Madison McKeever cannot recall an opposing student section ever chanting her first name.

But there was McKeever, a senior guard for Win-E-Mac, at the line on what became a record night for free-throw shooting as the Mankato Loyola faithful hollered, “Ma-di-son!”

“I tried to just ignore it,” McKeever said. “I didn’t want it getting to my head. I wanted to focus on the game and the win.”

She succeeded, scoring the Patriots’ final five points from the free throw line in a 62-61 victory against the Crusaders in Friday’s Class 1A semifinal at Williams Arena.

McKeever scored 20 of her game-high 32 points from the free throw line. She tied the single-game record with 20 made free throws made and broke the record with 25 attempts. Both records had been set by Taylor Hill of Minneapolis South in 2009.

She made eight-consecutive free throws and had a chance to seal the victory by draining two for a four-point lead with 18 seconds remaining. But her first attempt was off the mark.

“That wasn’t the perfect time to miss,” McKeever said. “I was like, ‘Come on, just make the next one.’ Without the free throws I don’t think we would have won it.”

Win-E-Mac, which defeated Mankato Loyola in last season’s state tournament quarterfinals, made 25 free throws – the same number the Crusaders attempted on Friday.

Megan Schroeder led Mankato Loyola with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Jordyn Strachan added 10 points to helped give the Crusaders an 18-4 advantage in points of the bench.

DAVID LA VAQUE

In a rematch of a 2013 Class 1A state quarterfinal game won by Win-E-Mac, the Patriots withstood a late and furious rally by the Crusaders to reach the championship game.

Win-E-Mac led at halftime and stretched its lead to 10 minutes with about 4 and a half minutes left in regulation. The Crusaders battled back, aided by missed free throws by the Patriots, to pull within two points in the final seconds.

However, a Win-E-Mac free throw made it a three-point game. A three-point try by the Crusaders missed. A rebound basket narrowed the margin to one with a few second remaining before time expired.

Check back later for more on the game.