Another state championship
ended another perfect season for Harlan.
Top-ranked Harlan dominated
near the basket with Taylor Frederick and Jess Schaben
and beat No. 2 Western Dubuque 56-46 to win its second straight Class 4A
championship.
With its 52nd straight
victory, Harlan capped an impressive run through the state tournament. The
Cyclones won their first two games at state by 23 and 26 points before posting
their solid win over Western Dubuque in a battle of unbeatens.
Frederick led Harlan with
17 points, grabbed seven rebounds, made four steals and was voted captain of
the all-tournament team. Schaben added 14 points,
nine rebounds, six blocks and two steals and Elle Kloewer
scored 11 for the Cyclones (26-0).
Megan Maahs
led Western Dubuque with 18 points and 12 rebounds and Morgan Pitz scored 10.
Western Dubuque challenged
Harlan throughout in a 55-51 loss in last year's state championship game. But
Harlan ran off nine straight points to open an 18-7 lead early in the second
quarter of this one and the Bobcats never caught up.
Schaben, who led Harlan to the last two Class 4A volleyball championships,
got three baskets inside and Kloewer hit a 3-pointer
to help the Cyclones extend their lead to 44-28 heading into the fourth
quarter. Jordyn Moser's two free throws made it 48-28
with 6:03 left.
Harlan got a little sloppy
in the fourth quarter and Western Dubuque chipped away at the lead but never
got closer than eight points. The Cyclones scored their final 16 points on free
throws, getting their last field goal when the 6-foot-1 Schaben
hit a close-in shot for a 40-27 lead with 3:26 left in the third quarter.
Harlan's
winning streak matches the fifth longest in the state's five-player era. The
Cyclones' last loss came in the 2013 state championship game.