Kee basketball girls have postseason run ended by third-time State qualifier
Kee girls basketball junior Ellie Cooper puts up this shot attempt in the Hawks’ 48-46 home win over Tripoli in the quarterfinals of Class 1A regional tournament play Tuesday, February 17. Cooper finished the game with 12 points, two rebounds and team highs of five assists and three steals. Photo courtesy of the Kee High School Yearbook. View and find out how to purchase this photo and many more by clicking on the Photo Galleries link.
The Kee girls basketball team had its 2014-2015 season brought to a halt, but not before battling as deep into the postseason as a team can go without reaching every team’s ultimate destination, and providing an abundance of excitement along the way. The Lady Hawks played a total of three Class 1A regional tournament games within a six-day period, winning a pair of them by just two points each before letting the one that mattered most edge away in the closing moments to just a five-point loss.
After opening postseason tournament play Thursday, February 12 with a 48-42 win at home over Central Elkader, the Kee girls strung together back-to-back two-point wins last week, 48-46 at home over Tripoli Tuesday, February 17 and 51-49 over ninth-rated Janesville at Oelwein High School Friday, February 20, to take themselves to the brink of a State Tournament berth. Sixth-rated Colo-Nesco, however, dashed those State Tournament hopes Monday, February 23 with a 44-39 Kee defeat at Hudson High School in the Region 4 championship game, locking up their third consecutive trip to the Class 1A season grand finale.
The loss brings the Hawks’ season to a close with a 21-4 season record, a new school standard for wins in a single season. Fellow Upper Iowa Conference foe Turkey Valley, who is responsible for half of Kee’s losses this season, suffered the same fate as the Hawks Monday night as well, falling by a 57-46 result to Newell Fonda.
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