A fairy tale ending Millard South ends season on top

When the final buzzer rang and a spot in the state championship final was secured, a sense of relief washed over the Patriots.

A storybook ending for girls basketball as the team finds a way past the semifinals to defeat Lincoln High 72-60 and bring home the program’s first state championship title since 1996.

“It meant a lot,” senior Khloe Lemon said. “In previous years, we fell short. Finally coming together as a team and all having the same end goal, I felt like that really helped us win.”

To get to the state final game, the team first had to beat Lincoln Southwest, a team that upset the Patriots in the semifinals last season.

“It was definitely a revenge game,” senior Cora Olsen said. “It felt really good to beat them after losing to them last year.”

The team sailed past the Silverhawks, winning 74-58 to make it back to the semis. After falling short in the semifinals the last three years, the seven seniors knew what they needed to do to get past the Thunderbirds in the teams’ “rubber match.”

“Going into the game, we knew what we had to do,” senior Juliana Jones said. “We had really good defense and felt really good as a team.”

Senior Mya Babbitt led the team with 28 points and eight three-pointers, setting the all-class state tournament record for threes in a game.

“The whole experience was just crazy,” Babbitt said. “We knew we had to come out and make a lot of points if we wanted to win. We kept making our shots, and I think that’s what really set us apart.”

“We knew falling short was not an option this year,” Lemon said. “After everything we’ve been through, to be able to have the opportunity to play in the championship game with my team really meant a lot.”

In that final game, the #3 seed Lincoln High was up 17-10 after the first quarter. Being down, Millard South knew they had to up their intensity if they wanted to cut down the nets at PBA.

“Everyone knew we had to stay positive,” Olsen said. “It was a one-and-done kind of game, so we knew we had to get our energy up if we wanted to win.”

As soon as the second quarter started, the Patriots took the lead and never looked back.

“The crowd really got us going,” senior Lexi Finkenbiner said. “They gave us the energy we needed to get the job done.”

As the final minute counted down and the scoreboard read 72-60 Millard South, the teams dreams of finally winning a state championship title became a reality.

“It was a weight lifted off my shoulders, watching the clock come down and seeing we were on top,” senior Grace Prucha said. “When the buzzer rang and we all stormed the court, it was like a storybook ending.”

“I’m just so grateful for this team,” Finkenbiner said. “I wouldn’t want to win a state title with anyone else.”