Valley tested Wahlert beats Solon

CEDAR RAPIDS - A ton of chants emanated from an especially vociferous Dubuque Wahlert student section last night at the U.S. Cellular Center. This one wasn't exactly creative but was especially loud.

“Eagle power!” the kids shouted. “Eagle power!”

More like “Valley power!” As in the mighty Mississippi Valley Conference.

“It certainly helps us,” Dubuque Wahlert Coach Tom English said after his Golden Eagles beat Solon, 62-47, in a Class 3A substate final. “It is the toughest conference in the state. Night in and night out, we're going against teams like Linn-Mar and Kennedy and Cedar Falls. We're pretty battle tested. Sometimes we get a little beat up from it. But in the long run, it pays off.”

Pays off for a state tournament berth, in this case. Wahlert (18-6) came in with an inferior record but played a superior schedule to their Wamac Conference opponent.

It looked like it, as the Golden Eagles led start to finish and by as many as 17 points in the second half. Solon (21-3) didn't go away quietly, getting as close as seven in the fourth quarter, but Wahlert was the better team.

Just to drive that Valley point home more, there's a chance five conference teams will make it to state, including half the field in Class 4A. It's just that good this season.

“That's definitely a huge advantage for us,” said Wahlert guard Riley McCarron. “We play tough teams every night.”

“Certainly on a given night, we could have beaten them,” said Solon Coach Brad Randall, whose team was 2A runner-up last season. “They're a top-five team, a top-10 team. We're a top 12 to 15, depending on the night.”

A big key was how Wahlert handled Solon's unique 1-3-1 trapping zone defense. McCarron penetrated it and dished for good looks, while guard mate Aaron Schueller shot over it, particularly in a first-half clinic that included five treys and 21 points.

Solon got much more of a defensive handle on Schueller in the second half, holding him to four points. Zach Velez-Westphal was the only double-figure scorer for Solon with 13. The Spartans shot just 33 percent from the field.

Here's the game boxscore:

AT U.S. CELLULAR CENTER

DUBUQUE WAHLERT (62): Jake May 4-7 0-0 8, Ryan Ernst 0-4 2-4 2, Dan Sisler 4-7 2-3 10, Aaron Schueller 8-14 4-4 25, Riley McCarron 2-8 6-6 12, Jon Moore 0-2 5-6 5, Mike Francis 0-0 0-0 0, Riley DeSanti 0-0 0-0 0, Nathan Burks 0-0 0-0 0, Sam Koenig 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-42 19-23 62.

SOLON (49): Turner Wentzien 2-9 3-4 9, Zach Velez-Westphal 5-15 3-5 13, Joe Weeks 4-6 0-2 8, Nick Day 1-3 4-4 6, Jesse Carson 3-9 2-3 8, Lucas Bruene 1-3 0-0 3, Andrew Villagrana 0-0 0-0 0, Jake Morris 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 16-48 15-18 49.

Halftime - Dubuque Wahlert 31, Solon 19. 3-point goals - Wahlert 7-15 (May 0-1, Schueller 5-8, McCarron 2-4, Moore 0-2), Solon 5-16 (Wentzien 2-5, Velez-Westphal 0-3, Day 0-2, Carson 2-4, Bruene 0-2). Rebounds- Wahlert 37 (Sisler 9), Solon 25 (Velez-Westphal, Wentzien 7). Total fouls - Wahlert 22, Solon 21. Fouled out - May, McCarron, Velez-Westphal. Turnovers - Wahlert 14, Solon 11.

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