Prep report: East eliminated from 7AAAA girls basketball bracket

By Staff reports

March 01, 2023 at 10:32 PM

The Anoka Tornadoes did too much damage in the first half for Duluth East to overcome, as the third seed ended the Greyhounds’ girls basketball season, 79-61, in a Section 7AAAA quarterfinal on Wednesday in Anoka.

The hosts scored 46 points in the first half to lead by nine at the break, then closed the game out by turning up the pressure defensively, as East attempts to get back into the game were short-circuited by their inability to score more than 24 second-half points.

Lauren Youngquist led Anoka with 22 points. The Tornadoes (16-11) move on to the section semifinals vs. Blaine on Saturday.

For East, Rachel Hagen scored 22 points and Ashlynne Guenther 21 in their final varsity appearances. The Greyhounds finish the season 16-10.

Section 7A

Cherry 66, North Woods 46

A 23-point game from Jillian Sajdak and 20 from Makenna Ridge allowed the ninth-seeded Tigers to become the only road team to win one of seven Section 7A second-round games on Wednesday night in Cook.

Cherry, the No. 9 seed, held a 27-19 lead at the half, and then hit the afterburners with 39 points after the break.

Helen Koch made five 3-pointers for North Woods and had 20 points.

The Tigers (10-16) will face No. 1 Mountain Iron-Buhl to lead off a 7A quadrupleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Hibbing. The Rangers cruised past Littlefork-Big Falls 95-15 in their playoff opener on Wednesday night.

Floodwood 50, Deer River 38

The Polar Bears offense caught a gear first on Wednesday night, pulling away for a home win in their playoff opener.

The seventh-seeded Polar Bears scored only 16 first-half points, but held the 10th-seeded Warriors to just 15.

Offense came much more freely for Floodwood after the break, as Kenzie Kiminski finished with a game-high 21 points, while Nakaiyah Nimene ended up with 10.

For Deer River, Ella Storlie had a team-best 14 points.

Floodwood (16-7) will meet the winner of Cromwell-Wright and Nashwauk-Keewatin on Saturday at 4 p.m. in the quarterfinals. Those teams are scheduled to meet on Thursday.

PREP SCOREBOARD

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Section 7AAAA Quarterfinals

Anoka 79, Duluth East 61

Section 7A Second Round

Cherry 66, North Woods 46

South Ridge 78, Hill City/Northland 35

Ely 101, Silver Bay 32

Floodwood 50, Deer River 38

Mountain Iron-Buhl 95, Littlefork-Big Falls 15

BOYS HOCKEY

Section 7A Final

Hermantown 3, Rock Ridge 1

By Staff reports

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