West Des Moines Dowling Catholic showed off its balance and collected another state championship trophy.

Audrey Faber scored 19 of her 26 points in the second half and Dowling Catholic fended off No. 9 Southeast Polk through the final two quarters for a 66-55 victory that gave the Maroons the Class 5A championship.

Dowling reversed the outcome of last year's title game, won 43-34 by Southeast Polk, and claimed its fifth state title. Ankeny, with nine championships, is the only school with more.

Luci Sarcone added 14 points and nine rebounds for Dowling Catholic, Hayden Butler scored 11 and Marin Daniel eight. That was more than enough to overcome the foul problems that saddled Becca Hittner, the team's No. 2 scorer for the season. Hittner finished with five points but was named captain of the all-tournament team.

Dowling was so balanced across its lineup that all five starters scored in the game's first 5 1/2 minutes.

Sierra Mitchell came off the bench to hit four 3-pointers for Southeast Polk and led the Rams with 12 points. Annie Penquite and Allee Ira each scored 10 points and Abby Penquite had eight.

Southeast Polk rallied from a 12-point deficit to trail 30-25 at halftime, and Abby Penquite started the second half with a 3-pointer to pull the Rams to within two points.

But Dowling countered with a 10-2 run in which four different players scored. That made it 40-30 and the Rams never got closer than six the rest of the way.

Dowling lost its final two regular season games but all that is forgotten now. The Maroons finish 23-3 while Southeast Polk closes with an 18-7 record.

The two teams had reached the finals by combining to knock off the top four teams in the state rankings. Dowling beat No. 4 Waukee and top-ranked Iowa City High. Southeast Polk advanced with victories over No. 2 West Des Moines Valley and No. 3 Waterloo West.

This marks sixth state championship for Dowling Catholic coaches Bob and Sharon Hanson, who won a six-player title with Des Moines East.