Same ol’ Newell-Fonda.
Press, trap, create havoc, win. The formula has worked for years at Newell-Fonda and it did so again in a 60-32 victory over Springville that completed the opening round of Class 1A play.
The third-seeded Mustangs came up with 27 steals in forcing 36 turnovers and broke open a reasonably close game with a huge second-half run. Making its seventh straight appearance at state and 20th overall, Newell-Fonda (21-4) will play second-seeded North Linn in the semifinals at 3:15 p.m. Friday.
North Linn beat the Mustangs in last year’s championship game.
Freshman Ellie Sievers led Newell-Fonda with 18 points and Kinzee Hinders added 15 to go with six steals. Jocee Walsh delivered a big game for the Mustangs with nine points, nine rebounds, three assists and five steals. Teammate Anna Mercer did not score but contributed with six rebounds and five steals.
Rowan Jacobi, a talented 6-foot-2 junior, led sixth-seeded Springville (20-5) with 18 points, 15 rebounds and four steals. Addison Merritt added eight points for the Orioles, who forced Newell-Fonda into 21 turnovers but shot only 29 percent and went 0-for-9 from 3-point range.
The game matched two of the most successful programs in recent years. From 2016-21, the two won every Class 1A championship, Springville capturing the first three titles in that span and Newell-Fonda the final three.
They were tied at 5-all midway through the first quarter in this one before Newell-Fonda scored the final nine points of the quarter. The Mustangs led by as many as 16 in the first half and held a 25-13 lead at halftime.
Springville then settled down a bit and cut the lead to 30-23 when Merritt hit a runner to cap a 10-5 run. But the Orioles got no closer.
Hinders hit a jump shot to get the Mustangs going again and they took off on a 25-4 run to break it open. Sievers drained two 3-pointers and scored 12 points in that burst, which stretched the lead to 55-27 with 3:07 left and ended any hope for the Orioles.
Newell-Fonda, which has won four titles in all, improved to 33-15 in state tournament play. The Mustangs trail only Ankeny (43) and Dowling Catholic (34) in all-time tourney wins.
