Arcadia wraps up conference play with win over Viroqua
Tatum Drazkowski posted a double-double with 16 points and 18 rebounds as Arcadia finished Coulee play with a win over Viroqua last Thursday. (Times photograph by Zach Rastall)
It did not come easy but the Arcadia girls basketball team finished up their Coulee schedule with a home win over Viroqua.
The Raiders (13-11, 8-4 Coulee) clinched a winning record overall this season and put the final touches on their third-place run through conference play with that victory against the Blackhawks. The following day, Arcadia suffered a non-conference loss to Durand-Arkansaw.
Following a first-round bye, the fifth-seeded Raiders are set to hit the road to take on No. 4 seed Bloomer in a Division 2 regional semifinal Friday at 7 p.m. The winner advances to the regional finals to likely face No. 1 Elk Mound but could also face either No. 8 seed Stanley-Boyd or No. 9 seed Viroqua Saturday at 7 p.m.
“We’ve got a first-round bye and then until Friday to prepare,” said Arcadia head coach Evan Pagel. “We’re going to really spend some time watching some film, understanding what Bloomer’s strengths and then doubling down on our weaknesses.”
Arcadia 53 Viroqua 44
The Raiders couldn’t shake Viroqua (8-13, 4-8) until the final minutes of the game, but they did manage to complete a season sweep of the Blackhawks last Thursday at the Wanek Center.
In the Jan. 10 meeting between these two in Viroqua, Arcadia narrowly escaped with a 46-44 win. Things didn’t come much easier for the Raiders at home in the rematch.
Arcadia led 25-19 at halftime but had to fight their way back in the second half after the Blackhawks used a 16-5 run to jump ahead 35-30. The Raiders quickly answered with a 7-0 run of their own to retake the lead.
Viroqua continued to nip at Arcadia’s heels the rest of the way until the Raiders finally created some separation in the final minutes to seal the deal on the win.
Arcadia leaders included Tatum Drazkowski with 16 points and 18 rebounds for a double-double to go along with five assists and six steals, Madison Grotjahn with 16 points, Kaitlyn Bremer with eight points and Justine Sonsalla with six points.
Viroqua’s Allyah Schwem went off for 30 points and swiped five steals in the loss.
Arcadia (field goals/attempts-free throws/attempts-rebounds-points)—Bremer 2/5-4/4-2-8; Grotjahn 5/11-3/4-3-16; Lockington 2/8-0/2-5-4; Drazkowski 7/17-1/6-18-16; Boland 0/2-0/0-2-0; Schlosstein 0/1-0/0-2-0; Schlesser 1/3-0/0-3-3; Sonsolla 2/8-0/0-4-6.
D-A 64 Arcadia 52
In the final game of the regular season, Arcadia suffered a road loss to the Durand-Arkansaw Panthers (19-5) last Friday in Durand.
Leading the way for the Raiders in that game were Drazkowski with 19 points, seven rebounds and four steals, Grotjahn with 10 points and eight rebounds and Sonsalla with seven points and five rebounds.
Arcadia (field goals/attempts-free throws/attempts-rebounds-points)—Bremer 0/2-0/0-2-0; Grotjahn 4/9-0/4-8-10; Lockington 1/2-0/0-2-3; Drazkowski 7/12-4/6-7-19; Anderson 2/2-0/0-3-6; Boland 1/2-0/0-1-2; Schlesser 1/2-2/2-4-5; Bautch 0/1-0/0-0-0; Sonsalla 3/7-0/2-5-7.
