The Austin girls basketball team wrapped up its regular season with a solid effort against a good team when it lost 55-44 to Winona in Ove Berven Gym Friday.

The Packers (14-11 overall, 12-10 Big Nine) trailed by 15 points early in the second half and they rallied to get within 43-35 when Ashley Hawkshead hit a three-pointer with seven minutes left in the game. Austin had a couple of chances to close the gap, but it wasn’t able to get any closer than seven points down the stretch.

“I thought it was a good game,” Austin head coach Todd Johnson said. “The second half had that tournament atmosphere with our crowd getting behind the girls and you could sense the energy growing. It’s a credit to the girls for battling back.”

Ruth Koang had eight points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots in the paint for the Packers and Shayley Vesel had 14 points.

Winona (20-6 overall, 16-6- Big Nine) forced Austin to commit 22 turnovers with their tall and athletic lineup.

“It makes it really hard. It looks difficult to see through passing lanes,” Johnson said. “They’ve got a very good basketball team and we felt like we made big strides battling them.”

Austin will open Section 1AAA tournament play 7 p.m. Wednesday. The Packers are likely to host their first postseason contest.

“I’m so proud of the kids and I thought they worked hard and gave a great effort tonight,” Johnson said. “That’s where we need to be for the playoffs. We felt we took a step towards that tonight.”

Winona 18 26 — 44

Austin 30 25 — 55

Austin scoring: Shayley Vesel, 14; Ruth Koang, 8; Ashley Hawkshead, 8; Awenia Nywesh, 4; Amber Hansen, 4; Kelsey Sederquest, 2; Rebecca Younis, 1; free throws: 89 percent (8-for-9); rebounds: 31 (Koang, 8); turnovers: 22