Maranatha, SW Christian To Meet In 1A final

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Christian schools are in control of the Class 1A boys basketball tournament. Maranatha Christian Academy will face Southwest Minnesota Christian in the championship game.

Isaiah Hanson scored 18 points to lead Maranatha past Rushford-Peterson 61-46 in the semifinals on Friday. MCA (31-1), located in Brooklyn Park, is the top-ranked team in Class 1A.

Leighton Sampson scored 33 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Southwest in a 71-62 victory over Upsala in the other semifinal.

Klint Knutson added 12 points and five assists for the Eagles (29-1), who were runners-up last year. They led by as many as 16 points in the first half. SMC, located in Edgerton, won four straight titles from 1999-2002.

Christian Pekarek scored 22 points for the Cardinals (31-1) in their first defeat of the season.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)