Tigers finish season with 18-9 record

By Paul Lecker

Sports Reporter

WAUPACA — A tough start to its WIAA Division 4 boys basketball sectional final led to a crushing end for Stratford.

The Tigers fell behind 25-9 by halftime and could not recover, losing 50-32 to Manitowoc Roncalli on Saturday afternoon at Waupaca High School.

Stratford’s Brenden Fecker drives past a Manitowoc Roncalli defender during the WIAA Division 4 boys basketball sectional final Saturday at Waupaca High School. The Tigers lost 50-32.

Stratford made just 10 of 35 shots from the field in the loss and finish the season with an 18-9 record.

Roncalli (13-13) moves on to the 2017 WIAA State Boys Basketball Tournament where it will face Milwaukee Destiny (24-1) in a D-4 semifinal on Thursday at the Kohl Center in Madison. Destiny will be making its first-ever state appearance. Roncalli has not won a game at state in five tries.

Stratford, which was trying to qualify for its first state tournament, scored the first three points before Roncalli had the next 11 to take the lead, and the Jets would never trail again.

Roncalli pushed its lead to 25-9 by halftime and maintained a double-digit advantage until Stratford made a run late.

The Tigers cut it to 37-28 after a 7-2 run, but then Roncalli responded with 13 points in a row.

Vaughn Breit and Brenden Fecker each scored seven points to top Stratford, which had its lowest scoring output of the season.

Chombi Lambert led the Jets with 22 points.

(Hub City Times Sports Reporter Paul Lecker is also the publisher of MarshfieldAreaSports.com.)

Jets 50, Tigers 32

Roncalli 25 25 – 50

Stratford 9 23 – 32

RONCALLI (50): Statistics not provided. Record: 13-13.

STRATFORD (32): Brenden Fecker 1-6 5-5 7, Cole Hoffmann 1-5 3-4 5, Okley Wrensch 0-2 0-0 0, Lucas Heidmann 0-0 0-0 0, Paul Huther 1-1 0-0 2, Trent Heckel 1-4 0-0 3, Andrew Bargender 0-0 0-0 0, Branden Ackley 0-1 0-0 0, Vaughn Breit 3-10 1-1 7, Lance Heidmann 1-2 0-0 3, Jacob Danen 2-4 1-3 5. FG: 10-35. FT: 10-13. 3-pointers: 2-14 (La. Heidmann 1-2, Heckel 1-4, Hoffmann 0-1, Ackley 0-1, Breit 0-1, Wrensch 0-2, Fecker 0-3). Rebounds: 19 (Hoffmann 6). Fouls: 12. Fouled out: none. Record: 18-9.