Cardinals strive to keep playoff roll going all the way to state

CENTRAL - The bracket for the WIAA Division 5 Girls Basketball La Crosse Logan Sectional Tournament initially looked to set up a sectional semifinal match-up between Eleva-Strum and top-seeded Independence/Gilmanton. I/G and the Redbirds had split their games in the regular season.

But the Indee Panthers (19-6) had an early and surprising loss against No. 8 Alma/Pepin, knocking them out of the playoffs. The Eagles (14-13) nailed at least a dozen three-pointers in the game, nine in the first half alone. They couldn't miss while Indy/Gilmanton struggled to make layups and kept turning the ball over. They were completely shell-shocked and the game was basically over before halftime. They scored two baskets for four points in the whole second half. It was a tough way for Indy/Gilmanton to end the season, not only this loss but the two that preceded it a week ago, by four points in overtime vs. Whitehall (18-8) and a one-point loss to Blair-Taylor which cost I/G the Large Dairyland Conference title, by a grand total of five points.

So the Cardinals, 21-6 overall, gained once by I/G's fall in the regular season and will see if they gains twice. E-S will play No. 4 seed Blair-Taylor (also 21-6) on Thursday, March 6, at the Wanek Center in Arcadia in the sectional semifinal game at 7 p.m. The Redbirds split with the Wildcats this season, losing a close 49-46 contest in their first go-round at Central but winning comfortably in the second match-up at B-T, their first win at B-T in a long while, by a 65-39 score The 'Cats downed Alma/Pepin 46-42 in the regional final.

Central has plenty of success since a 2-3 start to the season, much of it certainly due to the play of sophomore Avery Glenz, the Large Dairyland's scoring champion this season and the team leader also in rebounds and assists. But each game it seems there's always another player or two who gets into double figures in scoring as well to keep defenses from collapsing on Glenz. That could be senior foward Neeley Lasher, junior center Aliza Kulig or sophomore wings Avaya Zwiefelhofer or Maddea Brown.

"Avery has been a consistent score for this team all year ,along with her rebounding and play-creating skills," E-S head coach Dave Hazuga said. "I think what makes this team special is other players have big scoring games on different nights, and everyone is committed to doing their job defensively. Everyone has to be ready to contribute on offense, The same way they have to do their job on defense."

Indeed, the all-in team approach to defense has been the biggest factor in helping Central win its first league title since 2014 and first regional crown since 2020. It certainly helped to shutdown No. 7 seed Hillsboro (18-8) in the regional semifinals and No. 3 seed Kickapoo (22-5) in the finals after an early deficit.

That defense will be needed to win the rubber match vs. the Wildcats. With their win over I/G, the 'Cats claimed a share of the Small Dairyland title with Cochrane-Fountain City, and have won 11 games in a row after taking back-to-back losses to Eleva-Strum and Alma/Pepin in the middle of the season. Junior forward, 6-1 Andrea Waldera occupies a role for the 'Cats similar to that of Glenz for the Cards as she team leader not just in scoring both also rebounds and assists. Her 17 points, rebounding and blocked shots helped B-T win the regional final as she was named WHTL 102.3 FM's Player of the Game. But Blair-Taylor has other scorers as well and these are in double figures in junior forward Samantha Aguilar and fellow junior (on a junior-dominated team) guard Andi Beck

If the Cardinals advance on Thursday night, they will play the winners of the No. 1 seed and No. 7 ranked Barneveld vs. No. 2 Shullsburg game at La Crosse Logan on Saturday, March 8 at 1 p.m., for the WIAA Sectional Championship and a trip to State.

No. 2 seeded Shullsburg finished second behind Belmont in the Six Rivers West Conference and is 20-7 overall, beating River Ridge 42-34 in the regional finals. Freshman guard Hailey Alt leads them in scoring at 13.4 ppg. Taylor Russell, a 5-10 senior forward averages over 10 ppg. and leads the Miners in rebounding while her sister McKinley Russell, a 6-0 freshman guard, also averages nearly 10 ppg. and is a team leader in rebounds and assists, averaging four per contest.

No. 1 seed Barneveld, 19-7 overall, came into the playoffs ranked No. 7 in Division 5 and was the only team in the Logan Sectional that was ranked other than the No. 9 ranked Belmont squad they beat in the regional finals 43-35. A traditional small-school girls basketball power in Wisconsin, they've been in this position many times with many state tournament trips and titles led by the state's all-time winningest coach in high school girls basketball Jim Myers with 713. Their top players are junior point guard Izabel Durst, who has scored 1,000 points in her high school tenure, and her backcourt teammate, senior Bryn Meyers.

The state tournament is next weekend at the Resch Center in Green Bay. The semifinals are on Friday, March 14 beginning at 9:05 a.m with the state finals at 11:05 a.m. on Saturday, March 15.

WIAA Division 5 Girls Basketball Tournament Brackett - https://halftime.wiaawi.org/CustomApps/Tournaments/Brackets/HTML/2025_Ba...