Amazing performance! Stewartville will play for a state championship

Mar. 16—MINNEAPOLIS — Who saw that coming?

Well, maybe the Stewartville girls basketball team. Maybe.

But here are the Tigers, a program that had never played in a state basketball tournament until this week, now headed to the state championship game.

Yes, the Tigers did it. They beat the No. 1 ranked team in the state on Thursday, using a wildly impressive second-half performance to emerge a 60-59 winner over Becker

Incredible, especially considering the Tigers looked in huge trouble at halftime against the state's No.1 team, trailing by 11. And also incredible considering that Becker was looking to advance to its fifth straight state championship game.

Still, the Tigers players never flinched.

"I have so much faith in my team, there was never a moment where I felt like, 'Oh no, we can't do this,' " Stewartville star senior point guard Haylie Strum said. "We were ready the entire game. There were no nerves really."

They had pronounced themselves ready well before the contest started.

On the bus ride over to Williams Arena, they built up their confidence, listening to motivational speakers and reminding each other of the spectacular season they've had. This, after all, was a team that entered the semifinals having won 25 straight games.

So, they're good, and they know it. They were not about to put Becker on a pedestal, despite that No. 1 ranking.

"We were ready for this game," said junior forward Savannah Hedin, who finished with 15 points and once again got the Tigers' scoring started with a strong, confident drive to the basket. "So I don't think nerves were there. We felt good because we are a very good team. We are unstoppable when we all work together."

But there were problems in the latter portion of the first half. After jumping out to a slight lead, the Tigers saw that go away as they couldn't contain the Bulldogs' guard-centric offense, with all of their driving and then kicking the ball out to deadly shooters. Becker finished the game having nailed 11 3-pointers.

So, Stewartville coach Ryan Liffrig went into intermission, considered his team's 11-point deficit and did a 180 with his team's defense. He ditched what had been a vaunted person-to-person approach in favor of a zone alignment, something the Tigers basically never do.

But Liffrig knew he had to do something.

The changeup worked to perfection. The Tigers players made it work.

"I asked our kids to do something completely different at halftime," Liffrig said. "We got some easy tipped balls out of it and cut (their deficit) in half. I am just so proud of the kids for that."

That wasn't the only thing that went right for Stewarville the final 18 minutes.

They also got big shot after big shot from a pack of players, including a second-half surge by freshman center Ella Theobald. The 6-foot-1 Theobald finished tied for scoring honors with Hedin with 15 points.

And then there was Strum. After suffering a sprained ankle in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, the senior star still came through with a massive effort against Becker — 13 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

"At first, in warmups, the ankle hurt so bad," Strum said. "But I didn't want the (Becker) players to see that, so I tried not to limp. But 5 minutes into the game, I didn't feel anything anymore."

With just more than 6 minutes left in regulation, Strum was really starting to feel no pain. That was after reserve guard Hannah Martinson gave her team a huge lift by burying a 3-pointer. That drew the Tigers within 50-47 of the Bulldogs,

Martinson kept Stewartville's next possession alive by diving for a loose ball and allowing her team to keep the ball. Theobald, who had four second-half baskets, took advantage of Martinson's hustle by converting inside. And she did it again less than a minute later, this time scoring inside, getting fouled and converting the free throw.

Keeley Steele put an exclamation point on all of it a minute later by hitting a long 3-pointer. Suddenly, Stewartville was on top 55-50 with just 3:46 left.

Becker made one last push and tied things at 58-all. But a Hedin tough driving basket, and a free throw by Jayci Rath was just enough offense in the closing minute to allow Setewartville to finish this against-the-odds job.

The Tigers had done it. They'd beaten Becker. They are headed to the state title game.

At 6 p.m. Saturday at Williams Arena, taking on No. 2 seed Benilde-St. Margaret's, they'll have a chance to win a state championship.

Complete box score:

https://www.mshsl.org/sites/default/files/2023-03/GBB%202023%20AAA%20semi%20Stew-Becker.pdf