FORT COLLINS - The Machebeuf girls basketball team must have learned something about the art of protecting a lead.

Led by Cheri Palmer, the Buffaloes advanced to the Class 3A state title game by beating No. 2 Cedaredge 57-38 on Friday, one night after escaping a rally by Colorado Springs Christian in the quarterfinals.

Palmer, who led the team with 28 points, said the quarterfinal played heavily into the Buffs' game plan when they built a sizable lead in the second quarter.

"We knew what was at stake," said Palmer, whose team was up by 16 points against Colorado Springs Christian before prevailing 63-60. "We knew we had to come to play. We could have lost that game (Thursday), and if we had a lead, we weren't looking back."

Palmer guided a balanced attack, as Machebeuf never had a "down" quarter. The seventh- seeded Buffs also took advantage of some foul trouble, as they outscored Cedaredge 23-9 at the free-throw line.

"We have a little bit of fire underneath us right now," second-year Machebeuf coach Ellie Kempfe said. "Our last game of the Metro League tournament was when we turned it around, and we've made big things happen."

Cedaredge was playing on the heels of a nice comeback against Holy Family, but it couldn't replicate the magic. The Bruins scored only 18 points in the second half after trailing 28-20 at the break.

The score was tied at 18-18 with 5:14 remaining in the second, but Palmer was hot during the final minutes in the half. She found Malaya Stamps underneath to make it 22-18, then hit a layup and a jumper to close out the half.

The Bruins relied heavily on their starting five to try and cut into that margin. Cedaredge's nonstarters scored only four points. The Bruins were led by senior Lexi Galvin's nine points.

"We missed a lot of shots, but we had bad passes and turnovers that cost us the game," Galvin said. "We had some confidence coming in, but they came to play and pulled out ahead."

In addition to Palmer, the Buffs got nice scoring efforts from Kelly Mapes (11 points) and Erin Doherty (12). Doherty also had nine rebounds and five steals.

Machebeuf will be going for its sixth title in the sport. The Buffs won it all in 2003.

Machebeuf......13	15	15	14	-	57
Cedaredge......15	5	11	7	-	38

M - Kelly Mapes 2 7-10 11, Cheri Palmer 8 11-14 28, Jamie Mora 1 0-0 2, Erin Doherty 3 5-6 12, Kelly Mathews 1 0-0 2, Brianna Montoya 0 0-0 0, Ailena McDonald 0 0-0 0, Krista Lee Roybal 0 0-0 0, Melissa Powell 0 0-0 0, Malaya Stamp 1 0-1 2, Kristin Costanzo 0 0-0 0, Claudia Ibarra 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 23-31 57.

C - Shorty Ramos 2 1-2 5, Carrie Berger 2 2-2 8, Katie Eason 2 2-4 6, Katie Wright 3 0-0 6, Lexi Galvin 2 4-4 9, Ashley Breitnauer 0 0-0 0, Taryn Fischer 0 0-0 0, Caitlin Walker 0 0-0 0, Rachelle Litsheim 2 0-0 4, Emily Cotham 0 0-0 0, Nikki Lindley 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 9-12 38.

Three-point goals - M, Palmer, Doherty; C, Berger 2, Galvin.

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