Benton 'will be a different team'

DES MOINES -- Madison Weekly spoke to her teammates two days after her season met a premature end.

The message wasn't "win for me." Instead, it was "win without me."

Class 3A No. 1-ranked Benton will carry on Tuesday at the girls' state basketball tournament with its leader in a cast; Weekly broke her left wrist early in the Bobcats' 52-45 regional-final win over Keokuk last Tuesday.

The Bobcats (24-0) will face Ballard (18-6) at 8:30 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena.

"It's almost like we're starting over again," said Benton Coach Laurie Donald. "Whatever game film (opponents) had on us, they can throw it out. We're redefining roles; we'll be a different team."

A 5-foot-7 junior guard, Weekly averaged 18 points per game. But, as the Bobcats proved in the regional final, they can survive -- and compete -- without her.

Benton fell behind Keokuk, 15-5, after Weekly's injury, but regrouped and advanced to state for the second straight year.

"It took a couple minutes to get over the shock," Donald said. "I wanted to call a timeout, but my assistant said, 'Let them work through it.' And they did. We had a lot of senior moments in that game."

The Bobcats took Wednesday off, then reconvened for practice Thursday. And that's when Weekly spoke to the team.

"She was tough and brave about it," Donald said. "She said to go out and win it without her, just go out and do it."

Benton will play without its leader in scoring, steals and assists. But their lineup will be taller; Donald will insert 6-foot junior Beth Thompson in the starting lineup.

Kelsey Brecht is the leading scorer among active Bobcats, at 9.7 points per game.

War Eagle sweep

Half of the 1A semifinal field hails from the War Eagle Conference.

No. 9 LeMars Gehlen pulled the upset of the day Monday by thrashing No. 2 North Butler, 52-34, then No. 5 West Sioux outscored No. 4 Lynnville-Sully 20-4 in the third quarter on their way to a 54-43 victory.

"I think it's a strong conference," said West Sioux's Jade Lynn Vlotho, who led the Falcons back from an eight-point halftime deficit. "I hope we both keep winning.

"We were rooting for (Gehlen). For sure."

Cover girl

Morgan Vorba, a backup guard for Mason City, is on the cover of the tournament program.

Vorba is a junior that averages 3.2 points per game. She's shown in action at last year's tournament, going up for a layup in a Class 4A quarterfinal against Southeast Polk.