After Friday night, the girls basketball teams from Montezuma and North Mahaska won’t need to prepare for each other any more.
This time, it’s the tournament. One will go on. One will be gone.
This will be the third time this season these two conference rivals have met.
The Bravettes won the first two games, 57-36 in the season opener and 55-40 on Jan. 19.
That second one was pretty competitive in a lot of statistical categories. But a 24-7 second quarter by the Bravettes gave them a 37-21 halftime lead, after which Montezuma’s defense held serve.
Tip-off in Friday’s regional semifinal game is at 7 p.m. in Montezuma as the 15-3 Warhawks collide with the 20-1 Bravettes.
The winner will play either Baxter or Collins-Maxwell at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 24, at a location to be announced. That one will be for the Class 1A regional championship and a trip to state.
The Warhawks have managed to play their usual tough defense despite not having great depth. There are nine players on the roster.
North Mahaska has outscored its opponents by an average of 57 to 36.
For the Bravettes, those numbers are 66 and 30, right near the top of Class 1A on both sides of the ball.
Juniors play the key roles for Coach L.E. Moore’s Warhawks.
Layla Hargis, 6-0, is the leading scorer at 18.8 points per game, and the top rebounder at 12.9 per contest. She’s a .522 shooter from the field.
Addie Schilling, 5-11, scores 13.6 per contest, grabs 6.3 rebounds and dishes 5.9 assists.
Kaitlyn VanDonselaar, 5-1, hit a huge trey late in the team’s quarterfinals win over Lynnville-Sully.
Breanna Fogle, 5-9, grabs 7.3 rebounds per contest.
For the Bravettes, senior guard Elise Rabenold, 5-5, scores 17.0 per game and shoots .477 from the field which includes .426 on three-pointers. She averages 5.8 assists, and became the school’s career leader in that category in this week’s win over Iowa Valley. She also grabs three rebounds per outing.
Sophomore guard Mia Boulton, 5-3, averages 11.1 per game, along with 2.2 rebounds.
Senior post forward Dylan Holland, 5-10, scores 10.8 points and pulls down 9.4 rebounds per game. Her 18 boards against Iowa Valley was a school record for Montezuma.
Shanae Wetering is a 5-11 junior forward who has been a major difference-maker in the second half of the season. She is scoring 11.9 per game, on .548 shooting, and she gets 4.6 rebounds.
Guard Madison Johannes, 5-3, averages 1.6 assists.
The Bravettes have four double figures scorers, each of which is capable of going off for team leadership in a given game. The Bravettes have a deep rotation and like to pressure defensively.
Montezuma lost its season opener, to Pella Christian, but has reeled off 20 in a row since.