The fifth-seeded Becker Lady Bulldogs (15-12) beat the fourth-seeded Zimmerman Thunder (16-10) on the road, 64-54 to advance in Section 5AAA playoffs Tuesday.
Allison Cieslak tallied 22 points and Mauren Thiesen 16 for the Bulldogs, who beat the Thunder with hard drives to the hoop and stout defense.
Thunder senior guard Lexi Funaro scored a game-high 25 points but nobody else had more than six. Kaitlyn Mason, who’s had a fine year, had to sit much of the game due to a head injury, scoring just four points.
The two teams split in conference play this season, but Becker was in charge in the rubber game. Zimmerman was within 15-13 before they went cold and the Bulldogs closed the half with a 17-4 run for a 34-20 lead.
Becker moves on to play top-seeded Monticello (20-6) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Buffalo.
Becker scoring: Cieslak 22, Mauren Thiesen 16, Alex Johnson 8, Maesyn Thiesen 8, Amanda Lindsay 6 and Alexa Hanowski 4.
Zimmerman scoring: Alexcis Funaro 25, Brooke Borchardt 6, Camie Bond 4, Danielle Williams, 4, Kaitlyn Mason 4, Alexis Olerich 4, Amanda Rodriquez 3, Sabrina Steinke 2 and Madeline Jacob 2.
