Bruins win tourney opener!

Fargo South advanced to Friday's semi-final round in the State Tournament with a hard fought 48-42 win over Dickinson High on Thursday afternoon at the Fargodome. The first quarter was a tightly contetsted game, with both teams trying to get a feel for the flow of the game. Dickinson held a 13-9 lead late in the quarter when Mel Hageman got fouled and went to the line for freethows with just over 3 seconds left. Mel made the first to make it 13-10, then missed the second, but Micaela Kruckenberg worked hard for the offensive rebound and scored a put back shot in the lane right before the quarter buzzer to pull South to within 13-12 and gave the Bruins a big emotional lift. That momentum carried over into the second quarter as the Bruins scored the next 9 points to build a 21-13 lead midway thought the second. Hageman and Jessica Trautwein both scored inside, and Kari Flaagan hit a three pointer in that run. The Midgets didn't go quietly though. The WDA player of the year hit a three of her own, and so did Ashley Fridley to get Dickinson back into the game. South ended up taking a 26-25 lead into halftime. The third quarter proved to be 8 minutes of missed opportunities for South, as they missed 7 close in shots in the quarter and failed to put some breathing room between themselves and Dickinson. Mandy Dobmeier gave the Bruins a shot in the arm though as she nailed a pair of baseline jumpers at important times to keep the game close. South trailed 36-34 heading into the final frame. As has been the case all year though, South continued to pound away inside for important baskets. Hageman made an inside basket and was fouled, and Trautwein made a nice lefty jump hook in the lane to give the Bruins a 45-42 lead late in the game. These baskets were coupled with a siffling Bruins defensive effort. The Bruins held Dickinson without a field goal over the last 5 minutes of the period to slowly pull away. A huge part of that was the defensive rebounding of South - the Bruins gave up only 6 offensive rebounds the entire game, and none in the decisive minutes to close the game. South made their freethrows down the stretch, hitting on 18-23 for the game, one of their season's best efforts in the seasons most important game to date. Trautwein and Hageman both finished with 13 points and Trautwein led everyone with 9 rebounds. Dobmeier joined the post duo in double figures with 12 points. The win moves South's record to 17-6, and moves them into Friday's semi's against cross town rival Fargo North. The Bruins have given unbeaten North their closest game of the year so far in a 65-50 midseason loss. Friday's game is set for 1 pm.

Boxscore:
Fargo South: Kruckenberg 1 0-0 2, Hageman 4 5-7 13, Salzwedel 0 3-4 3, Trautwein 5 3-4 13, Dobmeier 3 5-6 12, Flaagan 1 2-2 5; Totals 14 18-23 48, Three point goals: Dobmeier, Flaagan

Dickinson: Grossman 1 0-0 2, Gustafson 2 0-0 4, Wolberg 2 1-2 7, Fridley 3 0-0 7, Steffan 2 0-0 4, Herauf 0 1-2 1, Boepple 6 4-10 17; Totals: 16 6-14 42, Three point goals: Wolberg 2, Fridley, Boepple

Fouled out: none; Total Fouls: South 14, Dickinson 19; Rebounds: South 37(Trautwein 9), Dickinson 27(Steffan 6), Turnovers South 14, Dickinson 15, Steals: South 9, Dickinson 4, Assists: South 10(Salzwedel 5), Dickinson 8(Beopple 2)

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