State Girls Basketball Championships

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) - The McDonell Central Catholic Macks are Division 5 Girls Basketball State Champions for the first time. After a blowout win over Albany in the semifinals, McDonell weathered a tough early test from Blair-Taylor to win 61-46.

For much of the team, this marked the second golden ball of the year after the McDonell volleyball team also claimed the state title in the fall.

“This is the best feeling ever, and it’s the best way to end any season. And this one, it’s just so exciting,” said senior guard and team captain Marley Hughes. “I’ve had one silver ball, I think. And three gold balls. It’s just amazing.”

It was a crushing end to a magical season for the Blair-Taylor Wildcats. The experienced squad featuring nine seniors dropped only one game before falling in the title game.

“In the second half, we did, you know, come out really strong and, you know, we just needed to get a couple of stops and you know we did it get back to even,” said Blair-Taylor Head Coach Jesse Lien. “And they just had they just had one more gear, you know. And they took it to us a little bit. The girls fought and fought for it right down to the end. So I couldn’t be prouder of them.”

In the Division 4 game, Aquinas lost just its second game of the season to Laconia 64-51.

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