Standouts From Friday at the State Tournament

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yet again, Friday contained some excellent basketball games. There were a few state titles handed out in 3Avand 5A. Plenty of players who helped their teams win a state title or send their team to the state title game today. Let's talk about four kids who excelled yesterday and what they did that made them stand out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='314094' first='Payton' last='Petersen']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Over the first half of Dike-New Hartford's state semifinal game against Sibley-Ocheyedan, Petersen dominated. She finished the half with 17 points and eight rebounds. Even with those numbers, it still doesn't describe how well she played. It felt like every time down the floor, Petersen would make a play around the rim or grab an offensive rebound. The future Louisville Cardinal volleyball player overpowered the Generals throughout the game and gave the Wolverines the separation they needed to keep the Generals behind on the scoreboard, even when they made a run late.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jessie Clemons</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clemons was one of the most crucial players in the 5A state title game. Every time Clemons took her defender off the dribble in the first half, it felt like she would either finish through contact at the rim or draw a foul when her defender tried to dislodge the ball. The future Iowa State softball player helped Pleasant Valley earn their first state title in school history behind her 18-point and eight-rebound performance to help the Spartans edge Johnston in the 5A state title game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Afton Schlumbohm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most of the eyes on 2A will go toward Central Lyon when they take the floor for the state title game against Dike-New Hartford. However, Schlumbohm was excellent in the Lions' semifinal win over Pocahontas Area. She had to deal with defensive pressure for 94 feet the entire game and made a few mistakes here and there, but overall she dealt with the pressure well. The guard turned that pressure into opportunities for her teammates. She finished with six assists, eight points, and seven rebounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='608159' first='Willow' last='Bleeker']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sioux Center entered Des Moines as the No. 6 seed in 3A and left the Wells Fargo Center as state champions. In the title game, Bleeker finished with 17 points. What helped her reach that total was her ability to get to the free-throw line and convert at the charity stripe. She shot nine for nine at the charity stripe and helped her team create turnovers on the defensive end in all three games the Warriors played in Des Moines.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->