Chris Carporale, sports@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader Photo by Chris Caporale Bowler High School sophomore Reanne Kietlinski drives on a fastbreak opportunity in the first half of the Panthers’ 55-35 loss to Newman Catholic. Kietlinski finished with a game-high 18 points.
An 11-minute first-half scoreless streak doomed the Bowler High School girls basketball team’s chances of winning Friday’s WIAA Division 5 regional semifinal against Newman Catholic in Bowler.
Trailing by 2 points with 15:52 remaining in the first half, the Cardinals went on a 14-0 run over the next 11 minutes for a commanding lead in what turned into a 55-35 victory for Newman Catholic.
“They were just a little intimidated,” Bowler head coach AJ Miller said of his team’s start. “We threw the ball up for grabs a few times. We spotted them 12 or 14 points early, and that never works out well.”
With junior Mariah Whalen, a University of Wisconsin volleyball recruit, at the top of Newman’s 1-3-1 zone, the Bowler guards had difficulty finding open passing lanes.
“It’s something I can’t turn down, especially against Division 5 teams that don’t have the size and athleticism that we do,” Newman head coach John Vanden Elzen said of his team’s lanky zone.
Bowler sophomore Reanne Kietlinski, who averaged nearly 23 points per game, made a free throw with 4:36 remaining in the half to end the drought, but Newman’s Lauren Fech responded by hitting a 3.
By the halftime buzzer, Newman held a 28-7 lead.
The Cardinals’ Mikayla McGucken scored the first 4 points of the second half before Kietlinski rallied the Panthers.
Kietlinski scored nine consecutive points, but Signe Fronek responded with 8 straight points and Newman led by 24 points with 7:31 remaining.
“I think they were getting frustrated by the length out there,” Vanden Elzen said. “They were trying to force things later in the clock, so it worked out for us to our advantage.”
The frustration led to turnovers and easy fastbreak points for the visiting Cardinals (10-14, 4-8 Marawood-South).
Once the Panthers (19-5, 15-3 Central Wisconsin Conference-10) settled in, they hung around, outscoring Newman Catholic by a point in the second half.
“I think the biggest thing they learned is just to put their foot down. Not worry about what a team’s status is or what conference they are from,” Miller said. “We’ve just got to go out and play.”
Kenedie Malone, the only senior starter, scored 6 of the Panthers’ final 8 points and finished with 10 points. Kietlinski had 18 points.
The Panthers set a school record with 19 wins on the season.
“Next year, I think we are going to be a much better team than we were this year,” Miller said. “We’re just going to have to show up and play every night.”
Newman Catholic (55)
Fech 5 0-0 13, Fronek 4 3-5 13, Jankowski 2 2-2 7, Fox 2 4-4 8, McGucken 2 2-4 6, Kimball 1 2-2 4, Whalen 1 2-4 4.
Bowler (35)
J. Wolf 0 1-3 1, Matsche 1 0-0 2, Kietlinski 5 6-9 18, Breitrick 0 2-2 2, Peters 0 2-2 2, Malone 4 2-3 10.
Newman Catholic 28 27 — 55
Bowler 7 28 — 35