Becker senior Maren Westin hit an acrobatic, buzzer-beating shot last Saturday against the Alexandria Cardinals to help the Bulldogs claim the third place trophy in the MSHSL Class AAA girls basketball tournament.

The Bulldogs arrived at the third place game after winning Wednesday’s quarterfinal game 52-43 over Marshall and then losing a heartbreaker, 60-59, to Stewartville in Thursday’s semifinals.

Westin’s heroics at the end of the third place game drew praise from Head Coach Dan Baird, whose team needed the big shot to pull off a 57-56 win.

“Ayla Brown received the inbound and dribbled the ball over half court where she fired a pass to Maren Westin outside the college three point line,” Baird said.  “Maren jumped in the air to shoot but realized the defense was there to block her shot.  Maren hung in the air, like only she can, then double clutched and the shot drew the back side iron before it fell through.”

Becker and Alexandria are teams quite familiar with one another, as Becker won a contest earlier in the season. That familiarity meant it came down to execution in the final game.  

After the big shot, Baird noted the pandemonium in the gym.

“Our girls stormed the court and the fans went nuts,” Baird said. “It was a great way to end our season after a tough comeback win in this game, and losing in the semifinals. The win was bittersweet as it’s the last time our FAB Five Seniors — Evelyn Kreft, Dani Nuest, Ayla Brown, Liz Mackedanz, and Maren Westin — will take the court. All five of these girls have provided amazing leadership this season and have made this a coach’s dream season to coach!” 

Becker Scoring: Nuest 21, Westin 14, Brown 16, Croal 2, Kreft 4.

Quarterfinals

Westin was also an offensive leader in the 52-43 win over Marshall in the Bulldogs’ opening game of the tournament.

She scored 27 points to go with eight rebounds on a five-for-five performance from the three point line.  

“Her defense was also amazing,” Baird noted. “Our team only committed six turnovers which was a season low. We held a good team to only 43 points so we were pleased with the defense.”

The Bulldogs were able to adapt their style to fit the moment, as the normally wide open offense was replaced by a more methodical approach noted by Becker not scoring a single point in transition.

Scoring: Dani Nuest 5, Maren Westin 27 (8 rebounds), Hannah Dierkes 2, Ayla Brown 7 (5 assists), Lauren Croal 6, Liz Mackedanz 6.

Semifinals

Becker’s pursuit of another state title was stymied in the semifinals with a 60-59 loss to Stewartville.

Becker played a great first half, only to see Stewartville make a run after halftime to advance to the title game.

“They came storming back to start the second half and our shots ran cold,” Baird said. “Hats off to Stewartville for making the comeback and pretty much dominating the second half.”

The game was tied with just 58 seconds left in the game, but the Bulldogs missed a couple chances to take the lead.

Dani Nuest played a great offensive game, scoring 19 points for the Bulldogs.

“Stewartville’s depth was apparent,” Baird said.   “They played the better game and deserved to win as they beat us in every major statistical category.”

Scoring: Liz Mackedanz 4, Evelyn Kreft 1, Dani Nuest 19, Maren Westin 15 (4 steals), Ayla Brown 11, Hannah Dierkes 3, Lauren Croal 6.