Bruins win thriller, head to championship game

Fargo South showed a lot of charachter Friday as they built a big lead, watched it slip away late, but then rebounded to pull out an overtime thriller in the State Semi-finals in the Alerus Center, and defeated the second ranked Bismarck Century Patriots 62-56. South got out of the gate hot for the second straight night, as Jenna Lee hit a three pointer on the game's first possession to stake South to a quick 3-0 lead. The Bruins wouldn't trail in the game until the final seconds of the fourth quarter. After Lee's quick start, Nicki Brodeur took over. The senior was on the receiving end of a nice dish from Cammi Greenheck for a hoop in traffic, then moments later sliced through the defense for a three point play. South tried to counter the bigger Patriot forwards by using their quickness, a matchup that favored Nicki Brodeur. Jenna Lee hit a midrange shot from up top, then Brodeur got into the lane again for a pair of freethrows. Lee then hit from downtown again, as the duo combined for 15 of South's 17 first quarter points. Meanwhile, the Bruins tried their best to hold down Patriot star Andrea LaFrance and Hatti Ternes. Although LaFrance got into the lane once, that was the only hoop South would allow to those two players in the opening quarter. After a great first quarter by the Bruins, they held a solid 17-8 lead after one. In the second, the Bruins contined to play their best basketball of the season. Nicki Brodeur again got into the lane, and Cammi Greenheck made a fantastic pass fake for an easy layup through the trees, while Ali Stensgard and Kirsten Pattison scored from the post area. South built up their biggest lead of the game at 25-12 before the Patrios showed some life. Steph Miller scored inside to cut the lead, then Andrea LaFrance went coast to coast right before the halftime buzzer to cut the Bruins lead to single digits again, as South took a 27-18 lead into halftime. In the second half though, things tightened up as the Patriots made two different rallies. Brittany Jossart hit a pair of freethrow, and that was countered by an easy basket for Kirsten Pattison, set up by a nice inside feed by Lindsay Sauvageau, who followed that up moments later with a baseline shot right before the shot clock buzzer. For the Patiots, Hatti Ternes nailed a three pointer, and Century kept getting to the freethrow line to keep the game close. Nicki Brodeur assisted on a nice drive and dish to Ali Stensgard, a three pointers by Brittany Jossart and freethrows forced a 35-35 game. Cammi Greenheck kept the lead for South on a nice driving layup through the lane, then had a steal that led to a basket by Nicki Brodeur, and the Bruins answered the first run of Century and took a 41-38 lead into the final period. A steal and layup by LaFrance cut the lead to 41-40, but then the Bruins went on an 8-0 run capped off by a hoop and a foul by Nicki Brodeur with just over 4 minutes to play, and continued to hold a nine point lead at 51-42 with 3 minutes to play, as it looked as though South would have a comfortable win. Century never gave in though, and went on a huge run of their own. A pair of offensive rebounds and a three pointer by Hatti Ternes cut the lead to 51-49 with just over a minute to play. Another hoop inside tied the game at 51-51, and a driving layup attempt by Andrea Lafrance led to a pair of freethrows with 33 seconds left in the game and gave the Patriots their first lead of the game at 53-51. However, just as the Patriots had taken the momentum, Nicki Brodeur took it right back as she drove the lane for a game saving shot in traffic as she scored the biggest hoop of her career with just a couple of seconds remaining in the game, forcing an overtime session. In the overtime session, the Patriots scored first on a basket by Jossart, but the Bruins quickly answered on a post up hoop by Kirsten Pattison. Century then went cold, and the Bruins took care of their defensive rebounds, and after South took a 57-55 lead on a pair of freethrows by Cammi Greenheck, the Patriots were forced to foul. Greenheck continued to be the primary ball handler, and consequently went 6-6 from the line to ice the game in the closing minutes. The Bruins put 4 players in double figures, led by Nicki Brodeur's 15 points. Jenna Lee and Cammi Greenheck each scored 12, and Kirsten Pattison had 10. The win improves South's record to 20-4, and puts them in the title game for the second time in three years.

See the complete boxscore here

Boxscore:
Fargo South: Sauvageau 1 0-2 2, Greenheck 2 8-8 12, Brodeur 6 3-4 15, Lee 5 0-0 12, Hageman 0 2-2 2, Stensgard 3 3-4 9, Pattison 5 0-0 10; Totals 22 16-20 62, Three point goals: Lee 2

Century: Jossart 3 2-2 9, Ternes 3 2-2 11, LaFrance 3 3-6 9, Miller 2 1-2 5, Fettig 6 6-8 18, Buck 1 2-4 4; Totals: 18 16-24 56, Three point goals: Ternes 3, Jossart

Fouled out: LaFrance; Total Fouls: South 19, BC 16; Rebounds: South 36(Brodeur 7), BC 27(LaFrance 5), Steals: South 6(Lee 2), BC 7, Turnovers: South 17, BC 13; Assists: South 13(Greenheck 5), BC 13(LaFrance 6)