HURON, S.D. — The Ethan Rustlers gave the defending Class B state champions all they could handle on Friday night.
But a decisive 18-2 run over the final six minutes proved to be the difference, as the third-seeded Cougars took down the No. 2 Rustlers 52-34 in a Class B girls basketball state semifinal game at the Huron Arena. The Cougars (22-3) will take on fifth-seeded Wall (20-5) at 7:45 p.m. on Saturday for the title.
With the Rustlers within two points at 34-32, Viborg-Hurley made four shots in a row and Ethan missed six in a row, and by the end of that span, the Cougars’ lead climbed to 44-32, putting the game out of reach.
“When we got it to two points, I thought we were right there,” Ethan coach Tom Young said. “They just hit two or three big shots and we had a few turnovers and that helped decide the game. And just like that, it turned.”
A lot of those big shots came from Denae Mach, who was among Viborg-Hurley’s stars, scoring 21 points and keeping the Cougars afloat in the game. She scored 12 points in a 14-point span for V-H in the third and fourth quarters. That came despite star Coral Mason battling foul trouble and being held to seven points on the night, including none in the fourth quarter.
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“When you play someone like Viborg-Hurley, who in my mind is a heavy favorite, the longer you can stay with them and force them to hit shots, the better your chances to win. But they hit shots,” Young said.
Charley Nelson, who averaged 5.8 points per game during the season, finished with 16 points, including four 3-pointers for the Cougars. She had 11 points in the first half to help get the Cougars out to a 27-15 halftime lead. From there, Ethan outscored the Cougars 15-7 in the third period, getting to within two points, thanks to seven points from Ava Lingemann in the third quarter.
“It just goes to show what type of team we’re made of. At any point, anyone can step up,” V-H coach Molly Mason said. “And it really makes teams have to figure out who to guard and what kind of defense to play. So many teams have adjusted so many times and I’m so proud of the kids because all of them can contribute.”
Off a game where Ethan (21-3) made 14 3-pointers in the quarterfinal win over Castlewood on Thursday night, the long shots were harder to come by for the Rustlers, who were 3-for-15 from deep and shot 31.6% overall. Lingemann had 13 points to lead Ethan, while Ella Pollreisz and Annalise Buenning had six points and Maddy Bartscher had four points. The Rustlers will take on Wolsey-Wessington in the third place game at 6 p.m. Saturday.
“Ethan played a great game,” coach Mason said. “Shooters, it’s not something we’ve had in a while. … We had to kind of regroup and watch some film and try to break down how we’re going to stop their shooters.”
The state championship game is now a rematch from the Parkston Classic on Dec. 30, when Viborg-Hurley defeated Wall 74-36. Mason said she knows this game will be much different because the Eagles are a much improved team since then.
“They are going to come out and they have so many different weapons from how I remember them from last time,” Mason said. “We have to think of how we’re going to defend them.”
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