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Fremont's Abigail Christensen (33) drives around Pleasant Grove's Siri Burgess during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Lily Hall (30) and Abigail Christensen (33) defend a shot by Pleasant Grove's Tabi Clark during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Ellie McArthur (12) drives against Pleasant Grove's Tabi Clark during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Lily Hall, left, steers around Pleasant Grove's Tabi Clark during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Lily Hall, center, helps Mia McArthur, left, off the floor during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Abigail Christensen (33), defended by Pleasant Grove's Cash Connors, calls out to her teammates during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's Maya Jensen, left, and Mia McAthur, right, pressure Pleasant Grove's Sutton Villa, center, during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's student section gets loud during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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Fremont's team huddles during a 5A girls basketball state semifinal Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

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❮ ❯

SALT LAKE CITY — Crap happens.

That may be a sanitized way to describe what happened to No. 4 Fremont High in its 44-33 semifinal loss to No. 1 Pleasant Grove in the 5A girls basketball state tournament Thursday at the Huntsman Center.

The Silverwolves held undefeated Pleasant Grove to 20 points under its season average but came up woefully short on their own offensive end.

“Holding them to 44 points is pretty awesome. We executed our defensive plan really well. We just had to score with them; have to be able to finish on the offensive side,” Fremont coach Lisa Dalebout said. “Sometimes in basketball, your shots don’t fall. Sometimes that happens. It’s unfortunate.

“I’m at a loss for words; It’s hard to digest. We generally don’t score 30-odd points. I thought the girls did what they needed to be successful. It just didn’t happen tonight,” Dalebout lamented.

Fremont (22-4) got off to an uncharacteristically slow start, scoring only 15 points by the half and shooting 23% to trail 29-15.

“I don’t think there’s a way to not play nervous in these type of games. The majority of our team is still underclassmen. They’re not used to this type of atmosphere,” Dalebout said. “I don’t know if they had the confidence in their shot they should have had. Generally, those shots fall for us. We were open; we were set. It was one of those bizarre nights. Credit Pleasant Grove; they alter your shots.”

Fremont junior center Abby Christensen managed 2 of 7 shots from the field in the first half, having a difficult time navigating the Viking defense as she matched up against 6-foot-6 sophomore center Sutton Villa.

“It’s a physical game when you go and get bumped off, and have to get used to it. Collectively, we weren’t in sync offensively,” Dalebout said.

Christensen improved in the second half, finishing the game with 14 points on 5 of 13 from the floor, and added four rebounds.

Pleasant Grove (25-0) outrebounded the Silverwolves 20-9 in the first half, with six offensive boards, and scoring 14 points in the paint — strangely enough, mostly through its guard line, not the bigs.

“They are not one-dimensional. They can shoot from outside, so you have to honor those shooters and they have a really good inside game,” Dalebout said. “We didn’t crash with the same intensity we usually do.”

Things tilted slightly towards the Silverwolves in the third quarter. Fremont opened on an 8-1 run and won the period 9-4, closing the gap to 33-24.

“I felt we took the ball to the basket a little better and moved it like we normally do. The rhythm of our offense was better,” Dalebout said.

Freshman guard Ellie McArthur scored a basket inside midway through the fourth quarter and Fremont drew to within 40-32.

McArthur netted all of her seven points in the second half and hauled down 10 rebounds for the game.

“For a freshman, she plays so mature and so smart, not only on scoring but her ability to rebound for her size. It’s unlike anyone I’ve ever coached,” Dalebout said. “She makes big plays for us. I’m biased, but I think she’s the best freshman in the state, and I don’t think it’s even close.”

Perhaps the most bitter pill for the Silverwolves to swallow was when they got within that eight-point deficit and held Pleasant Grove without a point for more than four minutes, but couldn’t get any closer down the stretch.

“This is one when we go back and watch the film, maybe we can figure it out, because the shots we were getting were what we wanted and normally capitalize on,” Dalebout said. “They just didn’t fall.”

Junior guard Janiece Sikander led Pleasant Grove with 13 points and five rebounds, senior guard Tabi Clark had 10 points and seven boards, and Villa checked in with 10 points.

Fremont unfortunately matched its first half shooting output with another 23% in the second half, while holding the Vikings to only 34%, including 4 of 19 in the second half.

“I felt my girls played their hearts out and it didn’t come through on the scoreboard. I was proud,” Dalebout said. “I don’t usually say that when we lose, but we did everything that we could. It’s hard to let one get away when you have an opportunity in the final four.”