The Gladbrook-Reinbeck girls’ basketball team rallies around Kennedy Brant and their new state qualifier banner after beating Lynnville-Sully 43-39 in Wednesday’s Class 1A Region 8 championship game at Nevada High School. The Rebels qualified for state for the first time since 1994. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

NEVADA — Lily Dripps never had a doubt.

The Gladbrook-Reinbeck senior could see, from the very first practices this season, how much the Rebel girls basketball team wanted this to be their year.

Their will found a way on Wednesday night — G-R opened up a big second-half lead that withstood Lynnville-Sully’s comeback attempt for a 43-39 Rebel triumph in the Class 1A Region 8 final at Nevada High School.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck (21-3) heads to state for the first time since 1994, and will take on second-seeded North Linn in a 1A quarterfinal at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 5.

Kennedy Brant led the Rebels with 15 points, Brinn Schneider added 10 points and Kailey Larsen finished with seven.

From left, Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s Olivia Riffey, Lily Dripps and Kennedy Brant celebrate after defeating Lynnville-Sully 43-39 in the Class 1A Region 8 championship game Wednesday at Nevada High School. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

“I’m just so proud of this team and how far we’ve come,” Dripps said. “I knew there wouldn’t be anyone stopping us from making the state tournament.”

The Hawks (18-6), averaging nearly 60 points per game coming into Wednesday’s game, were held to nine first-half points in an intense first 16 minutes where the teams scrapped to a 15-9 Rebel advantage at halftime.

“We got good shots right away and just didn’t knock anything down,” G-R head coach Amber Gerringer said. “We talked at halftime about how we’re playing great defense, and if we can just make some shots, we’re going to get ourselves some breathing room here.”

The rest was what the Rebels needed, exploding for the first 13 points of the third quarter as G-R’s margin ballooned to 19 points.

“We played really aggressive and tight with them and just wore them down with our press,” G-R junior Elly Sieh said. “I think tiring them out in the beginning helped us get a good lead.”

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

Sieh, G-R’s second leading scorer behind Kennedy Brant with 12.7 points per game, was held to six points tonight.

Fellow junior Brinn Schneider was there to be a reliable scoring option in Sieh’s stead, contributing all 10 of her points on Wednesday in the initial push to that big Rebel lead.

“I was just trying to play my role,” Schneider said. “Knock down the shots that I needed to knock down and just score.”

Lynnville-Sully showed signs of life in the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run to start the final frame, including a stretch where Sieh and Schneider had to sit with four fouls each, but a couple Sieh free throws and clutch back-to-back baskets from Kailey Larsen and Kennedy Brant pushed the lead back to 12.

Brant was consistently the best player in the paint on either end of the court on Wednesday, limiting the Hawks to one shot on the majority of their trips down the floor and creating a big challenge for the Lynnville-Sully defense under the basket.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck junior guard Elly Sieh (4) drives to the basket past Lynnville-Sully defender Ava Brummel (53) during Wednesday’s Class 1A Region 8 final in Nevada. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

“She’s such a leader on the court, and we put a lot on her shoulders,” Gerringer said. “I think she did a really good job of holding things together for us when we had some off lineups because of foul trouble and different things like that, and I’m so impressed with how she’s grown this year in maturity and handling herself in big games like this.”

One final Hawk push had Lynnville-Sully within four at 43-39 with under a minute to go, as G-R’s struggles at the free-throw line, combined with costly turnovers, threatened to upend their Hollywood ending.

“We definitely got a little bit off our hinges here and there,” Dripps said, “but we had our main girls staying calm and collected and making sure everyone was doing their parts and making it flow like it should. It may not have been the best game for us, but we got flowing as a team again.”

The Rebels ended up 13-of-25 from the free-throw line, but defensive consistency didn’t take a play off and when shots eventually stopped falling for Lynnville-Sully, time eventually ran out and the celebration was underway.

“This is blood, sweat and tears from us ever since we were little girls,” Brant said. “It means so much to be able to accomplish it, because we worked so hard. … We were getting one step further every year, and I think this team just loves it so much and wanted it so bad.”

Gladbrook-Reinbeck junior guard Brinn Schneider (0) slips past Lynnville-Sully’s Isabelle Vos for a shot attempt during Wednesday’s game in Nevada. Schneider scored 10 points for the Rebels. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

Gladbrook-Reinbeck 43, Lynnville-Sully 39

LYNNVILLE-SULLY (18-6) — Kate Harthoorn 0 2-2 2, Tatum Huyser 1 0-0 2, Alaina Roberts 2 0-0 6, Brilynn Tice 2 6-7 10, Ava Brummel 0 3-4 3, Breah Lowry 3 0-0 8, Isabelle Vos 2 6-7 10, Brooke Harthoorn 2 1-2 5, Kenna Johnson 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 11 13-19 39.

GLADBROOK-REINBECK (21-3) — Brinn Schneider 4 0-0 10, Dylan Mathern 0 1-2 1, Elly Sieh 2 2-4 6, Lily Dripps 1 2-4 4, Kennedy Brant 6 3-7 15, Olivia Riffey 0 0-0 0, Blake Mathern 0 0-0 0, Leila Thesing 0 0-0 0, Kailey Larsen 1 5-8 7. TOTALS 14 13-25 43.

L-S 4 5 10 20 — 39

G-R 6 9 19 9 — 43

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

3-Point Goals-Lynnville-Sully 4 (Roberts 2, Lowry 2), G-R 2 (Schneider 2). Team Fouls-Lynnville-Sully 19, G-R 25. Fouled Out-none.

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER