Kewaunee and St. Mary Catholic needed 40 minutes to settle their sectional final contest in Brillion, but it is the Zephyrs who will move on to the Resch Center in Green Bay next week after edging the Storm in overtime, 58-56.
Much of the first half was a seesaw affair, with the Zephyrs and Storm taking turns with one-point leads. Neither team allowed the other to beat them from beyond the arc, with Braelyn Chevalier, Breanna Riha and Jade Kroll hitting the lone 3-pointers for the Storm, while Gabby Guerrero hit both 3s for the Zephyrs in the first half.
Chevalier led the Storm in the first half with 10 points, and Guerrero paced the Zephyrs with eight points as Kewaunee tied the game late in the half. The teams entered the locker room tied, 30-30.
The Storm came out of the locker room on fire, starting the half on a 7-0 run to take a 37-30 lead, the biggest lead either team would enjoy all afternoon. Crowe led the Zephyrs with 15 second-half points to help her squad whittle down the deficit over time. Gabby Stangel was nearly as potent, scoring 12 of her team-high 18 points in the second half to keep the Storm on track.
The Storm and Zephyrs entered the extra period tied at 52-52. Chevalier struck first for the Storm, only to have Amelia Virlee tie the game at 54-54. After an empty possession for the Storm, Brecken Britzke scored the biggest basket of the afternoon with mere seconds remaining. After Stangel's turnover, Crowe was fouled and connected on two free throws to make it a two-possession game. Stangel scored the Storm's final basket as time expired, two points shy of extending their season.
Crowe led all scorers with 24 points for the Zephyrs, while Guerrero added 12 points and Luci Nackers chipped in six. Joining Stangel in double figures for the Storm were Chevalier (17 points) and Kroll (11), while Summer Walechka added nine.
The Storm ends its season 22-6 with a 14-0 mark in the Packerland Conference. Next year's squad will look drastically different as it says goodbye to seniors Summer Walechka, Gabby Stangel, Braelyn Chevalier, Hannah Miller, Breanna Riha, Jade Kroll, Emma Barta and Cora Schleis.
