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Langdon wins District 8 girls crown

By Staff | Feb 18, 2010

Langdon entered the the District 8 Tournament as the top seed, but the Cardinals were certainly not the clear-cut favorite.

However, they sure played like they were.

After receiving a first round bye, Langdon rolled over No. 4 Starkweather-Munich in the semifinals and then defeated No. 3 Rolla-Rock Lake 48-39 in the championship on Feb. 15 in Cando.

It was Langdon’s first tournament title since 2005.

The Cardinals along with No. 2 Minnewaukan-Leeds and No. 3 Rolla-Rock Lake all finished 5-1 in the district regular seasons and any of them were capable of winning the tournament title.

However, Langdon played the best of those teams and will look to carry that momentum into this week’s Region 4 Tournament in Devils Lake as the No. 1 seed from the district.

The Bulldogs advanced to the championship with a 59-31 win over No. 6 Rolette-Wolford in the opening round and then rallied to top No. 2 Minnewaukan-Leeds 43-36 in the semifinals. Rolla-Rock Lake will be the district’s No. 2 seed at this week’s regional.

M-Leeds, S-Munich advance

It was not the game No. 2 Minnewaukan-Leeds hoped to playing in after a disappointing loss in the semifinals.

However, the Lions regrouped and held off a pesky North Star (Cando) team on its home floor to win 49-47 in a region-qualifying game on Feb. 15.

The Lions enjoyed a 19-point lead at halftime, but the Bearcats made a game of it, and nearly pulled out the upset.

M-L’s Brittany Omen sank two free throws in the final seconds to break a 47-47 tie. North Star had one more possession, but couldn’t hit the shot.

The Lions looked sharp in the first half, moving the ball well and generating many good shots.

“For whatever reason we tightened up in the second half after they made a few early shots,’ said M-L coach Travis Risovi, who earned his second District 8 coach of the year award.

Fortunately, the squad found a way to hang on and advance. Allison Manley and Dorothia Santos each scored 16 points for the Lions (12-10). Both were named to the all-district team.

The Lions defeated No. 7 St. John in the opening round before falling to No. 3 Rolla-Rock Lake 43-36 in the semifinals. A game in which M-L led in the fourth quarter. “The first and fourth quarters we just didn’t play well,’ coach Risovi said. “That’s been a struggle for us. Play really well for stretches and then not so well at other times.”

No. 4 Starkweather-Munich defeated No. 7 St. John in another region-qualifying game. The Magic Storm used a 12-3 second quarter to build a comfortable lead en route to a 52-39 win.

S-M defeated No. 5 North Star in the opening round before losing to Langdon in the semifinals.

The Woodchucks, which did not win a game against a District 8 team all season, knocked off No. 6 Rolette-Wolford in a loser-out game to play for a berth into the Region 4 Tournament.

R-W season ends

It was not the District 8 Tournament outcome Rolette-Wolford had envisioned. The No. 6 Comets lost both of their tournament games to end their season at 5-16.

R-W lost to Rolla-Rock Lake 59-31 in the first round. The Bulldogs jumped out to a 19-2 first quarter and R-W just couldn’t climb back into the game. Macy Martinson and Allison Slaubaugh each scored eight points for R-W. Slaubaugh would be named to the all-district team.

The Comets then dropped a 37-34 decision to No. 7 St. John in loser-out play. The win by the Woodchucks avenged two earlier losses to R-W.

Again, it was a sluggish start that hurt the Comets. St. John led 13-5 after one quarter. Macy Martinson had a team-high eight points for the Comets.