Martin Luther 56, Martin Luther 38
Edgewood 60, Wrightstown 38
Martin Luther (26-1) advances to the Division 3 final after downing Bloomer (22-5) 56-38 in the semifinals of the State Girls Basketball Tournament Thursday at the Resch Center.
Leading 28-21 at the half, the Spartans began a 9-1 scoring run early in the second half to build a 15-point advantage at the 10-minute mark. Martin Luther extended its lead to as many as 18 points late in the game to clinch the victory.
Both teams shot 50 percent from the field in the first half. The Spartans continued their shooting efficiency in the second half, but the Blackhawks fell off the pace, converting on just 32 percent of their shots.
Emma Kallas led three Spartans in double figures with 21 points. Emily Hafemann and Grace Amling each chipped in 10 points apiece. Chandler Zwiefelhofer led Bloomer with 15 points.
The Spartans advance to the Division 3 championship game in their first State Tournament appearance, and Bloomer is eliminated from title contention in its fourth appearance.
Edgewood (24-3) will play in the championship game in Division 3 following a 60-38 victory over Wrightstown in the semifinals Thursday afternoon at the Resch Center.
Brita Hovde provided the first-half spark after the Crusaders fell behind 7-0 to start the game. She converted all five of her field goal attempts and scored 12 of her game-high 14 points in the first half.
The Tigers struggled finding the range, hitting on 23 percent of their shots in the first half to fall behind 27-16 at the break. Edgewood built its largest lead of the game at 60-36 with 2:47 to play in the game. The Crusaders took advantage of strong inside play, outscoring the Tigers 32-16 in the paint and possessing a 40-30 rebound advantage.
Hovde led four Crusaders in double figures. Estella Moschkau added 13 points, and Bri Foti and Katie Meriggioli chipped in with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Wrightstown’s balanced scoring attack was led by Kailee Van Zeeland with 12 points. Danielle Nennig added 11 points, and Alisha Murphy tossed in 10.
Edgewood plays for the Division 3 title after making its first tournament appearance last season, and Wrightstown (23-4) ends the season in the semifinals in its third State appearance.