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It was a game of class.
It was a game of courage.
By both teams.
After beating West DePere 65-53 to advance to the WIAA Division 2 championship game, the Mount Horeb Vikings were preparing to face 6'10" Henry Ellenson and Rice Lake. Ellenson, Co-Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin with Diamond Stone, had 26 points and a dozen rebounds in a 72-64 win over Greendale.
Ellenson had sustained a hand injury in the game after getting caught in an opponent's jersey. He expected to play in the championship game.
But that didn't happen.
After getting x-rays it was determined the injury was worse than expected. By noon it was announced Ellenson would not play in the championship game.
Rice Lake coach Kevin Orr told the team at 12:30 Ellenson wouldn't play. The consensus was to not risk further injury for the Marquette recruit.
His advice to the team?
"Make a memory, write a book."
The Warriors did just that.
"No one gave us a shot without Henry," Orr said. "But we had players that didn't let that happen. In my 20 years of coaching this was the guttiest performance I ever saw."
Orr said what was sad was that Ellenson started every game since his freshman year but was denied a chance to play in the state championship game.
When describing what Ellenson meant to the team, guard and teammate Ben Weddes broke into tears.
"It wasn't as much as how playing without him affected us but how it affected Henry," he said. "He is a great teammate and we are praying for his recovery."
The Warriors did not win but they were in the game, giving the new D2 state champions, Mount Horeb, a battle. The Vikings won 58-46.
It wasn't a gift for the Vikings. They played hard. They played smart. They played well all four quarters.
And they took nothing for granted.
The game plan stayed the same.
"We prepared for Henry but when we found out he wasn't playing we didn't change much," said Terek Nesheim, the 6'6" post player who scored 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the title game.
The Vikings expected the Warriors would try and take away leading scorer Drew Frederickson and they were right. Geddes was on him all night.
But that worked to Max Meylor's advantage. The starting quarterback for the Vikings who is getting some D1 looks was a force on the floor and even found himself in a reverse role. He was on the receiving end of a long pass that he converted for a layup in the fourth quarter.
Meylor finished the game with 21 points to lead the Vikings. Several of those were big baskets at crucial times.
Meylor did not want the Vikings to be denied.
Trey Recknor also contributed with seven points and seven rebounds.
The Vikings, 20 minutes from the Kohl Center, easily had the biggest crowd following them. They did not disappoint.
Vikings coach Todd Nesheim said winning the gold ball with these players, especially with a son on the team is special. He also gave credit to Rice Lake.
"They made us earn it," he said.
"This is for everyone who has ever played or coached for Mount Horeb," Todd Nesheim said. "They all have a piece of this. This one was for them."