Switch on 'D' ignites Eagles

DES MOINES -- Lawton-Bronson changed its defense.And with it, the complexion of the game.The second-ranked Eagles gave No. 14 Maquoketa Valley all sorts of fits with an extended zone and sidelined the Wildcats, 59-44, in a Class 2A semifinal at the girls' state basketball tournament Thursday afternoon at Wells Fargo Arena."We started with a man-to-man defense, and that wasn't working," said Lawton-Bronson's Josie Kopal. "We went to a pressure zone. We were all over the court with our hands up."Lawton-Bronson (26-1) collected 22 steals, forced 28 turnovers and advanced to the championship game.The Eagles will face No. 1 Western Christian (25-1) for the title at 6 p.m. Friday. Western, the defending champion, ousted Aplington-Parkersburg, 64-40, Thursday.Maquoketa Valley retired at 20-6. The Wildcats played a terrific game in the quarterfinals against IKM-Manning. And they started well again Thursday.The Wildcats found gaps in the Eagles' man defense, soaring to a 19-15 lead. Then Kopal made a plea to Lawton-Bronson coach Trish Martin: Let's switch things up.Martin complied, and everything changed."Shots weren't falling, and we started to panic," said Maquoketa Valley's Nicole Kudrna. "We're not used to getting pressed that much. They extended it, and we weren't used to that."Lawton-Bronson took the lead midway through the second quarter, and didn't trail again.The Eagles led 26-25 at halftime, then built an 11-point lead late in the third quarter.Maquoketa Valley made one more push, getting within 44-40 on Heidi Hoeger's free throw with 4:29 remaining. But it ended there.With 3:53 left, Renee Huber missed a pair of foul shots. Taylor King got behind the Wildcats defense for a layup and the lead was back to six.Lawton-Bronson concluded the game with a 15-4 run."We missed too many shots," said Wildcats coach Scot Moenck. "We had a hard time getting the ball to the middle (of the court), and we didn't finish shots."King led all scorers with 21 points, and Kopal posted 20 points and 17 rebounds.Hoeger led the Wildcats with 12 points. Brooke Wooten scored 11, and Kudrna grabbed 11 rebounds.

LAWTON-BRONSON 59, MAQUOKETA VALLEY 44

At Des Moines

LAWTON-BRONSON (59): Ashley Williams 2-8 0-0 4, Josie Kopal 7-18 5-10 20, Jessica Jager 1-2 2-4 5, Taylor King 7-16 5-7 21, Ali Verzani 1-9 4-6 6, Brooke Hunwardsen 0-0 0-0 0, Lexi Binder 1-4 0-0 2, Makenzi Miene 0-0 0-0 0, Anna Dreessen 1-7 0-0 2, Jacey Ross 0-0 0-0 0, Jenna Drew 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 20-64 16-29 59.

MAQUOKETA VALLEY (44): Renee Huber 1-8 6-10 8, Heidi Hoeger 4-13 4-7 12, Anna Jay 0-3 0-0 0, Nicole Kudrna 3-7 0-0 6, Brooke Wooten 5-9 1-1 11, Bailey Whittenbaugh 1-1 0-0 3, Ashley Holtz 0-0 1-3 1, Heather Sabers 1-2 0-0 3, Tiffany Hoeger 0-1 0-0 0, Annie Fjelstul 0-0 0-0 0, Kate Huber 0-0 0-0 0, Abby Jay 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-44 12-21 44.

Halftime: Lawton-Bronson 26, Maquoketa Valley 25.

3-point goals: Lawton-Bronson 3-13 (Williams 0-1, Kopal 1-2, King 2-8, Dreessen 0-2), Maquoketa Valley 2-7 (R.Huber 0-1, H.Hoeger 0-2, Wooten 0-1, Whittenbaugh 1-1, Sabers 1-1, T.Hoeger 0-1).

Team fouls: Lawton-Bronson 23, Maquoketa Valley 21.

Fouled out: Jager.

Rebounds: Lawton-Bronson 39 (Kopal 17), Maquoketa Valley 44 (Kudrna 11).

Assists: Lawton-Bronson 11 (Williams, Verzani 3), Maquoketa Valley 6 (Holtz 2).

Steals: Lawton-Bronson 22 (King 5), Maquoketa Valley 4 (Holtz 2).

Turnovers: Lawton-Bronson 12, Maquoketa Valley 28.