The Albert Lea seventh-grade girls’ basketball team won the championship in its own recent tournament.

Waseca was the first step on the way to the title, and the locals won the opening-round game 29-18 after overcoming a 6-1 deficit at the end of the first quarter.

Round two was a close game against Northfield, though Albert Lea never trailed with scores of 6-4, 16-12 and 21-16 at the breaks, with a final of 30-22.

The championship game was a tough battle against Owatonna. Albert Lea took a 9-6 lead in the first quarter with back-to-back baskets from Beth Niebuhr. It was a defensive second quarter, with each team scoring only three baskets, but Albert Lea made the most of its free throws and led 19-12 at the half. It was 21-19 after three quarters, and Albert Lea won 34-29 while making some key free throws in the final 2 minutes.

In all, the Albert Lea girls made 18 of 39 free throws in the title game.

Albert Lea’s scoring totals for the tournament: Hali Hendrickson 33, Dezi Jacobs 18, Jessica Sosebee 14, Sam Cole 12, Heidi Czaplewski six, Ellen Helgerson five, Beth Niebuhr four, Brooke Arnold one.

Defensive highlights were key steals and rebounds from Jacobs and Hendrickson and, after a great practice, Beth Niebuhr using her boxing out skills throughout the tournament. Also working hard defensively were Czaplewski, Chelsey Niebuhr, Jenna Stene and Arnold. Offensively, Sosebee, Helgerson and Cole battled again the opponents’ zone defense to take the ball to the hole.