Lightning Strikes Twice: Titan girls and boys qualify for State
- 6 hours ago
- 5 min read
=For the first time since moving to Class AA, both the Tea Area High School girls and boys have punched their ticket to the State Tournament.
The Titan girls got things done on Friday, Mar. 6 defeating Harrisburg at home 66-60 in the SoDak 16 to advance and the Titan boys got things done on Saturday, Mar. 7 defeating Spearfish on the road, 66-56, in the SoDak 16 to advance.
Both coaches are excited about the opportunity that lies ahead for their teams.
“I’m just really happy for our entire program, fans, and community. Our boys work as hard as anyone and they deserved to make this state tournament. We have had a strong program for a long time and to get back to the state tournament is a testament to the kids we have now and to the ones that have come before,” said Titan head boys’ coach Drew Weber. “Every one of those guys have had a part in this and the outpour of messages from them is what makes me the proudest as a coach. We can’t wait to get to Rapid City and prove that we belong with the state’s best teams.”
Titan girls’ head coach, Taylor Fechner echoed those thoughts.
“I am really excited and proud of our girls. We found ourselves up in the second half and Harrisburg fought back and took the lead,” said Fechner. “When you face that type of adversity, you have two options, to quit or to fight and this group chose to band together, play for each other, and were able to get the win… Really proud of this group and excited for them to get the opportunity to play in the state tournament.”
In the Titan girls’ match-up Tea Area led early. Harrisburg managed to tie the score three times in the game but never led, as the Titans hung on for the 66-60 victory.
Tea Area shot nearly 39 percent in the game that featured three Titans in double figures. Emma Lingren led the way with 23 points, going three of four from three point range. She also had two rebounds, three assists and a team-high four steals. Anna Binde finished the night with 16 points. She grabbed three rebounds and had one steal. Jayna VanLaecken finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one steal. Ellie Clayberg hit two from downtown and finished the night with eight points. She also had three rebounds and one assist. Jaycie Babb finished with four points, three rebounds, a team-high eight assists and one steal. Grace Bialas scored three points in the game and had two steals.
“We had some really good performances all the way around. Emma Lingren took over the game and Jayna VanLaecken sealed it with a huge steal and rebound late as well as finishing free throws,” said Fechner. “Anna Binde and Ellie Clayberg hit some real timely shots and Jaycie Babb is just steady dishing out 8 assists and finding two huge buckets at the end of the game. It was truly a team effort with the group shooting 12-24 from the three point line and 12-15 from the foul line. We only had 8 turnovers showing we were going to value the basketball in a big game.”
The Titan girls will compete in the Class AA State Tournament in Rapid City at the Summit Arena at The Monument beginning this Thursday, Mar. 12.
The Tea Area girls enter State as the eighth seed and will take on undefeated Brandon Valley in the opening round, scheduled to tip-off at 11 a.m. MT. The winner will advance to play on Friday, Mar. 13 at 5 p.m. MT. The loser will drop down to the Consolation bracket and will play on Friday, Mar. 13 at 11 a.m. MT. The State Championship game will be played on Saturday, Mar. 14 at 6:45 p.m. MT.
For the Titan boys, their SoDak 16 match-up against Spearfish was a battle. The Titans trailed 10-5 after the first quarter but outscored Spearfish 20-9 in the second to take the lead. They continued to build on their lead in the third and despite a small push in the fourth by Spearfish, Tea Area went on to secure the 66-56 victory earning their spot in the State AA Tournament.
“I am just overwhelmed with pride with how well our boys played in this game. Spearfish does everything to give themselves a tremendous home court advantage and the boys weren’t fazed in the slightest,” said Weber.
“Spearfish threw the first punch to open the game, but we responded and really controlled the game from there,” Weber added.
Weber said they talked before the game about someone stepping up and being the hero.
“Lane was that hero with the best game of his career, but it’s a wonderful feeling knowing that the entire team contributed in a huge way,” added Weber. “Grif, Gavin, and Mitch really asserted themselves and controlled their star guards on both ends of the court. Blake had 3 blocks, but he probably altered 7-8 other shots at the rim, plus he and Willy had some big boards in traffic. Daschle gave us two key minutes to close the half. Our scout team was phenomenal all week in practice, which was something that we desperately needed as Spearfish is a very difficult matchup. All-around it was our best TEAM win in a long, long time. “
Three Titans were in double figures with Gavin Shawd scoring 20 points in the game, hitting three from downtown. He also had five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Sieber finished with 17 points, going seven of nine from the field. He grabbed two rebounds, had two assists and one steal. Grifin Wiebenga seven seven of nine from the field to finish with 16 points in the game. He also had four rebounds, three assists and one steal. Mitch Grant scored seven points, pulled down eight rebounds, had four assists and one steal. Blake Lundin finished with four points, seven rebounds, and two steals. Kayden Williamson had two points and four rebounds in the win.
The Trans shot over 57 percent in the game.
The Titan boys will compete in the Class AA State Tournament in Rapid City t the Ice Arena at The Monument Mar. 19-21. Tea Area will open the State Tournament on Thursday, Mar. 19 facing off against undefeated Sioux Falls Lincoln. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. MT. The winner will advance to play on Friday, Mar. 20 at 5 p.m. MT. The loser will drop down to the Consolation bracket and play at 11 a.m. MT on Friday, Mar. 20. The Class AA Championship game is set for Saturday, Mar. 21 at 6:45 p.m. MT.
Watch next week’s paper for complete coverage of the Titan girls’ State Tournament run and watch the Mar. 26 paper for complete coverage of the Titan boys’ State Tournament run.