GREENCASTLE — In the waning seconds of Brownstown Central’s regional semifinal game against Indian Creek, head coach Brandon Allman emptied the bench, allowing his five starters, more specifically the seniors in that lineup, to get one last standing ovation as a Brownstown Brave.

There was a lot of raw emotion from seniors Emma Klinge and Andrea Bair as they walked off the court, hugging their teammates and coaches.

Brownstown’s season ended Saturday at the hands of Indian Creek 49-41 at Greencastle High School, but the Braves put up one helluva fight, leaving everything on the floor.

“Last thing I put up on the board was ‘be physical and compete for 32 minutes,’ and I thought we did that,” Allman said.

After Indian Creek got on the board first, Maddy Hackman started the game for Brownstown with a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Braves a 3-2 lead.

But shortly after, Hackman picked up two quick fouls and had to go to the bench. So Kalee Borden, much like she did in the sectional final game, picked up the slack offensively. Borden hit a 3-pointer and attacked the paint to keep Brownstown in the game.

Jenna Klosterman hit a 3-pointer toward the end of the quarter and Brownstown was tied with Indian Creek 13-13 after one.

“We were tied at the end of the first quarter, but I didn’t think we played very well offensively,” Allman said. “We had five turnovers in the first quarter, our ball movement wasn’t very good and we didn’t screen anybody. I’m sure some of that was nerves, but we settled in.”

In the second quarter, Brownstown dominated on the offensive glass. The Braves kept getting second-chance opportunities, and it allowed them to take an 18-17 lead with under four minutes until halftime.

Then Indian Creek started to flex its muscle. The opposing Braves went on a run to reclaim the lead and Brownstown had some good looks toward the end of the half but couldn’t connect, so Indian Creek led 24-21 at halftime.

“We talk about offensive rebounds, and I know we had double digit rebounds. Those are just effort plays,” Allman said. “Every missed shot we had, I thought we got. I just thought we didn’t capitalize on a lot of those offensive rebounds we got. There were some empty possessions.”

Brownstown didn’t give in, though. They continued to fight and regained the lead in the third quarter thanks to a continuous effort on the offensive glass. Hackman started to get her offense going a bit too as Brownstown led 29-27.

Lauren Foster hit a 3-pointer from the corner to teeter the score toward Indian Creek once again, and then 6-foot-4 forward Faith Wiseman scored inside as these Braves ended the quarter on a 5-0 run to lead 32-29 heading into the fourth.

Foster and Wiseman both scored 16 points to lead Indian Creek on the day, and even though Wiseman’s height makes her a tough cover, Andrea Bair and Addie Shelton did a solid job.

“Both of them giving up 10 inches inside. That’s not an easy task,” Allman said. “It’s all about footwork and positioning and showing your hands. The officials definitely let both teams get away with physical play. We were able to be physical and I don’t think she liked that at all.”

Even when Indian Creek took its largest lead at nine points in the fourth quarter, Brownstown didn’t waver. Emma Klinge went on a personal 5-0 run that featured a 3-pointer and driving layup to bring the Braves back within four with one minute to go.

After Indian Creek made two free throws, Hackman came down and drilled a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to just three, 44-41, with 36 seconds to go. Brownstown tried to trap to force a turnover but ultimately had to foul, and Indian Creek made 18-of-23 free throws to end up securing the 49-41 victory to advance to Saturday night’s regional final.

“I don’t know if we’ve had a superior athlete on the floor in any game,” Allman said. “Just five undersized girls that just get after it. There’s a lot to be said about that. That’s all I can ask for, just battling your tails off every game, and that’s probably the main reason we’re here.”

Hackman led Brownstown in scoring on the night with 15 points, Borden scored eight, Hannah Stahl seven, Klinge six, Klosterman three and Bair two.

It was a solid season for the Braves in which they won their third-straight sectional championship, defeating Northview 46-36 this past Wednesday to advance to Greencastle on Saturday.

Brownstown finished the season with a 16-12 record, and more importantly, finished the season playing together for one another.

“These girls are really tight-knit. I think they would do anything for each other,” Allman said. “My five seniors, I can’t say enough about them. I brag about this all the time. I don’t want to go home today but I get to go home today and nominate all five of them for academic all-state. I don’t know if there’s a coach in the state that has five seniors that can say they can nominate all five. They’ve built the base of this program under my tenure and set the tone for these younger girls. These younger girls got a lot to live up to.”