Pewaukee dominates; Wauwatosa East falls to defending champs
ASHWAUBENON – Led by a 19point, 10-assist performance that was two rebounds shy of a triple-double from Pewaukee junior Amy Terrian, the top-seeded Pirates cruised in a 7941 rout of West Salem in the a WIAA Division 2 state girls basketball semifinal Friday at the Resch Center.
The Pirates (28-1) sleepwalked through the first portion of the game with a handful of turnovers and played almost nine minutes without Giselle Janowski due to foul trouble. Still, after falling behind, 10-9, Pewaukee suffocated the Panthers (24-5) with a 28-7 run to close the opening half with a 37-17 advantage that never got any closer.
Pewaukee was to play defending champ Notre Dame Saturday evening.
“I was extremely impressed and I was super happy for them,” Janowski said on her teammates’ performance with her on the bench.
“They start to run. They got some defensive stops. It was awesome to kinda see those kind of role players step up. Coach (Jim Reuter) always talks about that. It was super fun to see that. It was just a great run.”
Amy’s twin-sister, Anna, finished with 17 points and six rebounds, while Janowski came alive in the second half with 12 points, six rebounds and four of Pewaukee’s D2 state-record 23 assists on 31 made field goals. The previous record was 20, set by the Pirates in their semifinal win over Lakeland in last year’s semifinals. Kylie Pieper was the fourth Pirate in double figures with 10 points, six rebounds and four steals.
Notre Dame 82, Wauwatosa East 44
Wauwatosa East coach Mary Merg sat next to sophomore star Mikaia Litza at the podium for a couple of extra minutes to soak it all in with a smile.
“It was women against girls,” Merg said after their 82-44 defeat to threetime defending Division 2 state champion Notre Dame (28-1) on Friday.
“Credit to Notre Dame. They use their physicality to their advantage and that was seen on display tonight. They’re very well-coached. It’s clear to see why they’re the reigning state champions. Hats off to them. They played pretty well.”
Tritons Ms. Basketball candidates Trista Fayta and Gracie Grzesk each registered double-doubles with 10 assists to help tie the record Pewaukee just set a couple of hours prior. All five starters scored in double figures and broke the D2 state scoring record for a game (82) that was set by Pewaukee in last year’s semifinals on 58.6% shooting (34 of 58).
“I think they were just a lot stronger and they used that to their advantage since we’re on the shorter, smaller side,” Litza said with a laugh. “They were very aggressive and it was hard to adjust to something we’ve never really seen the whole season.”
Litza was a bright spot for the Red Raiders (23-6) with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and five assists. Tosa East (23-6) loses three seniors but will return its three leading scorers next season.
“This is a historical team,” Merg said. “We have a ton of support. As a coach, it’s awesome. Words can’t describe when the elementary schools, the middle schools, all sent off a state. You saw a sea of red out there today. They got our backs. Our students got our backs. That’s just the culture. If you look at some of those red shirts, some say, “Raiders Watch Girls Sports.” Girls sports is a big thing at Tosa East and it’s national women’s month, so that’s pretty cool, too. It feels amazing. The community’s really proud of this team.”