Second half flurry sends MHS to regional semis

     Monticello’s Taylor McDonald and Lauren Ries scored 18 points apiece, Jordan Kuper added 15 and Maddie Fellinger had 12 as the Panther girls basketball team (17-5) scored a 73-46 home victory over Solon in the Class 3A, Region 3 quarterfinals Saturday, Feb. 10.

     A second half flurry broke the game open and sent the Monticello High School girls basketball team into the regional semifinals. The Panthers were scheduled to play Vinton-Shellsburg Feb. 14, also in Monticello, for a berth in the Feb. 17 finals.

     Against Solon, the Panthers outscored the Spartans 22-5 in the third quarter to grab a sudden 22-point lead.

     It didn’t start out that way. A hot-shooting Solon team stayed with the Panthers for two quarters, as the teams were tied 18-18 after one period and Monticello led 29-24 at halftime. The Spartans ended each quarter with a buzzer-beating three-point shot.

     “Solon shot extremely well in the first half, but we did not do a very good job of taking care of the ball,” Kremer said.

     At halftime, the coach said, “We talked about doing a better job of rebounding and taking care of the ball. We also discussed that we needed to relax and just play basketball, and if we did those things we would see positive results.”

     By the end of the third quarter, Monticello led 56-34, and the Panthers were in control the rest of the way.

     “I thought the girls did a very nice job of handling the pressure,” Kremer said. “I was very pleased with the second half. The first half was not too bad, just too many turnovers.”

     Monticello finished with 29 rebounds, led by Ries with nine and Kuper with seven. Ries also made seven assists, and Taylor McDonald had four. Fellinger had four steals and blocked a Solon shot.

     On Wednesday, the Panthers will face Vinton-Shellsburg (3-19), a 33-30 winner over Benton Community Saturday. In the other semifinal are Osage (22-0) and New Hampton (12-10).

     The regional final will be Saturday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m. in Independence.

Feb. 10

Solon       18 11   5 12 – 46

Monti       18 16  22 17 – 73

     MONTICELLO (73) – Taylor McDonald 6-6 4-4 18, Maddie Fellinger 4-10 2-2 12, Lauren Ries 5-11 6-8 18, Maddie Lambert 1-3 1-2 3, Jordan Kuper 6-8 3-4 15, Gabrielle Steiner 2-3 1-2 7, Caitlyn Cruise 0-0 0-0 0, Sydney Hansen 0-2 0-0 0, Carly Hayen 0-0 0-2 0, Aspen Gillmore 0-0 0-0 0, Savanah Kremer 0-0 0-0 0, Meredith Melchert 0-0 0-0 0, Lydia Franzenburg 0-0 0-0 0, Emmi Sampson 0-1 0-0 0, Tori McDonald 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-44 17-26 73.

     Three-pointers: Ta. McDonald 2, Fellinger 2, Ries 2, Steiner 2.

     Rebounds: Monticello 29 (Ries 9, Kuper 7).

     Total fouls: Monticello 8.