SHELBYVILLE – William L. Garrett Memorial Gymnasium was the site for the semistate Class 2A tournament on Saturday.
Brownstown Central battled Linton-Stockton bright and early, going to the wire with the Braves taking a 22-19 halftime lead. The second half turned into the opposite for Brownstown, but they turned it around and figured a way to ‘survive and advance’ into the semistate final.
When everyone thought the Braves were out of it, Brownstown rallied and stole the victory from the Miners 48-41, advancing to the semistate final this evening.
Head coach Brandon Allman spoke about the win over Linton-Stockton.
“All I can say is ‘What a game,’” Allman said. “I told the girls about the resilience they showed today once again. We were down nine points at some point. We called a timeout and focused in and made the plays that were necessary. They just never gave up and never quit.”
Brownstown and Linton-Stockton opened the game with a back-and-forth contest with the Braves edging the Miners 15-14 after one period.
Brave Kelsey Schneider opened the second quarter with an easy basket, taking the lazy pass from the Linton ballhandler and scoring the basket to make it 17-14.
Sophie Wischmeier then finished the and-one through contact, firing the Braves fans up in the stands. Linton closed the gap, but Brownstown still held the lead heading into halftime at 22-19.
Jenna Klosterman had six points at halftime, while Kinzee Dean recorded four for the Lady Braves.
The third quarter turned in favor of the Miners, who went on a 12-3 run in the first seven minutes of the third to take a 31-25 advantage at the end.
The final quarter started out in favor of Linton, but Brownstown began to chip away.
Wischmeier hit a close basket to begin the run before getting fouled, hitting both shots to make it 31-29.
Linton then hit a three before Wischmeier found Dean with a beautiful bounce pass, which led to an easy mid-range jumper, making it a three-point game.
Wischmeier continued to be the point of attack for the Braves. She hit two more free throws to make it a three-point game before Brownstown tied it. Harley Toppe caught the ball and without hesitation took it, and it swished through the net, blowing the roof off of the place as the score read 40-40.
Toppe then was fouled, sent to the line with the weight of the world on her shoulders, hitting both shots to give the Braves a 42-40 lead with 48 seconds remaining.
Toppe added another basket before Jenna Klosterman hit more free throws and Dean added a basket for the 48-41 win.
“We had some key possessions at the end of the game that made the difference,” Allman said. “They missed some free throws that really helped us, and Sophie put us on her back.”
Wischmeier finished with the team-high 18 points in the close victory.
“The defense was amazing,” Allman said. “We got some key loose balls that gave us extra possessions. We felt like we had to speed them up. We were able to take advantage of turnovers off of our presses.”
Eastern Hancock ended up defeating Sheridan 62-54, setting up a matchup with the Braves tonight at 8 p.m. at Shelbyville High School. The winner will be part of the Class 2A state championship next Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Brownstown has been to semistate five times now: 1996, 1998, 2011, 2020 and now 2024. But they’ve only made it to the final game once in 2011, where they fell to Fort Wayne Luers by 13 points. The Lady Braves will look to clinch their second-ever state berth.
Allman spoke on the opportunity to play in the semistate final.
“It’s the final four. It’s what you play for,” he said. “I never got that opportunity as a player, but these girls have worked hard for this moment. Whoever we face is going to pressure the heck out of us. Hopefully, we can get some rest and be ready to play again tonight.”
The win was the 100th of Allman’s career.
Semistate Semifinal
Brownstown Central 48, Linton-Stockton 41
Brownstown Central (19-8); 15; 7; 3; 23;—;48
Linton-Stockton (20-6); 14; 5; 12; 10;—;41
Brownstown: Sophie Wischmeier 5 8-9 18, Kinzee Dean 4 0-0 8, Harley Toppe 2 2-2 7, Mallory Klosterman 2 2-2 6, Jenna Klosterman 1 2-2 5, Kelsey Schneider 1 0-0 2, Hailey Hobson 1 0-0 2. Kassidy Wischmeier 0 0-0 0, Jada Miller 0 0-0 0, Hunter Trueblood 0 0-0 0, Claire Brock 0 0-0 0, Kassie Helton 0 0-0 0. Totals: 16 14-15 48.
3-Point Goals: Linton-Stockton 6, Brownstown 2 (Klosterman, Toppe)
Rebounds: Brownstown 27 (S. Wischmeier 12, Dean 6, Hobson 5), Linton-Stockton 15
Assists: Brownstown 11 (M. Klosterman 6, S. Wischmeier 2, Darlage 2), Linton 5
Steals: Brownstown 8 (Schneider 4), Linton 7
Turnovers: Brownstown 14, Linton 13
Fouls: Brownstown 21, Linton 17