Titan girls fall to Sioux Falls Washington in SoDak 16 match-up

The Tea Area High School girls’ basketball team traveled to Sioux Falls Washington on Friday, March 7 to face off against the Warriors in the SoDak 16 match-up, both fighting for their spot in the Class AA State Tournament. 

The Titans stood strong in the first half, leading 14-13 after one quarter of play and only trailing by three at the half, 26-23. 

However in the second half, Sioux Falls Washington pulled away, outscoring the Titans 16-4 in the third going on to get the 59-42 victory, ending the Titans’ season. 

For the Titans, Ellie Clayberg went three of four from three-point land, finishing the night with a team-high 13 points. She also had one rebound, four assists and one steal. Anna Binde finished with nine points, four rebounds, and three assists. Sienna Mork had five points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. 

Jaycie Babb finished the night with three points, two assists and one steal. Kya Haynes scored three points, grabbed three rebounds, had two assists and one steal. Jana VanLaecken had three points and Emma Lingren also scored three points in the game. Piper Benning provided two points and Reese Hammerquist finished with one point, three rebounds and one assist. 

The Titans finished their first season in Class AA at 7-14. 

Sioux Falls Washington enters the State AA Tournament as the third seed. They will face off against No. 6 Mitchell this Thursday, March 13 at The Monument Summit Arena in Rapid City. 

Other first round match-ups at the AA Tournament are as follows: No. 1 O’Gorman vs. Sioux Falls Jefferson; No. 4 Rapid City Stevens vs. No. 5 Spearfish; and No. 2 Brandon Valley vs. No. 7 Pierre T.F. Riggs. Games continue on Friday, March 14 and conclude on Saturday, March 15. A bracket is below.