The Kimball Cubs (13-seed) were excited to take on 4-seed St. Cloud Cathedral in round one of the Section 6 AA playoffs, despite being the underdog. Mazie Jurek scored the Cubs’ first field goal, and Brookelyn Kuechle hit Kimball’s first three-pointer as Kimball led 5-2 early. Hope Kuechle drained a three next and, after a Cathedral three-pointer, Jurek and B. Kuechle each scored and Kimball led 12-5, enjoying early success against Cathedral’s 2-3 zone. SCC charged back and tied the game at 12-12, until Allie Leither made one of two free-throws to give Kimball a 13-12 lead, half way through the first half. Kimball continued to get good looks at the rim, but -struggled to get the ball to go through the rim. The remaining Cubs’ first-half points all came from the free-throw line, courtesy of Sami Winter, and Kimball trailed at the half, 19-17.
Cathedral came out in the second half and built a double-digit advantage as Kimball’s shooting woes continued, and St. Cloud built a 29-17 lead with 11:25 to play. B. Kuechle and Jurek finally scored to get some offense going as Kimball trailed 29-21 with 9:42 remaining. With just over six minutes to play, Ava Molitor busted the zone hitting a three-pointer, and Kimball was within eight points, 34-26. But that was all she wrote for the Cubs, and Cathedral slugged out a 44-33 victory securing a spot in the next round of the playoffs.
Although Kimball’s season ends on a first-round loss, the Cubs played well down the stretch in the regular season, winning 5 of their last 8 games. The Cubs’ final season record ends at 11-16, and 6-8 in the CMC.
Kimball stats
Brookelyn Kuechle, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists; Hope Kuechle, 6 points, 2 steals; Allie Leither, 1 point, 9 rebounds; Sami Winter, 4 points, 2 rebounds; Ava Molitor, 3 points, 3 rebounds; Isabelle Schmitz, 1 rebound; Jordyn Theis, 1 rebound; Mazie Jurek, 10 points, 15 rebounds. 5 blocks, 3 steals.
“It was a tough loss for our girls tonight. I thought we brought the energy and executed well throughout the game, but we just struggled to finish off our possessions with makes.
“I am so proud of this team, as they showed a tremendous amount of improvement this year. Despite coming up short tonight, they reminded me, as a coach, how much fun we can have getting better; and how fulfilling every practice and every game is when there is a group of kids involved … with great attitudes, tons of heart, and a willingness to improve,” said Coach Jeremy Kuechle.