In a game filled with a roller coaster of emotions, No. 9 Ironwood Ridge upset No. 1 Cienega 47-43 in overtime Wednesday night to advance to the semifinal round of the Division II girl's basketball playoffs. At 30-1, it was the first setback for the Bobcats under first-year coach Matt Ruiz but it was also the biggest career win for Nighthawk coach Nikki Simpson.

Cienega defeated Ironwood Ridge 63-36 in December but that game seems so long ago. Junior standout Lexy Ram was held to only five points and three Cienega players scored in double figures. About the only thing that remained the same for Ironwood Ridge this time around was the play of senior forward Lanea Tuiasosopo.

Tuiasosopo scored 13 points in that loss to lead the Nighthawks but, on a team filled with all-stars and scorers, perhaps she was overlooked coming into the game Wednesday night but she made everyone take notice when it counted the most.

With the game tied at 38-38 after regulation, Tuiasosopo scored two buckets off of Cienega turnovers and she added a free throw to put Ironwood Ridge up 43-38 with 1:41 left in overtime.

Freshman standout Natalie Bartle hit on another free throw with 1:19 remaining and it looked like Ironwood Ridge had the game won.

"We all stepped up in our own way and I felt the enthusiasm," said Tuiasosopo. "But we also learned we had to take care of the ball."

Cienega is the top-rated team for a reason and that lead faded quickly after senior Kelaiah Dillard hit a three-pointer and senior standout Treyanna Clay scored after another turnover. Just like that, the Bobcats cut the lead down to 44-43 with 55.2 second left.

Clay led Cienega with 17 points with much of the scoring pressure falling on her shoulders after senior guard Arianna Roche went down with a knee injury in the second quarter. Roche hit on two three-pointers early on but she left the game with 2:57 left in the second.

Also picking up some of the scoring was senior guard Destiny Richardson. Richardson ended with eight points and her three-pointer gave the Bobcats their biggest lead at 17-11 right before Roche left the game.

But the game ultimately belonged to Ram.

Ram scored four points to erase Cienega's early lead and she scored the final points of regulation to tie the game up 38-38. With the Bobcats up 38-34, Ram hit two free throws and then a bucket with 2:18 left for the tie.

Both teams would commit two turnovers each and both missed a shot the rest of the way heading into overtime where Ram came up big again.

After Cienega cut the game down to 44-43, Ironwood Ridge had a chance to extend the lead but two free throws were missed with 40 seconds left. Ram grabbed the rebound on the second miss and was fouled.

Ram made a free throw and scored a bucket with 13.3 seconds left to send Ironwood Ridge to the semifinal round where they will face No. 12 Maricopa (28-5) on Friday night.

"We knew we had to come out really strong," said Ram. "They are a great team and I felt we had to match them and their intensity."

Ram still has a chance to add to her high school career but Richardson and Clay are focused on college now. Richardson is a standout sprinter and will walk-on at the University of Ariozna and Clay will be heading to Iona to continue her basketball career.

"My heart was pounding at the end," explained Richardson. "We had a good run and this was not how we wanted it to end but it was a good year."

Clay came out of the locker room with a smile on her face after she was given a group-hug from members of the Cienega boy's team.

"I can't get mad at this game," added Clay. "We had a goal to get back to Phoenix but we obviously won't get back there. Ironwood Ridge deserved to win this game."

Ruiz coached Cienega to one of the best years a team has ever had. 30 wins cannot be defined by one loss.

"That last minute pretty much defined the game," Ruiz said. "You always feel you have a chance with the game going back-and-forth and we had our shots. Credit has to go to Ironwood Ridge."

Ruiz loses an incredible set of seniors including Clay but he has a young nucleolus to build on with freshman center Lauren Green figuring to play even bigger next year. Green is one of Southern Arizona's top freshmen as is Natalie Bartle of Ironwood Ridge. Bartle scored eight points against Cienega.

On the other side, Simpson is leading Ironwood Ridge to the best season in school history (26-7) and each game is a new adventure from here on out. Well almost.

Ironwood Ridge scrimmaged Maricopa to begin the season so the two teams are somewhat familiar with each other. Maricopa upset No. 5 Tucson in the second round and took out No. 4 Flagstaff 58-47 in the quarterfinal round Wednesday to set up the semifinal with Ironwood Ridge.

"We did it," said Simpson. "The girls are celebrating but I'm already thinking about Maricopa."