Falcon, Panther girls stars shine

Ashley Markowiak of Whitnall and Taylor DeLong of Greendale both enjoyed breakout games in a WIAA Division 1 regional contest on March 6, but the Falcons emerged as the winner on the scoreboard.

They downed the Panthers, 60-52, as Markowiak tallied 34 points and DeLong 27. Both were career highs. Markowiak connected on 11 two-pointers, a pair of 3-pointers and six free throws, while DeLong netted 10 from 2-point range and seven of eight from the line.

Ultimately, though, Whitnall pulled out the victory by outscoring Greendale, 25-13, in the fourth quarter to wipe out a 39-35 deficit. Greendale had jumped to a 14-8 lead after one period and held four-point advantages after the second and third quarters.

Lizzy Menden added nine points for the Falcons, who improved to 12-11 on the season. Emily Perszyk tallied eight points for Greendale, which finished its season at 6-17.

Whitnall went on to lose to unbeaten New Berlin Eisenhower, 54-23, on Friday night in a regional semifinal. Markowiak was held to six points and Rachael Shulta put in five points.

The good news for Whitnall coach Keith Larson and Greendale's Andrew Schroeder is that both Markowiak and DeLong are juniors and will be back next season to try to build upon their efforts in the regional game.

- John Rech