• Photo Showcase: Saturday's state tournament photos

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Four quarters weren’t enough to separate rivals Wahoo and Wahoo Neumann.

But in the end, clutch plays in overtime by Kelsey Morrissey and McKenzie Fujan and Alyssa Stanek’s steady performance pushed Neumann to the Class C-1 title Saturday as the Cavaliers topped Wahoo 58-55.

Morrissey’s 3-pointer early in the overtime gave Neumann a five-point lead. Wahoo fought back to cut its deficit to one before Fujan hit a pair of free throws to push the advantage to three with five seconds remaining.

Wahoo couldn’t answer, and Neumann netted its second straight crown.

“Our girls are competitive people, and it shows,” Neumann coach Rick Ahrens said. “In overtime, our seniors stepped up. We said, ‘Hey, we’ve been here before. We’re going to get this done today.’ ”

Stanek’s 25 points on 8-of-10 shooting set the foundation for the Cavaliers’ offense. The junior also went 9 for 11 from the foul line, including 4 of 4 in overtime.

Early on though, the Warriors limited Stanek’s production and jumped to a 12-8 lead in the first quarter. Wahoo coach Linda Walker knew that her team needed to limit Stanek’s touches in order to win.

“We needed an answer for her,” Walker said. “I thought eventually when we started to attack, we got that answer.”

Wahoo waited until the fourth quarter to go into a full-court press, something Ahrens expected all game. The pressure limited Stanek to only one field goal in the fourth and led to eight Neumann turnovers in the second half.

Wahoo’s late steal with a little more than a minute to go set up a pair of Morgan Hancock free throws, giving the Warriors a 44-43 lead.
Morrissey responded with her first 3-pointer of the game with 30 seconds remaining. Wahoo’s Sadie Murren then laid in a basket with two seconds left.

“We played with heart and took it into overtime when it looked like the game was over,” Walker said. “What we need, the girls will usually give. We just fell short today.”

Neumann’s 12-point scoring outburst in overtime proved to be too much for Wahoo. As for the shot that started the run, Morrissey said it just happened to fall at the right time.

“I knew I was open, so I had to take the shot,” Morrissey said. “Since I’m a senior, I had to step up. This has been a dream ever since we were little.”

Wahoo Neumann (23-2)......................8 11 14 13 12—58
Wahoo (21-4)...........................12  5 13 16   9—55
• WN: Alexis Woita 2-5 0-0 4, Alyssa Stanek 8-10 9-11 25, Holly Fujan 1-2 0-1 2, Kelsey Morrissey 3-6 3-4 11, McKenzie Fujan 4-11 5-7 13, Antonia Rada 0-2 0-0 0, Tessa Klein 0-1 1-2 1, Morgan Maly 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 19-41 18-25 58.
• W: Morgan Hancock 4-5 5-6 13, Emily Brodahl 0-1 0-0 0, Mattie Murren 4-11 0-0 11, Sadie Murren 5-14 2-2 14, Erin Walker 3-7 2-2 9, Kayla Bennett 0-1 0-0 0, Katelyn O’Brien 4-6 0-0 8. Totals 20-45 9-10 55.
• 3-point goals: WN 2-8 (Morrissey 2-5, Rada 0-1, Maly 0-2), W 6-17 (Hancock 0-1, M. Murren 3-7, S. Murren 2-6, Walker 1-3). Fouled out: Brodahl. Rebounds: WN 21 (Maly 4), W 32 (Hancock 9). Assists: WN 13 (H. Fujan 6), W 14 (S. Murren 5). Turnovers: WN 10, W 18. Total fouls: WN 14, W 21.

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