Preview: Lady Bulldogs Take On Cavaliers Tonight In Region Basketball Tourney

The Milbank Area Lady Bulldogs have secured the number six seed and will face the number three seed, Aberdeen Roncalli, in the opening round of the Region 1A girls basketball tournament slated to begin Tuesday, February 23, in Britton. The matchup is the second game of the evening and will begin at approximately 6 p.m.

Milbank Area will head into the region tourney with a 6-14 record while Roncalli sits at 11-9. The two teams battled it out in late January with the Lady Bulldogs coming away with a 53-46 victory in front of its home crowd. “I thought we executed our offense throughout the entire game last time,” stated Milbank Area head coach Joe Frederiksen. “We need to be ready to play and do the same thing Tuesday.”

Despite having a 6-14 record, the Lady Bulldogs have remained positive and continue to work hard towards its goals. “Each year is different,” explained Frederiksen. “We have lost a lot of close games this year, so if the ball had bounced the other way, we would have a lot more wins. I am proud of how this team has stuck together and has played hard throughout the season.”

Frederiksen noted that his players will need to put together a complete game to secure a win and advance to the semi-finals Thursday. “The biggest key to the game of basketball is to compete for 32 minutes. That will be a big key for us throughout this post season.”

Currently Mackayla Schuelke and Sophia Seffrood are injured with concussions and their status for the tournament is yet to be determined.

In other first round games, number two seeded Groton Area will take on the number seven seed, Tiospa Zina, in the first game of the tournament Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. Number four seeded Sisseton and number five seeded Britton-Hecla will battle for a win in the final game of the evening. The winner will advance to Thursday, February 25’s semi-final game against number one seeded Webster Area.

The winner of the Milbank Area/Roncalli game will take on the winner of Groton Area/Tiospa Zina in the second semi-final game Thursday. The championship game is slated for Tuesday, March 1, at 7 p.m. in Britton.

Keep up with The Valley Express for all your post-season tournament results.