Lourdes of the Court

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn—Imagine making your first state tournament appearance since winning the championship in 2005 and looking at the scoreboard four and a half minutes into the game only to see a 12-0 deficit. That is exactly what class AA powerhouse Rochester Lourdes was looking at in their quarterfinal game against St. Peter. The Eagles played spoiler and found their way on the Target Center floor working a 49-42 win.

“We were pretty nervous coming into the game,” said head coach Myron Glass. “These girls were in 7th grade the last time we were here.”

As the half rolled on, the lead for St. Peter grew. They led 18-4 at the 10 minute mark before finally going on a run of their own. Over the next 10 minutes, the Eagles went on a run of their own, outscoring the Saints 17-4 to pull within a single point including Shelby Hanssen’s buzzer beater.

Laura Melquist took over in the second half for Lourdes. The six foot two senior scored 17 of her game high 21 points in the second half. The squads exchanged baskets in the second half which saw six ties and until 3:01 remained on the second half clock, the Eagles trailed. The heart and will of the team was too much to overcome. The lead would not be relinquished as they made their free-throws down the stretch and came away with an impressive come from behind win.

Rochester Lourdes will play in the semi-finals against the winner of Hawley and Minnehaha Academy.