Bedford 55, Ar-We-Va 54

Bedford’s Kayla Lindenmeyer made two free throws at just the right time.

The Bulldogs missed six straight foul shots in the fourth quarter before Lindenmeyer dropped in a pair with 31.3 seconds left, giving her third-ranked team the cushion it needed to beat sixth-ranked Ar-We-Va 55-54 in first-round Class 1A play.

Bedford won for the first time in three tries at state and will take a 25-1 record into a semifinal game at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday.

Caila Raymond led Bedford with 20 points and 13 rebounds. She made her first seven shots and finished 9-for-12 from the field. Lindenmeyer finished with 19 points and Savanna Thornton scored 11, including a go-ahead 3-pointer late in the game.

Dani Kock led Ar-We-Va with 18 points and 15 rebounds, while sophomore Paige Danner scored 14 and had four steals. Ar-We-Va, the state runner-up last year, finished 21-4.

Lindenmeyer’s two free throws gave Bedford a 55-52 lead, meaning Ar-We-Va needed a 3-pointer to tie it. The Rockets missed from long range and Kock scored on a putback for the final points.

LeMars Gehen Catholic 52, North Butler 34

The ninth-ranked Jays broke the game open in the second quarter and beat No. 2 North Butler 52-34 in a first-round Class 1A game.

Steph Rohe scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Gehlen in its first-ever state tournament game. The Jays improved to 21-4 and will play third-ranked Bedford in a semifinal game at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday.

Rohe also had six of Gehlen’s 13 steals. Katelin Langel added nine points and nine rebounds for the Jays, while Emily Holtgrewe and Amber Timmins each scored eight.

Lisa Feldman led North Butler with 10 points. Cassidy Bangasser led the Bearcats with seven rebounds and scored six points.

West Sioux 54, Lynnville-Sully 43

A third-quarter comeback and clutch fourth-quarter shooting carried West Sioux to a victory in its first-ever state tournament game.

Jade Lynn Vlotho scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and fifth-ranked West Sioux rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat No. 4 Lynnville-Sully 54-43 in a first-round Class 1A game.

Dana Weerheim added 16 points for the Falcons, including a key 3-pointer and four big free throws in the fourth quarter. Carissa Anderson helped out with 11 points, while Shannon Kots grabbed 13 rebounds to go with seven points.

West Sioux improved to 25-1 and will play a semifinal game at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Lynnville-Sully, in the tournament for the third straight year and ninth time overall, finished 23-3. Brianna James led the Hawks with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Brittany Bryan scored 11 points. It was the final high school game for both, with James finishing her career with more than 1,000 points.

North Mahaska 47, North Tama 35

Top-ranked North Mahaska has held teams in check all season and the unbeaten Warhawks did it again in their first game at the Class 1A state tournament.

North Mahaska scored the game’s final 10 points and beat No. 13 North Tama 47-35 to complete the semifinal pairings. The Warhawks will take a 26-0 record against No. 5 West Sioux at 8:30 Saturday night.

Mallory Boyle and Abbie Agan led North Mahaska with 13 points each. Boyle also grabbed seven rebounds, while Agan made four of her team’s 12 steals. She turned her final steal into a layup that gave the Warhawks a 10-point lead in the final minute.