It’s regional final time for girls basketball as top-seeded Benet Academy is fresh off a dominating semifinal win over Plainfield East and is now in search of its 12th straight regional plaque. A tough Oswego East squad is up next, which is coming off a last-second win over Neuqua Valley and has not lost a game in the month of February. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Redwings pick up where they left off in the semis with Emma Briggs flying through the paint and scoring with a foul. That puts the Wings up 9-2.
Oswego East gets cooking from three early on with Ja’Liyah Shepard sending a laser through the net.
Emma Briggs is the Redwing offense
Briggs continues her strong start to the game by scoring the same way she did last time. It’s a 14-12 game with Benet in front after the first.
Benet starts the second with Briggs, of course, so Ava Thomas looks for her, and this time she’s knocking down some bangers from deep. Briggs starts the game by scoring the first 17 points for the Wings.
The Wolves go back to work from behind the line with Aubrey Lamberti, who hit the game-winner against Neuqua, connecting on the trifecta.
The defense is ready to guard Briggs, but this time she feeds Lucy Tierney and makes them pay the price with a three-ball.
Briggs gets her breather, and Bridget Rifenburg gets her score. A quick 5-0 run for the home team results in a 29-21 halftime lead.
Oswego East keeps up with one of the state’s best
The Wolves order up more threes to start the second half, starting with an open Lamberti on the catch and shoot. Then Nicole Warbinski jumps in on a similar spot, but it culminates in a three-point basket. Oswego trails 35-31 midway through the third.
That fuels Briggs, who battles her defender, but it doesn’t matter because she still puts it in.
Briggs remains a wrecking machine in the paint as the Furman commit gets the bucket plus one. 36 points in the game for Briggs, and it’s 44-38 Redwings through three.
Oswego East is out here showing that their 8 seed doesn’t matter because Lamberti gets the tough lay-in to drop, and it’s just a 44-43 ball game.
Benet Academy takes home another girls basketball regional
However, that is the closest they would get because Benet and Bridget Rifenburg answer the swing with a clutch bucket.
Late in the game, Ava Thomas forces the turnover, which gives Rifenburg the green light to cruise all the way to the rim for the dagger and the regional title for Benet Academy. The Redwings win 58-50 over Oswego East and will take on Bolingbrook in the sectional semifinals on Tuesday at East Aurora.
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