Fraser and Chippewa Valley had split their two MAC Blue Division contests this season and squared off in the tiebreaker on Wednesday night in the district semifinals at Ford II High School.

The Ramblers led 31-30 at halftime, only to see the Big Reds take a 42-40 lead on a triple by Jaionna Redditt with 2:33 left in the third quarter.

However, Fraser, behind 10 points by Alaynah Quinn, ended the period with a 13-0 run, coasting from there to a 67-58 victory.

“Alaynah Quinn is not only one of the best players in our conference, but also in the county,” Fraser coach Rob Fulgenzi said. “She’s been in such a groove the last month and a half this season. She has that look in her eye and is playing at a confidence level that is high. We got her in good spots, and she made the plays that we see her make day in and day out.”

Chippewa Valley coach Jackie Maurer said her team, which battled early foul trouble, just struggled to find its rhythm throughout the contest and it caught up with them at the end of the third quarter.

“We were out of our rhythm the entire game because of early foul trouble, and we just never really recovered until we got to that point of the third quarter,” Maurer said. “Then Fraser picked it up and you have to give (Alyanah Quinn) credit. We only had a few time outs left and we were trying to save them for if it was a close game at the end. There wasn’t too much we could do. It was one run.”

Quinn started the run with a layup, before a three-point play by Rambler teammate Natasha Smith gave Fraser a 45-42 lead. Quinn then added a triple, a layup and a three-point play.

“I told them at halftime that this is what we expected,” Fulgenzi said. “We had to come out and execute our game plan and still dig in defensively and get some rebounds. I thought we got the stops and rebounds when we need to.”

The Big Reds closed the gap to 55-46 on a trey by Yolanda Gascho with 6:23 to play but would get no closer.

“This is my fourth year at Fraser and every game we’ve played against Chippewa has been a battle,” Fulgenzi said. “It always comes down to the fourth quarter. We’re two teams that are very well-coached and have great playmakers on both sides. Today was no different.”

Quinn led Fraser with 25 points, while Smith added 18 points and Brynn Norbeck chipped in 11.

“We did a good job moving the ball from side to side and getting some good looks inside,” Fulgenzi said. “We wanted to attack and get downhill. We wanted to collapse the defense, and Natasha has done a good job for us on the block all season finishing plays.”

The win improved Fraser’s record to 17-6 overall and moved the Ramblers into tonight’s district championship game against the MAC Red co-champion Ford Falcons, who beat Stevenson 68-23.

“Coach (Matt) Joseph is one of the best coaches in the county and maybe the state,” Fulgenzi said. “He’s going to have his team prepared and they’re very talented, winning the MAC Red. We’ll be ready.

“We’re a great team, too, and have had a great season. We’re on a 10-game winning streak, and we’re going to come in ready to play. We’re not going to back down.”

Chippewa Valley, which led 20-15 after one quarter, was led by Gracyn Carrier with 20 points, while Mykenzi Harris had 17 points and Gascho contributed 14 points.

“Gracyn just gets it and she’s a competitor,” Maurer said. “She wasn’t at 100 percent after rolling her ankle last Friday. She’s someone that can take over a game, but we never really had that rhythm.

“Mykenzi Harris is a special kid and is somebody that makes us go,” Maurer added. “We were down one at halftime and we battled that adversity without her on the court. If we had her in the whole game, we’re probably not down one at halftime.”

The loss ended Chippewa Valley’s season at 17-6 overall.

“We achieved a lot this season,” Maurer said. “One of my starters has been out the last month with a concussion and to not have her and do what we did the last month is really significant. We overcame some adversity, but just didn’t finish.”