Pioneers Routed by Rebels in Regional Finals
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Sevastopol’s girls basketball team saw its season come to an end Saturday night by the same team that knocked the Pioneers out of the postseason last year.
No. 2-seeded Sevastopol lost its WIAA Division 5 regional title game at home to No. 3-seeded Laona/Wabeno, 60-31.
The Pioneers, who fell to the Rebels a year ago in the sectional semifinals, had defeated Laona/Wabeno two weeks earlier in a non-conference matchup at Oshkosh, 50-39.
Sevastopol didn’t have the same personnel available against the Rebels for the regional championship with the usual starting point guard, senior Libby Ash, out of action while watching the game on crutches.
The Pioneers lost another starter with an injury less than four minutes after the opening tipoff when senior Katie Spude went down on the court and ended up being carried off the floor.
Sevastopol’s top scorer, Naomi Rikkola, got into foul trouble early in the first half. She picked up her fourth foul on a charging call with 12:04 left before halftime. However, Rikkola remained in the game and was able to avoid committing her fifth foul and being disqualified from the contest.
Laona/Wabeno took its first double-digit lead of the game at 16-5 with just under 11 minutes before halftime and entered the break with a 28-17 advantage.
The Rebels continued to dominate the game in the final 18 minutes with their full-court defense and outside shooting. They put the game out of reach in the first five and a half minutes of the second half by outscoring the Pioneers 18-4.
Rikkola was Sevastopol’s only player to score in double figures with 15 points.
Allison Albrecht led three Laona/Wabeno players in double figures with a game-high 16 points. Malerie Krawze and Lily Terry added 10 points apiece.
The Pioneers ended the season 22-4 overall, while the Rebels advanced to Thursday’s sectional semifinal against top-seeded Lena at Green Bay Southwest.
