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Defending champion Notre Dame and Pius XI were ranked #1 and #2 respectively in the preseason by WisSports.net, and finished that way in the final WisSports.net Coaches Poll as well. It was only fitting then that their state semi-final matchup came right down to the wire.

Ultimately, Notre Dame was able to make a few more plays, and avoid mistakes, to claim a hard-fought 50-47 victory to advance to the championship.

Notre Dame took advantage of 12 first half turnovers by Pius to convert them into 18 points, and led 25-20 at the break. 

Pius tightened things up offensively, and made a push late in the third quarter and into the start of the fourth, taking a 43-41 lead with 5:33 remaining in the game. The turnover bug came back to bite them however, as they committed three in about a minute, and found themselves down by six points with 42 seconds left.

While things looked bleak for the Lady Popes, a pair of missed free throws in the last 20 seconds allowed Pius an opportunity at the end. With 8.1 seconds remaining as Notre Dame clung to a 50-47 lead, Allie LeClaire misfired on the front end of a one-and-one, and Pius was able to grab the rebound. it took a couple seconds to outlet, and Mandy Szymborski lost track of time a bit and launched up a 40-foot heave with more than three seconds left, which fell well short.

Sophomore Olivia Campbell led Notre Dame with 14 points, while older sister Eliza and All-State pick LeClaire each added a dozen. No Pius players reached double-figures, as Ashley Pitrof led the way with 9.

It looked like it could be a runaway victory for the DeForest girls basketball team, as they led La Crosse Central by 13 points just over three minutes into the second period. As it turned out, it was the Norskies who would have to rally late to claim a 43-42 victory to advance to the Division 2 title game against defending champ Notre Dame.

DeForest found themselves ahead 27-14 at one point in the first half, but Central went on an 11-2 run to close it out and pull within 29-25 at halftime. The third quarter didn't go much better for the Norskies, let Central go ahead 32-31 midway through the period and tie it at 37 heading into the fourth.

A Katlyn Roesch three-pointer and a pair of Brittany Baldwin free throws put the Red Raiders from La Crosse up 42-38 at the 6:25 mark of the final period, but it would be the final points of the game for Central.

Relying heavily on junior sensation Kayla Goth on both offense and defense, DeForest tied it up on a pair of Goth free throws with 1:31 remaining. Central missed a shot inside on the ensuing possession, allowing DeForest to run off more than a minute on the clock and hold for the last shot.

Goth got loose on the right baseline, drawing several Red Raider defenders, which allowed sophomore Jordanna Midthun to get open in the middle of the lane. Goth found her and Midthun drew a foul on Brittany Baldwin with just two seconds left.

After a Central timeout to try to ice her, Midthun missed the first charity throw. Another Red Raider timeout followed, but Midthun rolled in the second free throw for a 43-42 DeForest advantage.

Baldwin's three-quarter court heave at the buzzer came up well short, and the Norskies held on for the victory.

Goth posted an incredibly impressive statline, with 20 points, 8 rebounds, 7 blocks, 4 steals, and 3 assists. Several of her blocks came in key situations late in the game, including a rejection of the Central layup attempt with just over a minute to go.

Jenna Kramer came in averaging just 4.8 points per game, but hit four three-pointers on her way to a team-high 16 points for Central, who also got 12 from Baldwin.

Note:  Attendance for the D2 afternoon session was 5,097.