Napoleon wins Region 3, going to state

HAZELTON, N.D. — After coming oh so close in recent years, the Napoleon Imperials and their six seniors finally cleared the hurdle that had been giving them fits here on Thursday.

Napoleon’s dynamic duo of seniors Sheridon Dewald and Kendra Weigel scored a game-high 16 points each, as the Imperials are going to state after defeating the Ellendale Cardinals 59-41 in the championship game of the Region 3 Girls Basketball Tournament.

“At the beginning of the season we made a goal. We were like, ‘This is out last year together … girls, let’s make it to state,’” Napoleon senior Kendra Weigel said, who upped her career total in points to 1,457 on Thursday night. “We’re finally going. We put our heads to it and now we are here.”

Napoleon got off to about the best start a team could hope for in a region championship game. The Imperials stifled the Cardinals with a full-court press from the start, which helped to create 11 Ellendale turnovers and eight Napoleon steals in the first half.

When the Cardinals did get through the court-long pressure, the basket was hard to find. The Cards converted just 5-or-25 shots from the field – including 0-of-9 from 3-point range – in the opening 16 minutes, as the Imperials held a commanding 37-15 lead at the half.

“They were as focused as I’ve ever seen them,” Ellendale coach Matt Herman said of the Imperials. “They didn’t leave any doubt. They came out, they knew what they were wanting and they went and did it.

“They didn’t give us a chance to think we could play with them.”

Tags: sports, updates, class, b, basketball