Precursor to conference championship taken by Ada-Borup (Photos)

Ada-Borup's Shaina Stevenson tries for a score while Win-E-Mac's Shelby Kaster defends the basket during Friday's game in Ada.

Ada-Borup junior guard Monica Vega was short for words following Friday’s game against No. 7 Win-E-Mac.

But the recorder-shy junior wasn’t short for points to contribute to the 68-47 win in Ada.

Vega led all scorers with 22 points, and 3 of her 4 triples she drained in the first half supported the 16-0 run No. 9 Ada-Borup (20-2) used to shoot a 14-14 game open to a 30-14 lead.

“I just felt more confident as the game progressed,” Vega said. “They laid off me and when (Madison) McKeever, who’s a great defender, went out, my opportunities opened up. Now we have to go get the win next Saturday.”

McKeever, who is Win-E-Mac’s leading scorer, was forced to sit the final 8 minutes of the first half, as she was charged with 3 fouls, thus affecting her production; she was only able to score 6 points during the minutes she played, but she managed 17 by the game’s end.

Then again, Ada-Borup’s defense faired pretty well through the 10 minutes McKeever was in the first half, as it stood up drives with help defense and Vega stayed glued to her side, taking away any opportunity of an open shot.

“(McKeever) is a game changer, and when she went out, we were able to control the tempo both defensively and offensively,” Ada-Borup coach Dave Smart said. “We received a definite momentum boost when we didn’t have to play against (Win-E-Mac’s) top scorer, and it led to the run we used to distance ourselves from them.”

Next Saturday marks the date of the Pine-to-Prairie Conference championship game in Ulen. Not only will the game be a rematch of Friday’s, but it pits the same two teams who met in last year’s title game where Ada-Borup won by a 12-point margin.

The Cougars were playing with a chip on its shoulder then, as it fell to the Patriots (20-1) in the two team’s regular season meeting. Now the role is reversed, and Ada-Borup knows Friday’s win goes for not if it can’t take Saturday’s championship.

“This win means nothing if we can’t get it done next Saturday,” Smart said.

Ada-Borup has a target on its back, as it has taken the coveted championship game every year since its start in 2011. You can bet Win-E-Mac, after losing its first game of the season, is gunning to take down the Cougars in Saturday’s championship contest.