Big Rapids defeated Clare on Monday night in girls basketball, earning a spot in the regional championship game.

The Cardinals struggled early to score, while Clare hit some timely shots to lead 11-7 late in the first quarter. Defensive adjustments in the second quarter forced turnovers for Clare, allowing Big Rapids to score in transition. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Nuray Fricke late in the half extended the Cardinals' run and gave them a 29-16 halftime lead.

Big Rapids maintained defensive pressure in the third quarter, holding the Pioneers to 6 points. Although Clare cut into the lead early in the fourth with steals, Big Rapids used crucial ball movement—similar to its final quarter against Fremont on Friday—to pull away for a 50-33 victory in Cardinal Arena.

"We definitely hit some outside shots tonight, so that was nice to see," Haist said. "We have a lot of kids that understand their role and we played great defense."

Big Rapids was led by Nuray Fricke with 24 points, followed by Nalaya Fricke with 10, Vennix with 6, Courtright with 4, Weber with 3 and Bronkema with 3.

The Cardinals will face Petoskey, which defeated Negaunee 49-42 in Manistique, for the regional championship on Wednesday. Tipoff is expected at 7 p.m. in Gaylord.

Broadcast information will be posted soon on Big Country 100.9's social media pages. Listen to the full game radio playback on Monday's win here: https://wwbr.com/podcasts/big-rapids-cardinal-basketball-radio-broadcast-archive.