Girls basketball: On to the next one, remain undefeated

The Royals girls basketball team defeated the Washburn Millers on Weds., Mar. 1. Their 75-21 victory over Washburn marks their twenty-seventh win, maintaining their undefeated season.

The section quarterfinals matchup was a home playoff game. The Washburn Millers drop to 7-20 with their loss to the Royals.

With their win over Eden Prairie last week on Thurs., Feb. 23, the Royals became the first girls basketball team in school history to go undefeated in the regular season.

The Royals have been working hard all season to make it to the playoffs, and now that it is finally here, they are practicing even harder.

“We practiced really hard this week. We even practiced against the boys so we could get a feel for what tougher competition will be like in sections and state,” said Hannah Kleist, senior.

With their win against Washburn, the Royals advance to section semifinals. This season, they have been led by Paige Bueckers, sophomore, and Raena Suggs, junior, who are averaging 23.3 and 17.3 points, respectively.

The primary focus of the Royals this season has been defense, holding all of their opponents to 60 points or under.

The team’s defensive intensity clearly got the job done in their win over Washburn. They held the team to 21 points, the lowest point total for the opposing team all season.

“We needed to play our own game and not worry about our opponent. We played good defense and took care of the ball,” Kleist said.

The Royals take on the Minneapolis South Tigers in a neutral playoff game on Saturday, Mar. 4.