It was only fitting that seniors Gabie Johnson and Madisen Wagner would hit clutch baskets down the stretch on Senior Night to give the Park Rapids girls basketball team a 63-61 win over Menahga in the regular-season finale Thursday night at the Area High School gym.
Johnson’s 3-pointer with 2:03 to play gave the Panthers a 60-57 lead and Wagner followed with a layup at the 1:17 mark for a 62-57 lead as Park Rapids closed the regular season with a four-game winning streak.
This game was close throughout as both team battled through nine ties and six lead changes before the Panthers tied the biggest lead of the game down the stretch.
The Panthers jumped out to an 11-6 lead at the 14:55 mark behind two baskets off rebounds and a jumper by Jaiden McCollum, a jumper by Johnson and a 3-pointer by Macky Warne.
Menahga responded with an 11-0 run as layups by Alyssa Peterson, Aimee Lake and Lindsay Hendrickson, a 3-pointer by Cierra Ahlf and a jumper by Peterson provided a 17-11 lead at the 10:12 mark.
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Jumpers by McCollum and Johnson were offset by a 3-pointer by Peterson as the Braves led 20-15 with 7:27 to play in the first half.
A 3-pointer by Warne and two inside baskets by Kaisa Coborn tied the game at 22-22 at the 5:28 mark before another 3-pointer by Warne and a jumper by Coborn gave the Panthers a 27-25 advantage with 3:15 remaining.
A 3-pointer by Peterson and a layup by Hendrickson gave Menahga a 30-27 lead at the 2:35 mark before a jumper by Coborn with 2:27 to go made it 30-29 at the half.
Warne’s 3-pointer was followed by a pair of jumpers and a 3-pointer by Johnson as the Panthers took a 39-35 lead with 14:44 to play.
The Braves responded with an 11-2 run as two layups apiece by Hendrickson and Ahlf gave Menahga a 46-41 lead with 10:08 remaining.
Coborn scored off a rebound, Johnson scored inside and McCollum hit a jumper as the Panthers tied the game at 47-47 with 6:58 to go.
A 3-pointer by Ahlf, a jumper by Hendrickson and layups by Peterson and Hendrickson gave the Braves a 56-53 edge with 4:28 left before jumpers by Kendra Coborn and McCollum gave Park Rapids a 57-56 lead with 2:59 remaining.
After Hendrickson hit a free throw to tie the game at 57-57 at the 2:51 mark, Johnson hit a 3-pointer, Wagner scored as the Panthers broke Menahga’s press, and Kendra Coborn hit a free throw to make it 63-57 with 23 seconds showing.
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Ahlf hit a free throw with 19 seconds left and Peterson hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to conclude the scoring.
Johnson finished with 20 points, eight rebounds and three steals while McCollum added 14 points and nine rebounds. Warne scored 12 points and Ellery Overmyer had four assists as the Panthers improved to 12-13 by winning for the sixth time in the last seven games.
“The keys to our last four wins are the girls playing better as a team and running the offense more efficiently,” said Park Rapids head coach Tina Ridlon. “This year we are hoping to go deeper into the playoffs, but we need to remain focused and be willing to work hard. I think we can compete with anyone in our section. We need to play better defense along with running a more efficient offense.”
Peterson scored 23 points while Ahlf and Hendrickson scored 13 points apiece for the Braves, who made only 5 of 22 3-pointers in falling to 13-13.
MENAHGA: Lake 3 1-2 7, Ahlf 5 1-2 13, L. Hendrickson 6 1-3 13, Stifter 0 2-4 2, Peterson 8 4-4 23, Aho 0 0-0 0, M. Hendrickson 1 1-4 3, Schwartz 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 for 54 (FG), 10 for 19 (FT).
PARK RAPIDS: Wagner 1 0-2 2, Warne 4 0-0 12, Waggoner 0 0-0 0, McCollum 7 0-0 14, Johnson 9 0-1 20, Ke. Coborn 1 1-2 3, Overmyer 0 0-1 0, Ke. Coborn 6 0-1 12. Totals: 28 for 65 (FG), 1 for 7 (FT).
Halftime: Menahga 30, Park Rapids 29. Three-pointers: Peterson 3, Ahlf 2, Warne 4, Johnson 2. Team fouls: Menahga 17, Park Rapids 16. Rebounds: Park Rapids 34 (McCollum 9, Johnson 8, Ke. Coborn 5, Overmyer 4, Ke. Coborn 3, Wagner 2, Warne 2, Waggoner 1). Assists: Park Rapids 14 (Overmyer 4, Ke. Coborn 3, McCollum 3, Johnson 3, Warne 1). Steals: Park Rapids 7 (Johnson 3, McCollum 2, Overmyer 1, Waggoner 1). Blocked shots: Park Rapids 1 (McCollum). Turnovers: Park Rapids 14.
