Prairie tops City 75-59, reclaims sole possession of MVC Valley Division lead

CEDAR RAPIDS — Judgment Week has arrived in the MVC Valley Division girls’ basketball race.

Monday night, Emily Larsen and Cedar Rapids Prairie placed a piece of evidence on the table that was both compelling and convincing.

Larsen scored a career-high 28 points, and Class 5A fifth-ranked Prairie earned a critical 75-59 league victory at home over No. 9 City High.

It came with a minor casualty. Coach Bruce Dall chipped a front tooth, biting a fingernail.

“It happened when (City High) was making that run in the third quarter,” he said.

The dental damage was unnecessary, Larsen said.

“He shouldn’t have been that nervous,” she said. “We had it.”

They sure did, and the reward for the Hawks (15-2 overall, 9-1 MVC) is sole possession of first place in the MVC Valley Division, one game ahead of City High (12-5, 8-2) and Dubuque Wahlert (14-2, 8-2) with four to play.

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The week’s worth of work is far from over for either team.

Prairie hosts Wahlert on Tuesday, then City High faces a difficult task Friday at Iowa City Liberty.

“We’ll go to sleep tonight and get a good breakfast in the morning,” Prairie’s Asia Beale said. “We know what we need to do.”

The Hawks took control of the game with a 10-0 run to conclude the first quarter. That put them in front, 20-12, and they led 39-26 at halftime.

City roared within 41-37 early in the third quarter, causing the Hawks some stress and costing Dall a piece of a central incisor.

But, as Larsen said, the Hawks had this.

“We had a dirty taste in our mouths (after a loss at Cedar Falls on Tuesday), and we had some tough practices since then,” she said.

“It definitely humbled us,” Beale added. “Obviously, we’re good. But I think we thought we were too good.”

Prairie answered City’s 11-2 run with a 14-4 spree of its own, then led by as many as 21 points midway through the fourth quarter.

“It was a good gut check for us,” Dall said. “The (divisional) championship is in their face, and they know it.”

Larsen drained five 3-pointers, and had plenty of assistance.

KeaOnna Worley added 17 points and five assists. Beale was good for 15 points. Brynlie Hadenfeldt tacked on 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Kaitlin Loria paced City with 16 points. Emmy McComas tallied 15 points and 11 rebounds, and August Palmer scored 12 points.

Cedar Rapids Prairie 75, Iowa City High 59

At C.R. Prairie

IOWA CITY HIGH (59): August Palmer 5-13 0-2 12, Hattie Galloway 1-5 2-2 4, Kaitlin Loria 5-9 6-7 16, Emmy McComas 6-13 3-3 15, Tessa Driscoll 2-7 4-6 9, Maybes Miller 1-2 0-0 3, Eve Vitense 0-3 0-0 0, Maeve Obermueller 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-52 15-20 59.

C.R. PRAIRIE (75): KeaOnna Worley 5-12 7-8 17, Brynlie Hadenfeldt 4-7 2-3 11, Emily Larsen 9-16 5-6 28, Presley Estrada 2-6 0-0 4, Asia Beale 7-11 1-4 15. Totals 27-52 15-21 75.

Iowa City High 12 14 15 18 — 59

C.R. Prairie 20 19 16 20 — 75

3-point goals: City 4-15 (Palmer 2-3, Galloway 0-2, Loria 0-1, McComas 0-1, Driscoll 1-4, Miller 1-2, Vitense 0-2), Prairie 6-18 (Worley 0-3, Hadenfeldt 1-3, Larsen 5-11, Beale 0-1). Team fouls: City 17, Prairie 15. Fouled out: Beale. Rebounds: City 32 (McComas 11), Prairie 31 (Hadenfeldt 10). Assists: City 7 (Palmer, Vitense 2), Prairie 13 (Worley 5). Steals: City 10 (four with 2), Prairie 10 (Larsen 4). Turnovers: City 16, Prairie 13.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com