Duluth Marshall, Rock Ridge, Mountain Iron-Buhl clinch section titles, advance to state

Lexi Lamppa poured in 25 points and Maija Lamppa added 20 as Rock Ridge survived a midgame power outage and a 70-minute delay to defeat Cloquet 77-41 and claim the Section 7AAA title. The No. 1 Wolverines led 39-21 at halftime, reached 50-27 in the second half when the lights went out at Duluth Denfeld, and finished the game after warming up again at Hermantown High School, where Rock Ridge closed out the Lumberjacks to complete a third straight Section 7AAA championship.

The Rock Ridge box score showed a balanced attack: Marley Kaivola 13, Liz Fultz 7, Megan Zika 5, Jacinda Wilcox 4 and Brooklyn Smith 3. Rock Ridge sank 10 of 14 free throws and hit three-pointers from Maija Lamppa and Zika, while Cloquet was led by MaKenzie Lynch with 12 and Nattie Butler with 11. Cloquet cut the lead to 52-37 after the restart, but timely baskets by Fultz and Kaivola and a Maija Lamppa three quelled the rally as Rock Ridge finished 39 and 38 for a 77-41 final.

Duluth Marshall snapped a five-year absence from the state tournament by defeating No. 7 seed Pequot Lakes 66-57 to win Section 7AA. The Hilltoppers, listed as the No. 2 seed, punched their ticket to the Class AA state tournament and return to the state stage for the first time since 2021, when Marshall fell to Providence Academy 94-91. Duluth Marshall is set to open Class AA play on Thursday, March 12, according to tournament scheduling.

Mountain Iron–Buhl steamrolled No. 7 Ely 87-43 to take the Section 7A crown, extending the cooperative program’s rich sectional history with its 15th section title as a co-op. Mountain Iron–Buhl entered the postseason as the No. 1 seed and rebounds to the Class A State tournament after dropping the section final in 2025; their Class A state opener is also slated for Thursday, March 12.

All three Northland section finals were listed under Thursday, March 5 postseason action and now send local representation to the Minnesota State High School League tournament in Minneapolis. Rock Ridge’s Class AAA bracket play begins Wednesday, March 11, while Duluth Marshall and Mountain Iron–Buhl begin Class AA and Class A play on Thursday, March 12; official brackets were to be released over the weekend. Between the on-court milestones and the unusual midgame move from Duluth Denfeld to Hermantown, the results give St. Louis County and Iron Range communities multiple teams to follow as they head to Minneapolis for the state tournament.