(Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo) Florence senior Patrick Milan (20) is one of three Bobcats whose high school basketball careers ended on Monday night when Florence fell to Three Lakes 59-49 in a Division 5 regional final at Florence High School. Milan was a big contributor this season while helping lead the Bobcats to a 19-6 record. Other players who will graduate from the Florence squad are Cole Sweig and Tyler Novak.

FLORENCE, Wis. — All year long, the Florence boys basketball team had one particular game in mind – a WIAA Division 5 regional final — no matter who they would play or where the game would be held.

The Bobcats had fallen one win shy of a regional championship the last two years, but in 2021-22 their experience had caught up to their talent. There were no newcomers on this team — it was a squad of players who had competed for a regional trophy at least once.

Florence rambled through the 2021-22 regular season with one win after another. Sure, there were a couple of dips along the way, but the Bobcats (19-6) were impressive nearly all season and set themselves up with a No. 2 seed and the likelihood of a regional championship game at home.

That came to pass, but so did the return of heartbreak of the past two attempts. The Bobcats and third-seeded Three Lakes engaged in a tight battle throughout on Monday evening, but the Bluejays were able to pull away in the last seven minutes for a 59-49 victory to claim the regional trophy.

“We’re obviously very disappointed about falling in the regional final again,” Bobcats coach Bryan Bomberg said on Wednesday. “We played with a lot of heart and desire, there was just that stretch that we didn’t score.”

The key portion that Bomberg was referring to came after Florence sophomore Logan Schuls sank a 3-pointer to tie the game at 42-all with about seven minutes remaining. The Bluejays answered with two 3-pointers to go up 48-42 and the Bobcats never got their heels dug in again.

“Those couple of shots changed the game,” Bomberg said. “After that, you could notice the difference.”

Florence did not score until the 1:40 mark when sophomore William Kelley hit a driving bank shot to cut his team’s deficit to 53-44. He sank a layup about 20 seconds later, but Three Lakes senior Logan Erikson put the game away with four straight free throws.

The loss, in itself, was a blow to the Bobcats. But another event, late in the first half, made the night doubly painful.

With 2:31 left before halftime, junior guard Dominic DeMuri went down with a leg injury and didn’t get back up. After several minutes of treatment, DeMuri rose with his right leg immobilized and used crutches to help himself off the floor. Turns out he had a broken tibia that would require surgery.

For an extremely close group of players, seeing their teammate go down like that was a punch to the heart.

“They tried their best to put it aside, but clearly it was in the back of their minds,” Bomberg said. “First thing they did when we got back in the locker room at halftime was ask, ‘How’s Dom?’ First thing they did when we got back to the locker room after the game was ask about Dom.”

The emotions of the defeat, and the absence of DeMuri’s physical and leadership contributions to his team, was almost cruel to a team that had its hearts set on winning the regional as a group.

“Dom is just a great player,” Bomberg added. “He’s solid on defense, and though he doesn’t shoot much, he’s an underrated shooter. And he’s very unselfish. Obviously his injury hurt us.”

To their credit, the Bobcats hung tough for the next 15 minutes and were right there to achieve their goal. But tournament basketball can be unpredictable, and when the opponent is talented and has great desire as well, sometimes even the most motivated of teams can fall short.

“Sometimes, I think it’s a mental block,” Bomberg said of the three regional final defeats. “We’re our own worst enemies sometimes. It’s not a lack of talent and desire.”

With the loss, three seniors player their final game for the Bobcats — starter Patrick Milan and reserves Tyler Novak and Cole Sweig.

Their loss will be felt on the court and off.

“Even right now, I get choked up,” Bomberg said. “I hate to say goodbye to the three seniors. It’s difficult every year, but it feels different this year.

“After the game, I told (those) guys, ‘Use it as motivation.’ Patrick to get higher on the podium on track and (Tyler and Cole) are both good baseball players.”

Despite the loss of that trio, the Bobcats will bring back a load of talent and will certainly have another shot at climbing their mountain. Returning will be starters Evan Johnson, William Kelley, Logan Schuls and DeMuri, as well as rotation players Dustin Williams and Blake Smith. Seth Axley and Trent McLain also played often this season and will return with valuable experience.

“I really want to thank our fans for the amazing support,” Bomberg said. It really meant a lot to me and the boys.”

Jerry DeRoche can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 244, or at jderoche@ironmountaindailynews.com.