BONDUEL, WI- Bonduel is one win away from a trip to the state tournament after a hard-fought victory over Southern Door in the sectional semifinal 71-54. The Bears overcame early struggles to secure the win and now set their sights on Auburndale in Saturday’s sectional final at Stevens Point.
The Bears knew they were in for a tough, physical contest against Southern Door, and the first half tested them.
“We started out a little shaky, but the kids just came through,” head coach Duke Copp said. “They played fantastic in the second half.”
Bonduel’s size advantage proved to be the difference, particularly with Ryan Westrich dominating inside.
“The big guys struggled a little at the beginning, but then they couldn’t stop him inside,” Copp said. “We had some big threes, and we defended well. Drew Daoust had 28, but I think he had to work for them—that was our goal.”
The Bears showcased their balanced attack, with multiple players stepping up.
“I know Carter, Mason, Race hit a couple big threes. Carter hits threes. Quinn hit a big three,” Copp added. “Our strength by far is our balance.”
Westrich ended the game with 25 points, while Carter Moesch had 15.
The Road to State Runs Through Auburndale
Bonduel will now face Auburndale in the sectional final, a team they are familiar with from recent postseason battles in multiple sports.
“We have probably a little more confidence right now,” Copp said. “Auburndale is well-coached, and they’re a tough team, so we’ll be ready.”
The matchup is the latest chapter in what has been a remarkable run of success for Bonduel athletics. Since last season’s Sectional Final basketball appearance, the school has sent teams to state in baseball, golf, volleyball, and cross country. Now, the Bears are one win away from another trip to Madison.
“It’s a special group of athletes,” Copp said. “They’re great kids, they play hard, they work hard, and they’re pretty good.”
One More to Go
As Bonduel prepares for Saturday’s showdown, the message from Copp is simple: “One more win.”
“We needed to get this one to move on,” Copp said. “Now we just need one more. We’ll have a good practice, get ready for Auburndale, and see what happens.”
The Bears know they’ll get Auburndale’s best shot, but they’ve been in that position all season.
“All year we’ve had teams come at us,” Copp said. “We had that number one ranking for a while, and we knew teams were coming at us. We struggled early tonight, but once we settled down, we handled it.”
With the game set for a Saturday afternoon at a big venue in Stevens Point, Kopp hopes for another electric crowd.
“This is exactly what you play for,” Copp said. “The atmosphere tonight was amazing. What a great place to play. The crowd turned out, and it was just a lot of fun. This is what high school basketball should be.”
Now, Bonduel looks to keep the magic going for one more game.
Photo: Credit Rich Montour
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