The Gladbrook-Reinbeck girls’ basketball team poses with its Class 1A state quarterfinalist trophy after losing to North Linn 33-29 in a state tournament quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 5, at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. It marked the Rebels’ first trip to state since 1994. PHOTO BY MATTHEW PUTNEY/MP MEDIA

DES MOINES – With 31 years between state tournament appearances, Amber Gerringer would understand if there were questions about whether Gladbrook-Reinbeck girls basketball belonged at Wells Fargo Arena.

The G-R head coach thinks everyone has their answer now after last Wednesday’s (March 5) Class 1A quarterfinal with North Linn.

The defending champion Lynx caught some breaks at the right time to fend off the Rebels, 33-29, in a defensive slugfest in Des Moines that evening.

Second-ranked North Linn (24-1) advanced to play Newell-Fonda in a Friday semifinal, while a breakthrough season for G-R ended at 21-4.

“We showed that we are that good,” Gerringer said. “We got a little validation that we can play with these good players.”

Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s Kennedy Brant (14) defends a shot by North Linn’s Samantha West (50) under the basket in a Class 1A girls’ state basketball quarterfinal game on March 5 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Brant led the Rebels with 13 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots in their 33-29 loss to North Linn. PHOTO BY MATTHEW PUTNEY/MP MEDIA

It was a season-low point total for North Linn, and the fewest points the Lynx have scored since a 46-32 loss to Springville on Feb. 15, 2016.

“I think our defense being so strong really flustered North Linn,” G-R junior Elly Sieh said. “I don’t think they were expecting us to be so competitive.”

G-R was within 30-29 with just under two minutes to play after a free throw from Dylan Mathern. The Rebels got the ball back on a Lynx offensive foul and Sieh put up a running layup that rolled off the edge of the rim, rebounded by North Linn who later called timeout with 1:14 remaining.

The ensuing inbounds pass was deflected by Sieh to Kennedy Brant, and the Rebels moved the ball around for an eventual kickout to Kailey Larsen for a 3-pointer that was off the mark.

After killing some clock, the Lynx nearly turned it over again on an inbounds play but recovered to get a chance to add to their lead at the line — Molly Boge obliged making the first of two free throws with eight seconds left, and the loose ball off the miss eventually ended up back in Boge’s grasp, with the Lynx saving possession with a quick timeout.

Boge added two free throws with two seconds left to seal the game.

“Couple possessions bounce our way, we get those rebounds on loose balls instead and it’s a different game,” Gerringer said. “There’s no shame in that, we played great defense and went out and competed.”

The teams were tied 7-7 after the first quarter and G-R went into the locker room at halftime with a 15-12 lead.

“We stayed really calm in their press,” Brant said. “We didn’t get overwhelmed or frustrated.”

G-R’s biggest lead came in the third quarter, with a Brant steal leading to a Lily Dripps jumper to make it 20-16 with 4:38 left in the third.

Brant finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks and two steals and Sieh added eight points, four assists and three steals. The Rebels had seven steals to contribute to North Linn’s 16 total turnovers.

Ultimately, the Lynx were the superior rebounding team, outrebounding the Rebels 37-27 including 15-9 on the offensive glass.

“They definitely had a bit more experience,” Brant said. “They got the jitters out of the way earlier than we did when it came down to it and hit more shots than we did.”

Wednesday was the final game for seniors Lily Dripps and Dylan Mathern.

Dripps was a freshman when Gerringer joined G-R as head coach for the 2021-22 season, the Rebels were 9-14 that year, continuing what was at the time a string of seven consecutive losing seasons. Three years later, Dripps goes out holding a state quarterfinalist trophy

“It’s so cool to see how she’s invested and grown since being a freshman,” Gerringer said. “Dylan was such a huge addition for us and fit so well even with us asking her to play a very different role than what she was used to. She’s the kind of kid that will do anything you ask of her and was an integral part of us making this jump, and I’m just thrilled that both of them got to go out on this stage.”

Nothing’s guaranteed for next year, but the Rebels will have three returning starters in Sieh, Brant and sharpshooter Brinn Schneider as part of a promising senior class.

“We’re excited to do it all again next year,” Sieh said. “We’re going to miss our seniors because they had a really big impact on our team, but we just know that we’re going to grow and get better every year. … Kennedy and I have had to step up in leadership every year starting as freshmen, so we’re really looking forward to that next year.”

No. 2 North Linn 33, No. 8 Gladbrook-Reinbeck 29

GLADBROOK-REINBECK (21-4) — Brinn Schneider 0-2 0-0 0, Dylan Mathern 1-4 1-2 3, Elly Sieh 3-8 1-2 8, Lily Dripps 1-8 0-0 2, Kennedy Brant 6-14 1-3 13, Olivia Riffey 1-1 0-0 3, Blake Mathern 0-0 0-0 0, Leila Thesing 0-2 0-0 0, Kailey Larsen 0-4 0-0 0. TOTALS 12-43 3-7 29.

NORTH LINN (24-1) — Allie Haughenbury 1-7 0-0 2, Mackenzie Bridgewater 3-11 0-0 6, Molly Boge 5-11 3-5 15, Carly Riese 0-2 0-0 0, Emilee Beuter 3-7 2-5 8, Ava Hoover 0-1 0-0 0, Samantha West 1-3 0-0 2. TOTALS 13-42 5-10 37.

G-R 7 8 7 7 — 29

NORTH LINN 7 5 13 8 — 33

3-Point Goals-G-R 2-15 (Riffey 1-1, Sieh 1-2, Dripps 0-1, Schneider 0-2, D. Mathern 0-2, Brant 0-3, Larsen 0-4), North Linn 2-11 (Boge 2-6, Haughenbury, Ries 0-1, Hoover 0-1, Bridgewater 0-2). Rebounds-G-R 27 (Brant 11), North Linn 37 (Beuter 12). Assists-G-R 4 (Sieh 4), North Linn 6 (Boge 4). Team Fouls-G-R 12, North Linn 8. Fouled Out-Haughenbury.