HINCKLEY — Barnum’s Rayna Klejeski didn’t get the first half she wanted against Upsala Tuesday, March 7 in the Section 5A semifinal Tuesday at Hinckley-Finlayson High School.
The Cardinals did everything they could to frustrate her and teammate Allison Marine, but the pair are both at least 6 feet tall and their size advantage proved to be the difference in a 44-42 win.
Klejeski was limited to just two points in the first half and the Bombers trailed 22-15 after 18 minutes.
“They were really physical and they didn’t lose focus,” Klejeski said. “They stuck to us like glue for the most part and they were quick, but once we slowed down our offense, we got in a rhythm and things started falling better for us.”
Marine, a 6 foot, 3 inch center, struggled in the first half from the low post, but her shots started falling in the second half as well. Marine finished with a game-high 17 points and scored nine in the second half.
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“They came out ready to go and we knew that was coming after we saw them take it to Braham in their game,” Barnum coach Mariah Minkkinen said. “We knew they were going to come out with a lot of energy and pressure us and try to get steals. Our game plan was just to take care of the ball and stay under control and I thought the girls did a really good job of that down the stretch when we needed it.”
Klejeski and Marine were the focus for Upsala defensively, but they also struggled on the other end of the floor too.
“We knew that they were their point-scorers, so as long as we shut them down, we would do our job,” Cardinals coach Sara Bauer said. “We played incredible defense, but we could not do it offensively and normally we’re not like that offensively.”
After the first half, Minkkinen said she was brutally honest with her team in the locker room.
“I told them, ‘We’re getting outhustled, they’re coming up with loose balls, they’re coming up with rebounds, we’ve got to go out there and play like we want to win,’” Minkkinen said. “I thought they responded really well to that.”
Klejeski said after the first half, it was important to be patient and “stick with the play the whole way through.”
“I had to work on letting the game to come to me — I didn’t want to force anything,” she said. “I got some nice face cuts right to the basket and that helped a lot.”
As the game wore on, the Bombers' size advantage continued to prove decisive, with Klejeski both picking up multiple second-chance baskets.
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Barnum finally took the lead with about 3 minutes to play and held off the Upsala attack over the final minute to preserve the win.
Barnum (25-4) will play Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa in the section championship at 7 p.m. Friday at a site to be determined. The Jaguars defeated Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 65-26 on Tuesday to advance.
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