A 17-point halftime deficit and playing without two starters proved to be too much for the Weyauwega-Fremont girls’ basketball team to overcome.
The Indians came out on the short end of a 57-40 score to Appleton Xavier Friday, March 9, in a Division 3 regional semifinal. W-F also opened the tournament Tuesday, March 6, with a 46-41 win over Winneconne.
Xavier 57, W-F 40
APPLETON – Xavier, which went on to win a regional championship, held the Indians to a three-pointer and a pair of free throws in the first quarter to take an 18-5 lead into the second period. The Hawks scored 18 more points in the second quarter and led 36-19 at halftime.
Both teams struggled offensively in the third quarter and the Hawks led 43-23 heading into the fourth.
Mariah Hulbert led the Indians with 10 points, while Bailey Kapitske and Ellen Schroeder added nine and eight points, respectively. W-F played without post player Jenni Hellweg, who injured a knee in the third quarter of the Winneconne game. Sydney DeSantis, another starter, was also out because of an injury.
“Basically, we got in a pretty deep hole right out of the gate and were not able to get back,” coach Joel Titus said. “We played them pretty even the last three quarters and I couldn’t be prouder of the effort our girls gave.
“Bailey hit some big shots for us and Dani (Austreng) and Ellen had great games on the glass,” he added. “It’s tough to finish the season there again. All we can do is learn from it and hope we have another chance at them next year. Not having Jenni and Syd affected our depth, but everybody stepped up.”
W-F 46, Winneconne 41
WEYAUWEGA – Hulbert came up a big night offensively for the Indians, as she led all scorers with 19 points, with 12 of them coming on four three-pointers.
The Indians trailed 11-9 after one quarter and 22-21 at halftime, but outscored the visiting Wolves 15-11 in the third quarter and 10-8 over the final eight minutes.
Macey Schoenick added 13 points for the Indians, while Austreng chipped in with eight. Courtney Swanlund led Winneconne with 12.