No. 8 Lions fall at No.6 SE Polk
RUNNELLS - Linn-Mar took the fight to a postseason-savvy Southeast Polk squad on its home court Tuesday night in a Class 5A regional final, but the Rams hung around and later used a 9-0 fourth-quarter run to pull away for a 56-45 victory.
It wasn’t the storybook ending the Lions were looking for, but Coach Jaime Printy Brandt’s first team drew perhaps the most difficult matchup of any of the 5A regional finalists.
Linn-Mar was tasked with a charter bus trip to Runnels on a weeknight to face a Southeast Polk team that’s played in the past two state championship games and won the title in 2013.
“They just hit some big shots,” said Brandt, who led the eighth-ranked Lions to a 16-8 record in her first season as head coach. “We lost a shooter a couple times, but credit to them, they came out and played well and shot the ball very well. That’s what they do.”
The Lions set the early tone by scoring 10 of the game’s first 12 points over the first 5:57 of the first quarter behind a pair of buckets from Olivia Montaque. Following the quick start, Linn-Mar grabbed a 16-8 lead after the opening period.
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