Strait and mates push Kennedy past Linn-Mar

(View Wednesday's 3A & 4A regional quarterfinal scores ... HERE)

CEDAR RAPIDS -- Courtney Strait is a scorer. And a soother.

"We've got a lot of young kids, and sometimes you have to calm them down," she said. "A lot of times, girls get nervous when the pressure is on, so I've got to be solid and be a coach on the floor."

Strait scored 23 points, and she received enough help to push 12th-ranked Cedar Rapids Kennedy past Linn-Mar, 63-50, in a Class 4A girls' basketball regional quarterfinal Wednesday night at Kennedy High School.

"Courtney's our team captain, and she plays a huge part in keeping us up," said Paige Hendrickson, who chipped in 11 points as the Cougars improved to 13-9.

Kennedy will play at No. 5 Cedar Rapids Xavier in a semifinal at 7 p.m. Saturday. The Saints (16-5) had a first-round bye.

The Cougars weren't out of the woods until about 2 minutes remained. Linn-Mar (10-12) trailed just 45-41 before Strait hit a key 3-pointer with about 4 minutes to go. It was the Cougars' third shot of the possession.

Linn-Mar didn't get closer than five points again, and Kennedy salted it away at the free throw line, hitting 9 of 12 foul shots down the stretch.

"We knew (the Lions) were going to come in here really fired up," Kennedy Coach Dennis Roloff said. "They've had a lot of success at Linn-Mar, and they were going to take a lot of pride in this game."

The Lions scored the first seven points, then hung around for the majority of the contest.

"I'm very proud of the way we competed," Lions Coach Mike Brandt said. "We lost track of Strait a little in the first half. She's such a tough matchup, and we had to key on her. So you have to gamble and hope the other kids aren't on."

Kennedy answered the early Linn-Mar wave with a 14-2 run, and led 30-23 at halftime.

The Lions got within two points late in the third quarter and four points midway through the fourth. Each time, the Cougars countered.

As is usually the case, Strait was at the line frequently and accurately. She made 7 of 8 free throws.

Jordan Holmes added 10 points for the winners.

Courtney Major led Linn-Mar with 13 points; Sara Strauel tallied 12. The Lions were eliminated short of the state tournament for the first time since 2007 and absorbed their first losing season since 2004-05. All five of Linn-Mar's starters Wednesday were juniors.

"We've got some good parts," Brandt said. "Now, the challenge is, what do we do between now and next season to get better?"

Meanwhile, the Cougars' focus turns to Xavier, which handed them an overtime loss in December.

"We've got to defend and we've got to rebound," Strait said. "We know what we've got to do."

C.R. KENNEDY 63, LINN-MAR 50

At C.R. Kennedy

LINN-MAR (50): Hannah Yearling 1-2 2-2 4, Mykaela Brandt 3-8 2-7 9, Sara Strauel 4-9 4-5 12, Jenna Harms 2-4 0-0 4, Courtney Major 4-6 3-4 13, Kristen Eiles 0-0 0-0 0, Lannie Nietert 1-2 4-6 6, Rachel Thrune 0-1 0-0 0, Carly Ryder 1-1 0-0 2, Kelsey Duggan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-33 15-24 50.

C.R. KENNEDY (63): Madison Meier 1-4 0-0 3, Courtney Strait 6-12 7-8 23, Kaylese Johnson 2-5 1-2 5, Paige Hendrickson 2-5 7-9 11, Stephanie Botkin 1-6 1-2 3, Jordan Holmes 3-6 2-4 10, Sarah Zinser 0-1 0-0 0, Mariah Simmons 1-4 0-0 2, Capria Davis 1-1 0-0 2, Taylor Wagner 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 19-46 18-25 63.

Halftime: Kennedy 30, Linn-Mar 23. 3-point goals: Linn-Mar 3-9 (Yearling 0-1, Brandt 1-4, Strauel 0-1, Major 2-3), Kennedy 7-23 (Meier 1-4, Strait 4-6, Johnson 0-2, Hendrickson 0-3, Botkin 0-1, Holmes 2-4, Simmons 0-3). Team fouls: Linn-Mar 20, Kennedy 19.  Fouled out: none. Rebounds: Linn-Mar 26 (Strauel 7), Kennedy 28 (Strait 9). Assists: Linn-Mar 9 (Brandt, Harms, Major 2), Kennedy 14 (Meier, Hendrickson 3). Steals: Linn-Mar 4 (Harms 2), Kennedy 7 (Strait, Simmons 2). Turnovers: Linn-Mar 15, Kennedy 8.

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