Second-ranked Waukee started strong and put together a solid finish to advance to the Class 5A semifinals. And the Warriors will see a familiar opponent when they get there.

Andie Mataloni led a balanced offense with 15 points and Waukee finished the game with a 17-5 run to beat unranked Cedar Falls 61-47 to complete the opening round of the 2015 tournament.

Reilly Jacobson added 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Warriors (22-2), while Carlie Littlefield and Anna Kollmorgan each scored 11. The fifth starter, Ellie Cavanaugh, contributed nine points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Waukee, up 32-24 at halftime, pulled away after leading just 44-42 midway through the fourth quarter and will play defending champion Dowling Catholic at 1:45 p.m. Friday for the right to advance to Saturday night's championship game. The Warriors beat the third-ranked Maroons 58-42 during the regular season. Dowling beat Waukee in the first round of last year's state tournament.

Cedar Falls (18-6) edged Cedar Rapids Kennedy to punch its ticket to state and stayed with Waukee until the end. Emma Gerdes led the Tigers with 15 points and Kiana Barney scored 10.

Waukee went 11-for-13 at the free throw line during its closing run. Mataloni scored eight points in that stretch and Littlefield had four plus to key assists. She hit Kylie Coleman cutting to the basket for a layup that made it 48-42, then found Jacobson in the lane for a bucket, which put the Warriors up 50-44.