Wausau Pilot & Review
WAUSAU – The No. 1 seed Wausau Newman Catholic used a dominant second half to pull past No. 4 Marshfield Columbus Catholic, winning 72-53 in a WIAA Division 5 boys basketball regional final Saturday night at Newman Catholic High School.
The Dons, who defeated Newman Catholic in a Division 5 sectional semifinal last season, hung with high-powered Newman Catholic throughout the first half, trailing 35-32 at halftime.
Newman proved too strong in the second half, outscoring Columbus Catholic by 16 points to end the Dons’ season.
Newman Catholic (23-4) moves on to sectionals for the second-straight season and will take on No. 2 seed Stevens Point Pacelli (24-3) in a sectional semifinal Thursday at Wausau West. No. 2 Three Lakes (18-7) will play No. 8 Gibraltar (12-14) in the other semifinal Thursday at Suring, with the winners meeting Saturday, March 11, for the sectional championship game at Rhinelander for a berth in the state tournament.
Emmitt Konieczny had 25 points and Blake Jakobi added 14 for Columbus Catholic, which finishes the season with a 19-8 record.
Mason Prey had a game-high 26 points to lead four Cardinals in double figures. Isaac Seidel added 18, Conner Krach scored 12 and Jackson Pfender chipped in 10 in the win.
Cardinals 72, Dons 53
Columbus Catholic 32 21 – 53
Newman Catholic 35 37 – 72
COLUMBUS CATHOLIC (53): Emmitt Konieczny 9 4-4 25, Charlie Moore 1 2-2 4, Blake Jakobi 5 0-0 14, Grant Olson 0 0-0 0, Lucas Kreklau 4 2-4 10, Cy Becker 0 0-0 0. FG: 19. FT: 8-10. 3-pointers: 7 (Jakobi 4, Konieczny 3). Record: 19-8.
NEWMAN CATHOLIC (72): Mason Prey 8 7-9 26, Thomas Bates 1 0-0 2, Jackson Pfender 3 1-2 10, Conner Krach 4 4-6 12, Isaac Seidel 4 6-6 18, Eli Gustafson 2 1-2 5. FG: 22. FT: 19-25. 3-pointers: 7 (Seidel 4, Prey 3). Record: 23-4.
