The Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinal girls basketball team played their final regular season game in Howard against the Tigers on Thursday, February 20th.  The Tigers came away with a 55-24 win.

Despite not making their first field goal until halfway through the first quarter, the Cardinals kept the game close in the first quarter.  They trailed by just six points by the end of the quarter at 13-7.  St Mary scored the first two points of the second quarter and trailed by just four at 13-9.  That’s when Howard went on a big run outscoring the Cardinals 15-2 the remainder of the half.  Howard held a 28-11 lead at halftime.

St Mary scored the first three points of the third quarter to cut the lead in half at 28-14, but again the Tigers held St Mary to just two more points the rest of the quarter and built a 44-16 lead heading into the final frame.  Howard then outscored St Mary 11-8 in the fourth for the win.

Eight different players scored in the game for the Cardinals.  Ella Heinitz finished with seven points.  Courtney Brown had four points and six rebounds.  Ella Griffin had four points.  Sydney Klein, Karlie Klein, Sierra Klein, and Maya Heinitz all had two points each.  Addy Gilbert also had a point in the game.  Sydney Klein also had six rebounds.

The Cardinals finish their regular season with a 10-10 record.  They will begin Region 4B tournament play next week.  The exact day, time, and opponent for their first game will be officially announce at the end of the weekend.

Photo taken and used with permission by Tammy Chamley, Dells City Journal

On a night for celebration, the Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinals got to celebrate twice when they hosted the Elkton-Lake Benton Elks on Tuesday, February 18th. 

This was the final regular season home game for the Cardinals, which meant St Mary would celebrate their lone senior on the team, Tana Harrington.  Harrington was able to dress for the game and scored the game’s first two points in the opening seconds on an uncontested layup as a celebration for her career at Dell Rapids St Mary High School.  St Mary would also celebrate in the final seconds of the game.

After the Harrington scored her layup, St Mary allowed Elkton-Lake Benton to tie the game at 2-2 with an uncontested layup of their own.  The rest of the quarter remained close with the Elks having a slight 14-12 advantage.  St Mary opened the second quarter on a 7-0 run to lead 19-14, but Elkton-Lake Benton finished the quarter on a 7-2 run to tie the game at 21-21 entering halftime.

The Elks looked to take control of the game late in the third quarter.  They were able to pull away from St Mary just a bit as they lead 31-26 heading into the fourth quarter.  The lead extended to 33-26 early in the fourth quarter, but the Cardinals would not surrender.  They slowly chipped away at the lead and tied the game at 35-35 with 2:00 to go.  The Elks took a one point lead after a made free throw at 36-35.  Ella Heinitz was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws to give the Cardinals a 38-36 lead with about a minute to play.  The Elks pulled within a point after a one-for-two trip to the free-throw line.  They made a defensive stop and then earned another trip to the free-throw line with just seconds remaining.  The first free throw was made to tie the game at 38-38.  The second one was missed, and the Cardinals grabbed the rebound, got the ball to mid-court, and then called a timeout with just three seconds left. 

After the timeout, St Mary was able to get the ball in-bounded to Brianna Griffin.  She spun at the top of the key and launched a three point shot at the buzzer that was no good.  However, officials called the Elks for a foul on Griffin as time expired, giving her three chances to win the game from the free-throw line with no time left on the clock and no around her.  The first free throw popped out of the rim, went off the backboard, and fell to the ground no good.  The second free throw went through the hoop with nothing but net, and Griffin gave the St Mary Cardinals a 39-38 win in dramatic fashion.

St Mary finished the night shooting 34% (14-41) from the field, 20% (3-15) from the free-throw line, and 57% (8-14) from the free-throw line.  Heinitz had a team-high 16 points along with five rebounds.  Courtney Brown had five points, three rebounds, and three steals.  Ella Griffin had four points, four assists, and three rebounds.  Sydney Klein had three points, eight rebounds, and four assists.  B. Griffin finished with three points.

The Cardinals (10-9) finish the regular season on Thursday, February 20th when they travel to Howard in a boys and girls double header.  The games can be seen on Big Sioux Media.