By Ryan Deal

605 Sports

WATERTOWN — Viborg-Hurley prevented Aberdeen Roncalli from going back-to-back in two different classes.

The No. 8 seeded Cougars stunned the No. 1 Cavaliers, 69-58, in the opening round of the Class B state tournament on Thursday at the Watertown Civic Arena.

The Cavaliers claimed last year’s Class A state championship on the very same court and rolled to a 22-1 season, but the Cougars spoiled their repeat bid in an opening-round stunner.

“You can envision the win and envision taking down Aberdeen Roncalli, which is such a great team,” Viborg-Hurley coach Molly Mason said. “It’s a ton of work and tons of prep to try to prepare for them, but here we are and we did it and it’s such a great feeling.”

The Cougars (19-5) received 22 points and six rebounds from Denae Mach, while Coral Mason added 19 points and five rebounds. Estelle Lee added 17 points and Shelby Lyons scored nine points.

Roncalli (22-2) received 24 points and seven rebounds from Madelyn Bragg. Morgan Fiedler added 13 points and five rebounds, while Jeci Ewart had 10 points and six rebounds. 

The Cougars used a second-half surge to secure the upset win. The game was knotted up at 35-35 with four minutes left in the third quarter, but Mason’s 3-pointer capped off an 8-0 spurt and a 43-35 advantage with 1:21 left. 

In all, the Cougars finished 7 of 17 at the 3-point line. Lyons and Mach finished with three 3-pointers apiece.  

“We’ve been waiting for something like this to happen,” said Coral Mason, Molly’s daughter. “We’ve kind of been in a slump for 3-pointers, but once we started shooting them and lighting up, it’s hard to stop us.”

In the final quarter, Viborg-Hurley never let Roncalli get within striking distance and the Cougars closed out the upset win at the free-throw line. The Cougars shot 30 of 36 at the foul line. 

Afterward, Molly Mason praised her team’s composure in the waning seconds of the game.

“We’ve been in really tight games several times this season,” she said. “They’ve been so good at maintaining their focus and their composure all season long.”

Roncalli's Madelyn Bragg gets the ball knocked away on Thursday in Watertown. (Ryan Deal / 605 Sports)

They also did it against a potent Cavalier team. Bragg, a 6-foot-2 senior signed with Northern State University, finished 9 of 22 from the field. Fiedler, another NSU signee, was also high on Viborg-Hurley’s game plan. 

“We actually brought in some eighth-grade boys that were 6-1 and that really helped play tough defense on us and then we had the big body inside,” Molly Mason said. “We saw a lot of things that we wouldn't have been able to see before coming here. So it helped out well.”

The action was fast paced in the first half. They played to a 18-18 first-quarter draw and Roncalli led 28-27 at halftime. But the Cougars pulled away from the Cavaliers in the third quarter for the upset. 

Roncalli will play White River in Friday’s consolation semifinals. The teams both won state championships last season as White River won last season’s Class B state title.

The Cougars will play another strong foe in Corsica-Stickney, which is making its fourth consecutive trip to the semifinals. 

“We are in the present right now and we are celebrating this,” Coral Mason said. “But after we get back to the hotel, we have to regroup and be ready to go to the next one.”