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IC Catholic Prep can't catch Walther Christian

Having coached Walther Christian before arriving last off-season at IC Catholic Prep, Knights coach Todd Fisher knew what to expect in Thursday's Class 2A IC Catholic girls basketball regional final.

But knowing what the Broncos are capable of and stopping them are two different things.

Walther Christian senior Tasia Jordan seemed to be all over the court. The Lewis University recruit poured in 37 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and had 7 steals to lead the visiting team to a 62-56 victory.

"I had that group for their first three years and we knew who we needed to try and contain," Fisher said, "but when you've got a special talent like that, she was hard to stop."

The Broncos scored the game's first 9 points, but the Knights (19-13) roared back to tie the game at 14 at the end for the first quarter.

"We thought we were ready to come out and play. We got hyped up, but sometimes you just kind of fall flat in the beginning. We recovered pretty well, but that lead is what got us in the end, I think," Knights senior Hannah Johnson said.

Walther Christian regained the lead at the start of the second quarter and never gave it up, though the Knights did come close a few times.

Darian Mobley put the Broncos' lead in double digits early in the third quarter. A Gia Gaudio 3-pointer off a Johnson assist and Johnson's layup off a steal put the Broncos within a point early in the fourth quarter. Jordan, who at one point in the second half connected on seven consecutive shots, responded with the next 7 points and the Knights never pulled closer than 4 the rest of the game.

"She's a hard player to defend, but nobody can really say we didn't go out there and give it our all," Johnson said.

Sophomore Claire Wagner led the Knights with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Gaudio, another senior, scored 14 points and Johnson had 11.

"They've got really great 3-point shooters. So do we, but sometimes shots fall, sometimes they don't and you can't really help that," Johnson said.

"Our kids fought and that's what I love about this team. They fought to the end," Fisher added.

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