The No. 10 Arlington girls basketball team turned a 12-12 tie into a Class C1-4 Subdistrict Final win Thursday night with a dominant second period as the catalyst.
Fort Calhoun and the Eagles were even after one quarter at AHS, but coach Tashia Wolf's lineup won the second, 17-4, and the game — 45-32. They improved to 21-4 overall and will play the No. 8 seed, Adams Central, on Friday during the district final round.
“We knew that tonight was going to be super hard,” coach Wolf said after the Eagles' third win against the Pioneers this season.
Her daughter, Macy Wolf, led Arlington with 19 points for the game. Notably, the sophomore scored 11 with a 3-point make during the decisive second quarter.
“We looked at every quarter as 0-0,” coach Wolf said, revealing AHS' philosophy going into the second 8 minutes of the subdistrict final. She noted how the Eagles executed plays they instituted during practice in preparation for FCHS and capitalized on fast break opportunities to secure a 29-16 halftime advantage.
Marty Plum, the Pioneers' coach, said his team went through a “dry spell” offensively as Wolf's team took advantage of his squad's second-quarter turnovers.
“When you're not hitting shots, it's tough,” he said. “We had great looks. We just didn't get them to fall.”
Arlington added a pair of buckets to start the third, too, before a key Fort Calhoun starter, freshman Ansley Elofson, went to the bench with 6:44 left in the quarter with her fourth foul. Even so, Raenn Massey hit two 3s as the Pioneers outscored AHS in the period and went into the fourth down 11 points, 37-26.
Emme Timm free throws and a Taylor Arp bucket pushed the Eagles' lead back out to 15, though, as the home squad picked up a 13-point victory — one that set it within one win of reaching its first state tournament since 2001.
Altogether, Arlington topped 16-8 Fort Calhoun three times during the 2023-24 season. It won 54-29 on Jan. 25, edged the Pioneers 38-26 on Jan. 30 and ended their season Thursday.
Wolf said her coaching staff was worried about playing their Washington County rival for a third time, but theorized how the Eagles pulled it off. They, for one, match up well against one of FCHS' strengths — its full court pressure.
Wolf credited Timm for her ballhandling ability as an “amazing point guard.”
“With her, it's hard to press us,” the coach said.
In the end, Arlington bested the 16-win Pioneers to advance. At the same time, Calhoun's season ended.
“It's hard to reflect on 16-8 right now,” Plum said. “Intellectually, I know we made a tremendous jump and it was a great season in that regard. But, emotionally, I don't believe anyone in that locker room was ready for this journey to be over.”
It did end, though, and the second quarter was the catalyst.
“We really thought that we were going to win tonight, but Arlington played better,” Plum said.
2 Pioneers play for last time
The close of the 2023-24 Fort Calhoun basketball season ended the four-year prep careers of seniors Bria Bench and Maddy Tinkham.
“Bria just had a tremendous career,” Plum said. “Almost 1,000 points and over 600 rebounds, and probably over 100 blocks in her career. She has always carried herself with dignity and grace and has really shown our younger players how to play to a championship standard.”
A major contributor on the floor early during her career, Tinkham held a different important role this year.
“Maddy Tinkham was a tremendous teammate this season,” Plum said. “She had a terrific attitude and was always there to lighten the mood. I'm really proud of her.”
The season-ending loss left its mark on FCHS' coach.
“It's disappointing that, in the three games we played against them, we just never played our best ball,” he said. “But, I'm proud of this team. There's no other group of kids I would have wanted to coach this season.”
CLASS C1-4 SUBDISTRICT FINAL
Thursday
No. 10 Arlington 45, Fort Calhoun 32
FCHS (16-8) 12 4 10 6 — 32
AHS (21-4) 12 17 8 8 — 45
Scoring: AHS — Macy Wolf 19, Emme Timm 14, Britt Nielsen 8, Taylor Arp 3, Austyn Flesner 1.
FCHS — Raeann Massey 12, Bria Bench 9, Maelie Nelson 7, Jovi Grenier 2, Ansley Elofson 2.
