Fonda’s pressure. The Royals were shooting 67 percent at one point – 12-for-18 – and though they trailed 36-33 at halftime, it was clear that Newell-Fonda was in for a game.

The Royals quickly tied the game at 36 on Harpenau’s 3 at the start of the third quarter and they went ahead to stay at 45-43 when Hilbrands got inside for a layup.

MMCRU stretched its lead to 54-46 early in the fourth quarter and that was enough to hold off the Mustangs, who got the game within one possession only once the rest of the way. The Royals secured their memorable victory by making 10 of 12 free throws in the final 4:24.

The Royals finished 23-for-32 at the line, shot 47.5 percent from the field and finished with 16 turnovers, an unusually low number against Newell-Fonda.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL: Bishop Garrigan Crushes Notre Dame, reaches semifinals for third straight year

By the IGHSAU

DES MOINES—Audi Crooks and Bishop Garrigan are back in the state tournament, maybe better than ever.

Crooks, the 6-foot-3 junior being recruited by major college programs across the country, poured in 32 points as Bishop Garrigan raced past previously unbeaten Burlington Notre Dame 77-42 and into the Class 1A semifinals for the third straight year.

Crooks scored mainly on lob passes from her teammates in making 15-of-18 shots. And two of those misses didn’t matter because she grabbed the rebound and went right back up to score. College coaches have been impressed by how deftly she catches the ball and that was apparent when she easily snared a long pass from point guard Molly Joyce and banked in a layup.

If that’s not enough, she got the ball at the free throw at the start of the second quarter and without hesitating drove aggressively to the basket for yet another layup.

Joyce also was a big factor, scoring 25 points to go with six assists, five rebounds and seven steals. Abbie Capesius added 12 points and eight rebounds for the second-seeded Golden Bears, who shot 55 percent and will take a 23-3 record into the semifinals at 3:15 p.m. Friday.

Win that one and Bishop Garrigan would be in the championship game for the third straight year. The Golden Bears lost to Newell-Fonda in their two previous appearances. Top-seeded Newell-Fonda is in the semifinals of the other bracket.

Seventh-seeded Notre Dame (24-1) kept pace for a while – until Bishop Garrigan closed the first half with a 20-7 run to go up 38-20. Crooks had 11 at halftime, then took over in the third quarter. She scored 14 of the Golden Bears’ 17 points in the quarter on 7-for-8 shooting, with a putback on the one she missed.

Abby Korschgen led Notre Dame with 11 points and five rebounds. Megan Harrell had 10 points and five rebounds, while sophomore Lauren Krieger scored eight for the Nikes, who won the state title in 2014 and made it back to the tournament for the first time since 2017.

Bishop Garrigan has won 20 straight since a 3-3 start against a rigorous schedule that included games with Class 5A Iowa City West, 3A tournament semifinalist West Lyon and Newell-Fonda, which beat the Golden Bears 74-70.

Wednesday, March 2
Class 1A Semifinals

Newell-Fonda 77, North Mahaska 44

MMCRU 50, Exira-EHK 39

Bishop Garrigan 77, Burlington Notre Dame 42

North Linn 58, Springville 56

 

Friday, March 4
Class 1A Semifinals

1:30 p.m. - Newell-Fonda (24-1) vs. MMCRU (25-1)

3:15 p.m. - Bishop Garrigan (23-3) vs. North Linn (23-2)

Saturday, March 5
Class 1A Championship
7:00 p.m. -

 

 

BGHS GIRLS RETURN TO STATE

By Greg Grabianowski, Sports Editor

CLEAR LAKE—They’re back. For the third straight year and fourth time in the past five years, the Bishop Garrigan Golden Bear girls basketball squad will be playing in the Class 1A state tournament.

The black-and-gold punched their ticket to the 2022 tourney on Wednesday, Feb. 23, with a 74-33 thumping of the Riceville Wildcats.

Two-time first-team all-staters Audi Crooks and Molly Joyce made sure the Golden Bears made the return trip to Des Moines as Crooks poured in 22 points in the opening half closely followed by Joyce with 18.

“Third year in a row, it is pretty special,” said senior guard Emma Grandgenett. “We knew they had two pretty strong players and their other players could score too. We needed to lock down on defense in this game and we did.

“O’Malloy Fair is a great three-pointer shooter and Joy Beran likes to drive to basket. We knew we had to shut those two down. We are going to work our butts off in practice this week. This is great heading back to state but we still have more work to do.”

Crooks opened the game’s scoring just 16 seconds in with a basket before Beran sank a free throw for Riceville. Bishop Garrigan then went on a 12-0 run only to see the Wildcats score the next seven points to make the score 14-8.

