Sioux City Heelan ends Cedar Rapids Xavier’s 4A title reign, and does it emphatically

DES MOINES — From a Sioux City Heelan perspective, this wasn’t just another game.

And it sure wasn’t just another opponent.

“After last year, we wanted this really bad,” Heelan’s Jada Newberg said. “We wanted them really bad.”

The Crusaders wanted the Xavier Saints. And, yeah, they got ‘em.

A back-and-forth affair for 12 minutes, third-ranked Heelan turned Tuesday’s Class 4A quarterfinal into something completely different. The Crusaders squashed No. 6 Cedar Rapids Xavier with a stunning 28-0 run, and marched to a 63-37 triumph at the girls’ state basketball tournament at Wells Fargo Arena.

“We let them dictate what we were doing,” Xavier’s Kyla Mason said. “We had too many turnovers. They got too many possessions, and they were able to convert on them.”

Heelan (23-2) will face No. 2 North Polk in a 4A semifinal at 6:45 p.m. Thursday. North Polk (22-2) was similarly dominant Tuesday in a 61-30 win over Clear Creek Amana.

Last year, Xavier defeated Heelan, 52-40, for the 4A championship, and the Saints (16-8) picked up a 62-54 win over the Crusaders at Rivalry Saturday on Thanksgiving weekend.

But the Crusaders took this one. You could say they stole it.

Heelan accumulated 21 steals as part of Xavier’s 25 turnovers.

“We couldn’t get into a rhythm,” Xavier’s Libby Fandel said. “Kyla and I got into foul trouble, and that doesn’t help.”

The teams combined for seven lead changes early, and Xavier held a 20-19 lead when Emma Arnold scored in transition at the 4:24 mark of the second quarter.

The next 8 minutes, 15 seconds were a nightmare: Xavier was 0-for-8 from the field with eight turnovers.

Heelan, meanwhile, made 11 of 14 shots in the same stretch, and when that stretch was over, the Crusaders led 47-20.

“We had some nerves, but there were a lot of things we thought we could control,” Xavier Coach Tom Lilly said. “We came in at halftime with the realization that Heelan was dictating everything.”

The Crusaders’ largest lead was 53-22. The Saints worked within 55-37 with 5:45 left, then didn’t score again.

A sophomore, Fandel led the Saints with 16 points. Mason added 12 in her final game; she’ll play at Central College next year.

Lauryn Peck paced Heelan with 17 points. Brooklyn Stanley posted 16 points and four steals; Newberg contributed 14 points and six thefts.

Sioux City Heelan 63, Cedar Rapids Xavier 37

Class 4A State Quarterfinal, at Des Moines

CEDAR RAPIDS XAVIER (37): Emma Arnold 1-2 0-0 2, Libby Fandel 7-16 1-2 16, Sydney Huber 3-7 0-0 7, Kyla Mason 6-11 0-0 12, Lexi Turner 0-2 0-0 0, Madden Wilson 0-2 0-0 0, Jaselle Lang 0-0 0-0 0, Ava Turner 0-0 0-0 0, Carley Jonker 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor Rexroth 0-0 0-0 0, Katie Pilcher 0-0 0-0 0, Reese Komenda 0-1 0-0 0, Brooklyn Emerson 0-0 0-0 0, Maizey Fisher 0-0 0-0 0, Aaliyah Beier 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 17-43 1-2 37.

SIOUX CITY HEELAN (63): Lauryn Peck 6-7 1-2 17, Brooklyn Stanley 5-12 6-8 16, Kenley Meis 4-10 0-0 8, Jada Newberg 5-8 0-0 14, Abby Lee 2-7 0-0 4, Maddie Demke 1-7 0-0 3, Addison Kuehl 0-0 0-0 0, Kiki Demke 0-1 0-0 0, Sophia Kuntz 0-0 0-0 0, Lauren LaFleur 0-1 0-0 0, Julie Verzal 0-0 0-0 0, Katelyn Porath 0-0 0-0 0, Maddie LaFleur 0-0 1-2 1, Karley Koob 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-53 8-12 63.

C.R. Xavier 11 9 8 9 — 37

Sioux City Heelan 13 22 18 10 — 63

3-point goals: Xavier 2-11 (Arnold 0-1, Fandel 1-4, Huber 1-4, L. Turner 0-1, Beier 0-1), Heelan 9-18 (Peck 4-5, Stanley 0-1, Meis 0-1, Newberg 4-6, M. Demke 1-4, K. Demke 0-1). Team fouls: Xavier 13, Heelan 5. Fouled out: none. Rebounds: Xavier 28 (five with 4), Heelan 30 (Meis 7). Assists: Xavier 6 (Fandel 2), Heelan 13 (Stanley 4). Steals: Xavier 5 (five with 1), Heelan 21 (Newberg 6). Turnovers: Xavier 25, Heelan 13.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com