LINCOLN- Familiar territory for the Irish, but not as the seed they expected.

Just a day prior to the D-2 semifinal game, the Sacred Heart Irish pulled off the upset against the two-seeded Mullen Broncos, 49-47, behind junior Jakob Jordan's go-ahead basket with about 30 seconds remaining.

Today, in the semifinals against the three-seeded Humphrey St. Francis Flyers, Jordan's heroics were not necessary. The Irish started off the game looking good from the floor and led by two, 15-13 after the first quarter of play from Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The second quarter, the Irish showed that they can put the ball in the paint. Junior Brogan Nachtigal flexed his paint prowess with a few scores from underneath the hoop before the first half ended. Sacred Heart went into the locker rooms in Lincoln up by three, 26-23.

The second half for Sacred Heart was similar to that in the quarterfinals against Mullen, constricting defense on one end while the other side being a barrage of baskets. The Irish outscored the Flyers 15-10 in the third frame of the game, and took an eight point lead headed into the fourth quarter. 

The final quarter felt a lot closer, however, than what the scoreboard showed. The final quarter in the D-2 semifinals hovered around a six to seven point advantage for Sacred Heart, but the Flyers started to heat up from beyond the arc. Senior Hausytn Fourney stroked a couple from down town to bring the Flyers within five points.

In the final few minutes, the Irish settled back down offensively and got back to its "bread and butter" by working senior Jack Fiegener down in the low block. Fiegener finished with 12 points, and the Falls City Sacred Heart Irish advance to the D-2 championship winning 60-49.

The Irish are looking to repeat as D-2 champs, and their run will end off with a matchup against the four-seeded Parkview Christian Patriots, who upset one-seeded St. Mary's.

Much like Humphrey St. Francis, the Parkview Christian Patriots met the Irish last season in the D-2 playoffs. Sacred Heart knocked out the Patriots in the D-2 semifinals last season 63-41.

The D-2 championship game will be played on Saturday, March 13th, at 3:45 pm. Pre-game will be on B103 at 3:30.