A huge
all-around performance by sophomore Alexis Conaway help put MOC-Floyd Valley in
the Class 3A state championship game.
Conaway made plays with her
shooting, passing and defense as the second-ranked Lady Dutch remained unbeaten
with a 63-53 victory over No. 3 Sioux City Bishop Heelan
in an overtime semifinal game.
In just the overtime alone,
Conaway scored eight points, assisted on a basket and blocked two shots. She
finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds, seven blocks, six assists and five
steals.
Lauren McDonald led the Lady
Dutch with 18 points and Caitlyn Van Es scored 12. MOC-Floyd Valley hiked its
record to 27-0 and will try to win its first state basketball title at 6 p.m.
Saturday.
Madison Yohe
led Heelan with 20 points, Alex Fuller scored 12 and
Natalie Vondrak added 10 to go with seven rebounds.
The Crusaders, state champs in 2008 and 2010, finished 24-2.
Bishop Heelan
appeared to be in control when it opened a 44-34 lead early in the fourth
quarter. But MOC-Floyd Valley stormed back with 13 straight points to take the
lead. McDonald scored five points in the stretch, while Conaway and Van Es each
had four.
The Lady Dutch eventually opened
a 51-46 lead before Heelan rallied to tie it at 51 on
Yohe's layup and send the game into overtime. That's
when Conaway, a 5-foot-11 guard, took over.
She drive for a basket, then
threw a long pass to Emily McDonald for a layup that put the Lady Dutch ahead
to stay at 55-53. After Lauren McDonald scored inside, Conaway did the rest --
stealing the ball and driving the length of the court for a layup, sinking two
free throws, then swatting away Bishop Heelan's final
shot and taking the ball in for another layup.