WAO PONY GIRLS BASKETBALL BEATS GOODRIDGE/GRYGLA TO ADVANCE TO SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP

The Warren-Alvarado-Oslo Ponies Girl’s Basketball team continued their Section 8A run on Monday night, defeating the Goodridge-Grygla Chargers 55-43 to win the West Sub-Section Championship. The win also means that Warren-Alvarado-Oslo will now play for the Section 8A title on Friday night.

FIRST HALF –
Outside of the opening few minutes of the game, Warren-Alvarado-Oslo controlled the entire evening offensively and defensively. The Chargers came out and scored the game’s first basket on a layup from Hannah Wilebski. Lily Bayne responded with two free throws for the Ponies, and the game was tied 2-2. The Charges responded with a 7-0 run to take a 9-2 lead with 12:44 remaining in the opening half. The run was capped off by a three from Sadie Anderson. Warren-Alvarado-Oslo would settle in offensively and go on a 19-2 run to take a commanding 21-11 lead. The run was highlighted by seven points from Lily Bayne, an Annika Magnussen three, Kylie Nelson layup, and Hannah Pederson three. The run gave Warren-Alvarado-Oslo a 21-11 lead with 4:45 remaining in the opening half. Hannah Wilebski finally put an end to the run briefly with a jumper, but Markelle Pederson countered with a quick three giving Warren-Alvarado-Oslo a 24-13 lead. As impressive as the Ponies offense was, their defense was just as impressive, constantly forcing turnovers and frustrating the Chargers. The teams traded a few buckets before Annika Magnusson put another blow in the Chargers with a three in the final seconds of the half, to give Warren-Alvarado-Oslo a 31-16 lead. The Ponies in total went on a 29-7 run in the final 12:44 of the first half, with multiple players contributing on both ends of the floor.

SECOND HALF –
Points were again hard to come by in the second half, as the game was a physical and hard-nosed affair. After each team hit two free throws to make the game 33-18 in favor of the Ponies, the Chargers would put together a 6-2 run to cut the Warren-Alvarado-Oslo lead down to 35-24 and gain some momentum back with 10:49 left to play. The game’s turning point for Warren-Alvarado-Oslo, though, came with 9:14 left to play. Hannah Pederson would dive to the court for a loose ball, get a pass up to Lily Bayne, who would attack the rim, draw a foul, and watch the basketball spin around the rim twice before dropping for an and-one. After Bayne hit the free throw, Warren-Alvarado-Oslo held a 39-24 lead with under 9:00 remaining in the game. The fifteen-point lead tied the Ponies largest lead of the game. As the minutes continued to roll off the clock, the Ponies defense became even tougher and hungrier. Goodridge-Grygla would make a push, setting up a press and forcing a couple of turnovers to score four straight points after trailing 42-24, to cut the Ponies lead down to 42-28 with 4:15 to play. The Ponies would take a timeout and handle the pressure much better in the final four minutes of the game. However, the Charger’s offense started to score, and after a three from Sadie Anderson, the Chargers had cut the lead to 43-31 with 3:30 on the clock. Goodridge-Grygla would get another steal shortly after, but the Ponies got back defensively and took a charge keeping the score 43-31 and swinging the momentum back in their favor with 2:52 remaining. The Chargers again wouldn’t quit without a fight, after two free throws from Lily Bayne, the Chargers would knock down a three and take a timeout, giving the Ponies a 45-34 lead with 2:10 left to play. After a steal and Ponies foul, Caitlyn Jacobson would knock down a free throw cutting the lead to 45-35 Ponies with 1:39 remaining. The lead never got below single digits, and Warren-Alvarado-Oslo would knock down 10 free throws in the final 1:39 for a 55-43 win, making them the Section 8A West Sub-Section Champions. Lily Bayne led the way for the Ponies with 27 points, and Annika Magnusson chipped in 14.

Warren-Alvarado-Oslo improves to 17-8 and will now play in the Section 8A Championship on Friday night against the winner of the other Section 8A semifinal featuring Cass-Lake Bena and Fertile-Beltrami. The tip-off for the Section 8A Championship is set for 7:00 p.m. inside Ralph Engelstad Arena in Thief River Falls. Goodridge-Grygla ends their season with a final record of 18-8.

TO HEAR PONY COACH CASEY FRANCIS’ POSTGAME INTERVIEW – CLICK HERE