1999/2000 Game Results Last Updated: February 27, 2000

February 26, 2000  

North 64, Memorial 54  Game Stats

Record - Overall: 17-4; Big Rivers: 11-3

Huskies survive scare

North overcomes early obstacles to beat Old Abes

By Steve Beaudry

Leader-Telegram staff

CHIPPEWA FALLS -- Nicki Robinson’s smile can be deceiving.

When the Eau Claire North senior point guard is involved in an emotion-drenched basketball game, especially against a rival like Eau Claire Memorial, her smile has nothing to do with happiness.

It means she’s frustrated.

She almost never stopped smiling Saturday night during the Huskies’ WIAA Division 1 regional final against Memorial.

A flash flood of early foul trouble landed Robinson and fellow North starters Larissa Parr, Kricket Whyte and Scooter Aspen on the bench for extended stretches of play.

But the Huskies persevered and pulled away late for a 64-54 victory that earned them a berth in the Marshfield sectional semifinals for the second straight season.

North (17-4), which has won seven straight games, will meet six-time defending Big Rivers Conference-champion Hudson (20-2) at 7 p.m. Friday in Menomonie. The winner will play the other semifinal victor, either Marshfield or D.C. Everest, at 7 p.m. Saturday with a state tournament berth at stake.

"This game was too close for comfort -- waaaay too close for comfort," Robinson said afterward, smiling a happy smile.

She scored 12 points, including the free throw with 1 minute, 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter that gave North what proved to be an insurmountable four-point lead.

"Halfway through the fourth quarter, Scooter’d just picked up her fourth foul, and we’re all standing around waiting for (Abes center) Amanda Buchholz to shoot a free throw," Robinson said. "I turned to Scooter and said, ‘Welcome to the club!’

"Everyone out there for us at the time except (guard) Emilee (Planert) had four fouls."

Parr’s foul trouble struck first -- and struck hardest.

The 6-foot junior entered Saturday averaging 13.3 points per game this season -- second on the team to Robinson’s 13.6. Parr picked up her third foul 3½ minutes into the game. North coach Dan Sippel sent her to the bench and kept her there for the remainder of the first half.

Memorial (18-4) was in the bonus free-throw situation for 12 minutes of the first half and cashed in by grabbing a 33-32 intermission lead.

"It could’ve been a lot worse if our reserves didn’t step up," Robinson said, lauding the contributions of backup center Gretchen Schroer and backup guard Lindsey Rongstad. "If we didn’t have the depth we have, we’d have been buried alive tonight."

Whyte also kept the Huskies afloat in the first half, scoring nine of her team-high 15 points.

Buchholz, a 6-foot junior, was the biggest beneficiary of Parr’s extended absence. She finished with game highs of 18 points (one point short of her season high) and eight rebounds.

Planert, who played the entire 32 minutes, hit a 3-pointer 25 seconds into the second half that ignited a 14-6 Huskies run. But Buchholz scored six points in a 7-2 Memorial bolt that left the Abes trailing 48-46 entering the fourth quarter.

That’s when Parr took over. She scored nine of her 14 points in the final eight minutes.

"Parr did an excellent job not picking up that fifth foul," said Memorial coach Steve Smith, whose team split a pair of three-point decisions with North during the regular season. "She’s a great low-post player. …

"I’m pleased with the poise we showed down the stretch. Even though we didn’t win, we played hard and lost gracefully. In a rivalry like this, that’s a lot to expect. We wish North luck."

"This was all about survival," Sippel said. "We persevered, played as a team and survived to play another game."

EAU CLAIRE North (64)

FG-A FT-A TP: Nicki Robinson 4-8 4-7 12, Scooter Aspen 1-4 0-2 2, Emilee Planert 3-10 0-2 8, Kricket Whyte 6-7 3-6 15, Larissa Parr 5-11 4-7 14, Lindsey Rongstad 3-8 1-4 7, Gretchen Schroer 2-3 0-1 4, Beth Hoenisch 1-1 0-0- 2, Anne Connell 0-0 0-0 0, Andrea Thorsness 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-52 12-29 64.

EAU CLAIRE MEMORIAL (54)

Bekka Lundquist 3-10 8-10 15, Joanna Leafblad 2-9 2-2 7, Becca Carstensen 2-2 0-1 4, Greta Fiedler 2-4 0-2 4, Amanda Buchholz 5-13 8-8 18, Jess Huettl 2-5 1-2 5, Melissa Kaiser 0-3 0-0 0, Molly Menard 0-3 1-2 1, Bekah Howard 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-49 20-27 54.

3-point goals: North 2-7 (Planert 2-5, Aspen 0-1, Rongstad 0-1), Memorial 2-9 (Lundquist 1-3, Leafblad 1-4, Kaiser 0-1, Huettl 0-1). Rebounds: North 35 (Planert 6, Robinson 5), Memorial 42 (Buchholz 8, Lundquist 7). Fouls: Memorial 21, North 22. Turnovers: Memorial 21, North 15.

RECORDS: Memorial 18-4, North 17-4.

Beaudry can be reached at 833-9212, (800) 236-7077 or steve.beaudry@ecpc.com.