NRHEG boys upset by Maple River
They say it’s tough to beat a good team three times in one season.
The Maple River Eagles must be a good team. They’re in the section finals.
The season came to a disappointing end for the NRHEG boys’ basketball team Monday night with a 61-59 loss to Maple River in the sub-section finals at Minnesota-State Mankato. The top-seeded Panthers finished 24-4 while the second-seeded Eagles improved to 20-9 and advanced to Friday’s Section 2AA final against Jordan.
Maple River will enter Friday’s contest as an underdog, just as it was Monday, though the Panthers knew it would not be easy and it was not.
It was back-and-forth all night, neither team managing more than a six or eight-point lead.
Sparked by senior Benji Lundberg, the Panthers bolted to a 9-2 advantage but Maple River, led by Ethan Sindiler, trailed just 20-19 at halftime.
As Lundberg went, so went the Panthers in the second half. They were up five with eight minutes left and that’s when Mason Sohre took over. He hit back-to-back threes to put Maple River up for good and finished the night 19 of 21 from the line, including 13-for-13 in the final minutes, with 29 points.
“You tip your cap to that kid and that team,” said NRHEG coach Pat Churchill. “They made the big plays the last six minutes of the game and got the job done.”
Lundberg also got the job done, totaling 31 points while surpassing the 1,000 mark for his career.
Brady Agrimson scored 15, Jerret Utpadel 7, Nathaniel Techau 2 and Devin Buendorf 2.
Sindelar totaled 15.
The Panthers will graduate seniors Lundberg, Utpadel, Techau, Perry Peterson, Gabe Dahle and Ryan Hannegrefs.
“It’s tough to say good bye to these seniors,” said Churchill. “They have meant a lot to the success to this program and I couldn't be more proud of these fine young men and all they accomplished this season. It is always disappointing to end on a loss, but they have an awful lot to be proud of.”
The Panthers defeated Blue Earth Area 49-47 in the sub-section semifinals last Thursday as Agrimson hit two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining at Mankato East.
Lundberg finished with 19, Agrimson 12, Hannegrefs 7, Jacob Schuller 7 and Utpadel 4.
It was close all night, but the final moments were the most exciting. After BEA hit a long three to cut it to two, NRHEG turned it over and the Bucs tied it with 30 seconds left. With 10 seconds left, Lundberg drove between the zone and found Agrimson, who was fouled and subsequently hit the free throws.
“I was very impressed with how Blue Earth played,” said Churchill. “They kept switching from 2-3 to 1-3-1 to man for a bit and we didn't attack them very well. I thought we held the ball and didn't get it in the paint very much and settled for jumpers most of the night.”