The Worthington Trojans are heading to their fourth state tournament, and their first since 1998 after trouncing Southwest Conference foe Redwood Valley 64-43 in the Section 3AA championship Thursday at the R/A Facility at Southwest Minnesota State University.
Six-foot-5 junior Morgan Traylor paced Worthington (21-6 overall) with a game-high 26 points, converting 11 field goals as the Trojans outscored the Cardinals 38-20 in the second half. SMSU recruit Mitch Weg scored 16 points for Worthington, which opens the Class AA state playoffs on Wednesday. The Trojans' opponent is to be determined.
Redwood Valley, last year's section champions, got a team-high 19 points from Alec Koster. Minnesota State-Mankato recruit Michael Busack finished with eight points in the loss. In the regular season, Redwood Valley swept the season series before losing Thursday's game.
The Cardinals finish the season with a 26-2 record.
Redwood Valley (43)
Mitchell Fischer 1 0-0 2, Michael Busack 4 0-0 8, Jordan Ford 0 2-2 2, Alec Koster 5 7-7 19, Beau Stough 5 1-2 12. Totals 15 10-11 43. Three-Pointers 3 (Koster 2).
Worthington (64)
Jon Vorwald 2 1-2 6, Lucas Henning 0 8-12 8, Marcus Potter 1 0-0 2, Dan Wetering 1 0-0 3, Morgan Traylor 11 4-6 26, Spencer Grafing 1 0-0 3, Mitch Weg 6 4-4 16. Totals 22 17-24 64. Three-Pointers 3.
Halftime Score: Worthington 26, Redwood Valley 23.