Eagles eliminate Pioneers from WIAC Tournament

Photo courtesy of James Lund

LA CROSSE, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville women's basketball team saw its 2021-22 campaign come to a close Friday night after UW-La Crosse defeated the Pioneers 57-44 to advance to the second round of the WIAC Tournament (presented by Culver's). UW-Platteville finishes the season 10-15 while UW-La Crosse improves to 14-11 after the win in Mitchell Hall. 

The Pioneers entered the tournament as the eighth seed and traveled to fifth seed UW-La Crosse. It was the first time the two teams faced off in the conference tournament. 

"This was not quite the ending we envisioned. But while our record isn't impressive, I do believe our team made great strides throughout the season. We put together a seven game win streak and started the year 2-0 in conference, things that haven't happened here in over a decade," said head coach Kelly McNiff. 

Fans had an exciting night as the teams had seven lead changes in the first quarter with the Eagles holding a slight 11-10 lead after the first ten minutes. 

In the second quarter, Aspyn Stewart's (Sr./Stockton, Ill.) jumper tied the game 14-14 at the 4:03 mark and Sarah Mueller (So./Stevens Point, Wis.) knocked down a three-pointer right after to take a 17-16 lead. UW-La Crosse's Lauryn Milne's layup gave the Eagles the edge, but Maiah Domask (Sr./Waupun, Wis.) answered Milne with a layup of her own and the Pioneers led 19-18 with 2:45 left in the first half. The Eagles pulled ahead in the final minute to lead 23-19 at the half. 

UW-La Crosse blitzed out with a 9-2 run to start the second half and the Pioneers found themselves trailing 32-21 with 5:19 left in the third quarter. UW-Platteville answered back with a 9-0 run of their own as Barb Kling's (Fr./New Richmond, Wis.) layup kickstarted the momentum shift at 4:16. Mueller hit another three-pointer at 0:36 and the Pioneers had cut the Eagles' lead to 37-34. 

Stewart nailed a three-pointer to open the final quarter and cut UW-La Crosse's lead to 39-37, but the Eagles went on an 8-1 run over the next four minutes to extend their lead to 47-38 with 5:18 remaining. UW-Platteville was unable to draw within fewer than seven for the remainder of the game. 

The Pioneers shot 34.5 percent (19-of-55) from the field, including 17.6 percent (3-of-17) from three-point territory. UW-Platteville was 75 percent (3-of-4) from the foul line. 

The Eagles finished 39.2 percent (20-of-51) from the field, including 36.4 percent (4-of-11) from behind the arc and made 13-of-17 (76.5 percent) of free throws. 

UW-Platteville held a 36-31 advantage on rebounds with Domask grabbing a game-high 16.  Mueller led the Pioneers and had a game-high 14 points.  

The loss marks the conclusion of three Pioneers' careers: Maiah Domask, Taylor Gilbert (Sr./Kingston, Ill.) and Aspyn Stewart. After the game, McNiff praised her seniors. 

"It's really hard to say goodbye to our seniors. Maiah, Aspyn and Taylor are leaving some big, big shoes to fill. Hopefully our returners and newcomers will be up to the challenge."