Monticello's 'blanket' smothers Wildcats' unbeaten season

(View Friday's 1A & 2A regional semifinal scores ... HERE)

DELHI -- When the security blanket came back, so did Monticello's mojo.

Brooke Stahlberg spearheaded a second-half push, and the Panthers downed ninth-ranked Maquoketa Valley, 59-51, in a Class 2A girls' basketball regional semifinal before a packed house of 1,000 Friday night at Maquoketa Valley High School.

The Panthers improved to 21-3, including 10-0 since Stahlberg came back from a wrist injury. They'll play No. 15 Pella Christian (21-3) in a regional final Monday at Marengo, with a state-tournament bid on the line.

"Brooke is just such a presence on the floor," said Monticello Coach Donnie Kremer. "Without her, we were like Linus (of the Peanuts comic strip) without his blanket.

"With that blanket back, everybody plays at a different level."

Monticello rallied from a seven-point third-quarter deficit and emerged from an extremely physical game that featured 51 fouls and 66 free throws (35 in the fourth quarter).

Five players fouled out.

Stahlberg scored 12 of her game-high 20 points as the Panthers turned a 27-21 halftime deficit into a 41-39 lead. She hit consecutive 3-pointers to bring cut a 32-25 disadvantage to 32-31.

"In the locker room at halftime, everybody just had so much confidence, so much drive to come back out and beat them," Stahlberg said.

Maquoketa Valley (23-1) took its final lead, 48-47, on Danyele Strum's free throw with 3:52 to go. But the Panthers went on a 12-1 run, scoring 10 of those points at the line.

The final quarter resembled a chess match, with pieces from both sides being taken off the board due to fouls.

And when Courtney Iben made two free throws with 36 seconds left to make it 57-49, the Panthers could declare checkmate.

Jordan Aitchison added 13 points for the winners. Taylor Aitchison tallied 10.

Strum paced Maquoketa Valley with 13 points, and Heidi Hoeger scored 11. But the Wildcats committed 23 turnovers (including numerous charging calls), and that was too much to overcome.

"We battled. We played hard," said Maquoketa Valley Coach Scot Moenck. "But we had some big turnovers at crucial times.

"We had a special season, and nobody can take that away."

Stahlberg was injured in early December, and the Panthers lost three games in her absence. She came back Jan. 17, and Monticello is perfect since.

"It was hard to sit (during that stretch)," said Stahlberg, who said she will wait until after the season to decide on her post-high school plans. "I have a lot of heart and passion, and I want to play."

She'll play again, one more game. Maybe more.

MONTICELLO 59, MAQUOKETA VALLEY 51

At Delhi

MONTICELLO (59): Brooke Stahlberg 6-10 4-9 20, Jordan Aitchison 3-11 5-7 13, Taylor Aitchison 2-10 5-5 10, Lael Lubben 2-2 1-2 5, Becca Dirks 1-3 0-0 2, Paxtyn Keleher 1-5 2-2 4, Kelsey Iben 0-1 1-4 1, Allison Kraus 0-0 0-0 0, Hannah Thompson 0-1 0-2 0, Courtney Iben 0-0 4-4 4. Totals 15-43 22-35 59.

MAQUOKETA VALLEY (51): Emily Peters 1-1 1-2 4, Renee Huber 3-6 0-1 7, Heidi Hoeger 2-7 7-9 11, Danyele Strum 3-6 7-10 13, Nicole Kudrna 0-0 4-6 4, Brooke Wooten 3-3 0-0 6, Anna Jay 1-2 0-1 2, Katie Boeding 1-2 2-2 4, Kate Jay 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 14-28 21-31 51.

Halftime: Maquoketa Valley 27, Monticello 21. 3-point goals: Monticello 7-22 (Stahlberg 4-7, J.Aitchison 2-5, T.Aitchison 1-8, Keleher 0-1, K.Iben 0-1), Maquoketa Valley 2-7 (Peters 1-1, Huber 1-3, Hoeger 0-1, Strum 0-1, K.Jay 0-1). Team fouls: Monticello 25, Maquoketa Valley 26. Fouled out: Dirks, Keleher, Peters, Huber, Hoeger. Techincal foul: Maquoketa Valley bench. Rebounds: Monticello 26 (Dirks, Keleher 6), Maquoketa Valley 30 (Hoeger, Strum, Kudrna 5). Assists: Monticello 8 (T.Aitchison 5), Maquoketa Valley 5 (Peters, Huber 2). Steals: Monticello 13 (Dirks 4), Maquoketa Valley 5 (Hoeger, Wooten 2). Turnovers: Monticello 10, Maquoketa Valley 23.

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