A loss to Xavier in a sectional final kept the Wittenberg-Birnamwood girls basketball team from making its first trip to state in program history last season.
This season turned out to be Mosinee’s turn, as it handed the Chargers a 58-53 loss March 5 in a WIAA Division 3 sectional semifinal at D.C. Everest High School in Weston.
It was the first loss of the season for the Chargers, who came into the game with a 26-0 record. Meanwhile, Mosinee improved to 23-4 and advanced to a sectional final against St. Croix Central.
Mosinee led by as many as eight points in the first half, but the Chargers ended the half with a 15-4 run to take a 32-28 lead at the break.
The lead changed hands four times in the second half before Addy Henrich’s 3-pointer with 5:22 remaining in the game turned the Chargers’ 48-47 lead into a 50-48 deficit.
Wittenberg-Birnamwood never got the lead back but had opportunities down the stretch.
Melaina Granquist’s 3-pointer with 18 seconds to go cut Mosinee’s lead to 56-53. A traveling call on Mosinee’s Paetyn Jirschele gave the ball back to the Chargers, but Granquist’s attempt to tie the game with another 3-pointer was off the mark, and Henrich sealed the win with a pair of late free throws.
Offensive rebounds gave Mosinee second chances during the game, according to coach Nick Mechelke.
“That was the main point of the game,” he said. “We had to win the rebounding battle and clean up on the defensive end, and we didn’t do it, plain and simple. They got an offensive rebound and two points. That was almost every time they got an offensive rebound. They made more plays than we did.”
It was the second time the Chargers had faced Mosinee, as Wittenberg-Birnamwood headed there in November and returned home with a 63-44 win.
“That was their first game and our second game,” Mechelke said. “They had to learn how to play without Taelyn (Jirschele), who was out with an ACL injury, and they played well down the stretch.”
Mosinee headed into its second matchup with the Chargers on a 17-game winning streak.
The sectional semifinal turned out to be the final high school basketball game for seniors Granquist, Rory Salvesen and Brieleigh Ladika.
Salvesen and Granquist led all scorers with 20 and 16 points, respectively, but Mechelke singled out Ladika.
“Brie gets pushed to the side all the time,” he said. “I have to give her a lot of credit. She plays hard defense all the time. I talk about Rory and Melaina all the time, and she needs to be talked about.”
Mechelke said next season’s version of the Chargers will look different without those three seniors.
“They put a lot of time in and got a lot of wins for this program,” he said. “They put their footprints on our program. You’ve got Rory with over 2,000 points, you’ve got Melaina with over 1,800 points and 1,000 rebounds. Those are kids who are irreplaceable.
“Next year is a big rebuilding year. Who’s going to fill in those 40 points? It’s going to take special people or a whole team effort to get that back.”
The Chargers’ accomplishments this year included a second consecutive Central Wisconsin Conference-East championship and undefeated regular season.
“We had 26 (wins) in a row and conference champs, but in the end, we had to win that big one,” Mechelke said. “Mosinee did it tonight.”
Zoey Thorson is ready to grab a rebound for Wittenberg-Birnamwood in the second half of a 58-53 loss to Mosinee. (Greg Seubert)
Wittenberg-Birnamwood’s Ava Brei, right, battles for the ball with Mosinee’s Bridget Frye. (Greg Seubert)
reshman David Dillon plays the trombone with the Wittenberg-Birnamwood High School band before the Chargers girls basketball team faced Mosinee in a Division 3 sectional semifinal game at D.C. Everest High School in Weston. (Greg Seubert)
