By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
In the end, the Burlington girls basketball team ran into a buzz saw.
On Friday night, the Lady Demons, fresh off a home playoff opening victory, had to travel to top-seeded Wilmot, which had beaten Burlington handily twice during the regular season.
Wilmot took control early and never really was challenged the rest of the way in a 53-34 victory.
Burlington finished its season 8-15. Wilmot improved to 17-7 and will begin sectionals Thursday night at Waukesha West.
“The girls played with a lot of heart the entire game,” said Burlington coach Mary Parker. “Allie Aldrich had a great defensive game, holding Clements to only two field goals. We just had too many turnovers to overcome.”
The Panthers held a 28-12 halftime lead, as they outscored Burlington 15-6 in the first quarter and 13-6 in the second.
Burlington made a brief run in the third quarter, as the Demons outscored the Panthers 12-7 and cut the deficit to single digits.
But that run didn’t last, as Wilmot answered with an 18-10 fourth quarter to ice the victory.
Junior Ellen Stang, Burlington’s leading scorer and rebounder, once again paced the squad. She hauled in 18 rebounds after a 20-rebound performance in the playoff opener, scored eight points, swatted five blocks and snatched two steals.
Ashlyn Barry and Ashley Derks each added seven points.
Burlington bids farewell to five seniors, Derks, Tegan Rock, Aldrich, Kristin Burd and Hailey Zwiebel.
In the team’s first year under Parker, the Lady Demons won their first playoff game since 2007 and played their best basketball at the end of the season.
“I am extremely grateful to work with this group of seniors,” Parker said. “As a first-year coach, I could not have asked for a better group of young ladies.”
For the season, Stang led the Demons with 10.9 points per game and 12.3 rebounds per game.
Derks was next with 7.5 points per game, and Aldrich tallied 6.2.
Barry led the team in assists (2.4) and steals (1.7) per game.
-
-
-
-
-