Joyce answered with the final five points of the opening frame as the black-and-gold led 19-8 at the end of the first quarter. Sarah Anderson and Crooks traded baskets to open the second eight minutes of play.

Joyce made a charity toss followed by a basket by Beran before Fair and Joyce traded hoops to make the score 24-14 with 5:16 left in the first half.

The Golden Bears then ripped off a 13-2 run to take control of the contest and enjoyed a comfortable 42-18 advantage at the conclusion of the first half.

“We were really focused coming into the game tonight and wanted to get off to a fast start,” said senior Ella Muller. “Audi and Molly were great in the first half. It is a lot more exciting for me this year to be able to play compared to sitting and watching last season because of my shoulder surgery.

“We have been talking all year long how great it would be to get back to state again. It was one of our team goals. It is very exciting to get another shot at a state title with a great group of teammates.”

Any thoughts of a comeback by the red-and-black were quickly extinguished by Bishop Garrigan as the Golden Bears went on a 21-3 run to start the third period, and they took a 63-23 lead into the final eight minutes of play.

The black-and-gold starters played just the first two minutes of the fourth quarter and came out to rousing standing ovation from the crowd as the reserves finished the game with a 74-33 victory.

“It does not get old getting back to the state tourney for the third straight time,” said senior Meredith Tigges. “Audi and Molly were so zoned in that first half, they were going to make sure we were going to take control of the game.

“I looked up at the board and they both had 20 points at halftime. We wanted this game so bad, and now we just need to keep moving forward. We just need to continue to take it one game at a time just like all year long. There is a bigger prize out there yet that we are working hard to achieve.”

Crooks poured in a game-high 31 points to lead Bishop Garrigan with Joyce not far behind with 27 points. Zoe Montag tossed in five points closely followed by Grandgenett with four points.

Ashlyn Hovey contributed three points as both Abbie Capesius and Muller scored two points to round out the scoring on the night.

Crooks recorded another double-double with 11 rebounds. Abbie Capesius had five caroms as Joyce, Hovey and Tigges all added four boards.

Grandgenett hauled in three rebounds. Muller grabbed two caroms along with one board each from Caelyn Capesius, Alaina Casey and Montag.

Joyce handed out a game-high eight assists while teammate Abbie Capesius dished out five more. Both Tigges and Montag passed out two assists with one assist each by Reagan Murphy, Crooks, Hovey and Muller.

Joyce pocketed four steals closely followed by both Grandgenett and Tigges with three thefts. Abbie Capesius and Hovey each registered a pair of steals as Crooks, Muller, Montag and Murphy all came up with one theft.

Crooks rejected four Wildcat shots and Muller added one blocked shot. Bishop Garrigan improved to 22-3 as Riceville concluded a nice season with an overall record of 22-3.

The Golden Bears opened Class 1A state tournament play on Wednesday against seventh-ranked Burlington Notre Dame (23-0) at 5 p.m. The semifinals are Friday at 3:15 p.m., and the Class 1A state championship game is scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m.

 

Riceville (33)—Madison Mauer 0-5 2-2 2; O’Malley Fair 4-11 0-0 8; Jaylyn Beran 1-5 0-0 2; Joy Beran 3-8 1-2 8; Tillotti Fair 0-2 0-0 0; Kylie Dvorak 0-0 0-0 0; Lauren Hemann 1-1 0-0 3; Taylor Hemann 0-0 0-0 0; Emily Johnson 1-3 0-0 2; Sarah Anderson 2-9 2-2 8; Samantha Wilberding 0-1 0-0 0; Lily Fair 0-0 0-0 0; Camydn Orth 0-0 0-0 0; Morgan Fair 0-0 0-0 0. Riceville Totals, 12-45 7-8 33. Three-point field goals, Mauer 0-3, O’Malley Fair 0-4, Jaylyn Beran 0-2, Joy Beran 1-4, Tillotti Fair 0-1, Lauren Hemann 1-1, Wilberding 0-1

Bishop Garrigan (74)—Emma Grandgenett 2-4 0-0 4; Molly Joyce 10-15 3-5 27; Abbie Capesius 1-3 0-0 2; Meredith Tigges 0-2 0-0 0; Audi Crooks 13-15 5-5 31; Alaina Casey 0-0 0-0 0; Reagan Murphy 0-0 0-0 0; Zoe Montag 2-5 0-0 5; Ashlyn Hovey 1-2 0-0 3; Ella Muller 1-2 0-0 2; Caelyn Capesius 0-0 0-0 0. Bishop Garrigan Totals, 30-49 8-10 74. Three-point field goals, Joyce 4-6, Tigges 0-1, Montag 1-3, Hovey 1-1. Score By Quarters, Bishop Garrigan led 19-8, 42-18 and 65-23

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