Top-seeded Black Hawk (28-0) remained unbeaten following a 57-31 triumph over Newman Catholic in the Division 5 semifinals at the State Girls Basketball Tournament Friday morning at the Resch Center in Green Bay.

The Warriors scored the first 14 points in the game and never trailed. The Cardinals made a brief run in the first half to narrow their deficit to nine at 16-7, but the score would not get any closer the rest of the game.The telling statistic of the game was ball security. The Warriors created 26 Cardinals’ turnovers while committing just five.

Bailey Butler led all scorers with 17 points for the Warriors, and Natalie Leuzinger contributed double figures as well with 14. Hannah Butler added nine points and a game-high seven rebounds and five assists.

Julia Seidel led the Cardinals in the scoring column with 11 points to go with six rebounds. Signe Fronek added nine points and six rebounds.

The Warriors advance to the championship game for the first time since their runner-up finish in 2010. Newman Catholic (21-7) finishes their season with their 11th appearance in the State tournament.

Second-seeded Bangor (25-3) advanced to the championship game in Division 5 with following a 57-54 victory over Clayton in the semifinals Friday.

The Cardinals built a 24-9 lead with 4:42 to play in the first half before the Bears clawed back to get within seven points at the half.

Clayton outscored Bangor 16-6 early in the second half to tie the game and then took its only lead of the game at 43-42 with 6:49 remaining. The Cardinals regained the lead on their next possession on a three-pointer by Courtney Oesterle. 

With 11 seconds in the game, the Bears had an opportunity to tie the game, but missed the front end of the bonus. After the Cardinals made 1-of-2 free throws, Clayton had a final chance to tie the game, but a three-point attempt in the final seconds was off target. 

Emma Wittmershaus of Bangor led all scorers with 24, to go with a game-high 12 rebounds. Ariana Hundt came off the bench to add 11 points and seven rebounds. Alison Leslie led the Bears in scoring with 23 points, and Kailey Ketz added 20 points and a team high four steals.

The Cardinals advance to the finals for the first time since winning the Division 4 championship in 1997. Clayton (24-4) ends its season in the State semifinals for the fourth time in their four appearances.