Todd Rose | Daily Press Rapid River’s Monica Thibault (12) goes for a layup as Munising’s Jenna Mattson (24) defends during the MHSAA Division 4 District 100 championship Friday in Munising.

MUNISING — The Rapid River girls couldn’t buy a bucket through most of the second half here Friday night in a 43-25 basketball loss to the Munising Mustangs in a Division 4 district final.

Rapid River trailed 27-20 at halftime and managed just five points in the second half.

“It was kind of a tale of two halves,” said Rockets’ coach Scott Goodacre. “We couldn’t get a rebound in the first half and couldn’t get our shots to drop in the second. Although, I’m proud of our seniors. The girls kept fighting, but things just didn’t go our way. We’ll get into the gym this summer and work on some things.”

Munising (8-7) faces top-ranked Carney-Nadeau (19-0) in a Division 4 regional opener Monday at 7 p.m. at Westwood. The Rockets finished 3-14.

Freshman forward Emmy Crisp gave the Mustangs their seven-point halftime lead on a buzzer-beating 21-foot jump shot from the right wing.

“There was no time to think about it,” said Crisp, who led Munising with 17 points, “I just threw it up there, and it went in. Everybody was real happy in the locker room, and I just got excited. It was a sense of relief in a way. We all get along and want the same thing. Our seniors have been real helpful to us.”

A putback by senior forward Natalie Belanger brought the Rockets within 27-22 just 39 seconds in the third quarter.

Munising did the rest of the scoring in the third, gaining an insurmountable 39-22 advantage on a free throw by junior guard Jenna Matson.

“Emmy’s three was huge,” said Munising coach Matt Mattson. “That gave us some momentum going into the locker room. In the third quarter, we knew we had to come out and play aggressive. They hit a ton of shots in the first quarter. I felt we were playing good defense, but their shots just dropped. Their kids played hard. Scott had them well prepared.”

Rapid River took a 12-8 lead late in the first quarter on a 17-foot set shot by senior guard Cecilia Pilon.

Munising trimmed its deficit to 12-11 on a set shot from the lane and free throw by senior guard Julia Prunick with 90 seconds remaining in the first, then took a 14-12 lead on a 12-foot set shot, and gifter by Matson just 10 seconds into the second frame.

The Mustangs extended their lead to 18-13 on a running 10-foot jumper by Matson with 5:30 left in the second.

Rapid River, however, was still within 22-20 following a six-foot jumper from the right baseline by senior forward Zeta Keys at 2:10.

Matson then gave the Mustangs a four-point cushion on a pair of free throws at 1:47, setting the stage for Crisp’s buzzer-beating trey.

“I’m just proud of the kids,” said Mattson. “They had to endure life’s lessons and responded. Carney-Nadeau beat us up pretty good during the regular season (64-24 at Carney Feb. 27). We’ll just prepare this weekend and do the best we can on Monday.”

Matson finished with 14 points for the Mustangs, and Belanger led the Rockets with nine.

Rapid River committed 13 turnovers, and Munising had 16.

Munising 11 16 12 4 — 43

Rapid River 12 8 2 3 — 25

Munising — Richardson 3, Killips 3, Matson 14, Crisp 17, Prunick 6. FT: 10-22; F: 7; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goal: Crisp.

Rapid River — Pilon 8, Thibault 3, Goodacre 3, Keys 2, Belanger 9. FT: 4-6; F: 16; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goal: Thibault.