The senior had 22, 7 and 6 in win
A its second-ever trip to state has produced another first for the Winona Senior High School girls basketball team.
The second-seeded Winhawks used a 12-1 run early in the second half to blow out Grand Rapids 76-56 Wednesday at Williams Arena on the University of Minnesota campus.
At 2 p.m. Thursday at Williams Arena, WSHS (24-6), ranked fifth in Class 3A, will take on unseeded Becker (19-9), which upset third-seeded St. Paul Como Park, 62-57.
Senior Hallee Hoeppner was outstanding for the Winhawks with 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Winona was up just 38-36 at halftime before taking over right out of the locker room with a 16-5 run, which included the 12-1 run mentioned earlier.
During that portion, Abby Winter had six points, a steal and an offensive rebound. Throughout the entire run, Hoeppner accounted for eight points, with three field goals and two assists.
Winona held the Thunderhawks (22-8) to just 31.1-percent shooting, going 23-for-74 from the field. and held a 59-40 rebounding advantage.
Senior Jayne Emerson had 17 points, 10 rebounds for WSHS, while Winter finished with 14.