Ranked seventh in the 2A North subsection, the Clipper girls ran into second-seeded Buffalo-Lake Hector Stewart on Tuesday and fell 83-26.
The Mustangs came into the game with just one loss, to Mayer Lutheran, and were ranked second in the state.
An Ava Hahn three at the 12:22 mark was the first basket for the Clippers. The Mustangs already had 13 points by then. Sarena Remiger put in a couple of free throws after, and Greta Hahn hit a three.
Later, Micah Peterson put in a free throw, Kaylee Karels scored from the floor, and the Clippers went into the locker room down 44-11.
In the second half, Karels and Remiger each put in a pair of two-point baskets. Greta Hahn and Taylor McCabe off the bench each made one two pointer. Remiger made two free shots, and Karels made one free shot.
Remiger totaled eight points. Karels had seven. Greta Hahn had five points while her sister Ava had three points.
The Clippers were six of 10 from the foul line. The Mustangs rained down 10 three-point baskets and were three of five from the foul line.
The Clippers were coming off a 56-50 win over Le Sueur-Henderson on February 20 to close out their regular season on a high note. That game was played on the Henderson court.
Ava Hahn and Karels each had a pair of threes in the first half, Greta Hahn had one three, and the Clippers led 27-23 at the break.
With 22 points, Karels led all scorers. Ava Hahn totaled 11 points. Remiger added 10 points. Greta Hahn had seven points. Mariah McCabe put in a pair of free shots for two points. Off the bench, Lacey McCabe made a free shot in the first half and the Clippers’ only three in the second half for four total points.
The Clippers had 18 points from three country and were 12 of 28 from the foul line. The Giants put in a pair of threes and were eight of 22 in free throw shooting.
In the early game on the Henderson court, the Clipper B girls won 49-31 in a team effort to end their season on a high note. They were up 25-17 at the break.
With 13 points, Delaney Thompson led the Clippers. Taylor McCabe added eight points. Samantha Baker put in a three and a two for seven points. Addi Holden also scored seven points. Olivia Reinhardt contributed six points, all from behind the arc. Lacey McCabe had five points, all in the second half and including a three-point basket. Samantha Wondra had a three-pointer.
The Clippers totaled five threes and were eight of 17 from the foul stripe. The Giants made one three and were two of 11 free throw attempts.
Third-ranked BOLD upset the Mustangs on Thursday and will take on Mayer Lutheran in the subsection final. On the other side of the section, it will be a crosstown rivalry with Sleepy Eye taking on Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s.
The Clippers finished their season with a respectable 11-14 record and were 9-7 in the Valley Conference, where they beat all teams at least once except for LCWM and GHEC/T/ML. Losses to the latter team were narrow ones.
With the playoff loss, it was the end of a career for seniors Karels, Peterson, Remiger and Wondra.
Above: Clippers line up in the Cleveland gym for the National Anthem before a game earlier in the season. They are, from L-R, Sarena Remiger, Mollie Bowman, Olivia Reinhardt, Addi Holden, Delaney Thompson, Taylor McCabe, Micah Peterson, Sam Wondra, Samantha Baker, Mariah McCabe, Lacey McCabe, Greta Hahn, Kaylee Karels and Ava Hahn.