Midland senior point guard Emma Franks wears uniform No. 22.

“I wanted No. 11 when I came in as a freshman, but it was taken so I took No. 22 and have had it ever since,” Franks said.

Franks looked eerily like another player that wears that number when she swished a 3-pointer from about 30 feet just right of the top of the key that snapped a tie game with 1 minute, 40 seconds left in Thursday’s Class 1A Serena Regional championship game against Yorkville Christian.

“Oh yeah, Caitlyn Clark, but I wore it before she was famous, so she copied me,” Franks said while a laugh about the WNBA superstar.

The long-range shot gave Midland the lead for good in a 52-45 win over the Mustangs on Al Stegman Court and a first postseason championship since 1999.

“Yep, it had been 27 years,” Midland coach Xavier Warren. “This means the world to our program and our community. These girls have worked so hard to get to this, and as their coach, I couldn’t be happier for all of them.”

Midland (25-7) now plays on Tuesday in Indian Creek Sectional semifinals against Aurora Christian, which defeated Indian Creek 31-29 in the Somonauk Regional final. Yorkville Christian finishes the season at 17-12.

“We hit big shots in timely moments, and they were scared to take them,” Warren said. “This group is tough as nails and when the situation gets tight that’s when they rise up and play their best. When we are in a tough spot, I’m never worried because they’ve shown over the course of this season that they are going to find a way to come out on top.”

Midland led 10-4 after the opening quarter, 22-16 at halftime and 36-28 heading to the fourth.

Yorkville Christian used a drive by freshman Kiana Ogulei and a trey by senior Payton Wallin to knot the score at 43-all with 2:26 left.

“We knew Midland had good outside shooters and they also have an inside presence with a couple girls over 6-foot that have very good footwork,’ Yorkville Christian coach John McAdams said. ”We knew we had our work cut out for us.

“We were able to get really good looks for most of the game but just didn’t convert them. I really thought when we got it tied up at 43-all with a couple minutes left we were going to be OK, but then, like she did all night, No. 22 (Franks) stepped up and make a big shot. We had a couple looks in the final minutes, but they just didn’t fall for us.”

After the Franks aforementioned triple, the Mustangs’ Hannah Aguado scored on a rebound hoop.

From there, Midland’s Anna McGlasson hit a pair of free throws, and between a pair of 3-point misses by Yorkville Christian, Adalynn Stickel and Franks each hit one of two from the line to help seal the win.

“Emma’s two threes in the fourth quarter were so big, but they were two shots that she stepped into shooting the ball with confidence,” Warren said. “The second was a deep one for sure, but I knew even before she let it go that it was going in. She just had that look.”

Franks and McGlasson each had 13 points for Midland, while Ella Foster and Stickel each added 10 points, and Jordyn Pyles chipped in six points.

“My teammate Ella was yelling shoot it, so I did,” Franks said of the lead taking 3-pointer. “When your teammates have confidence in you to take shots it just gives you even more confidence in yourself. I felt like I was in rhythm and just let it go. Honestly, I knew it was going in right when it left my hand.

“My freshman year we weren’t really very good, so to have this happen is so satisfying. I’m excited to text everyone what we’ve done.

Yorkville Christan was led by Wallin’s game-high 24 points while Ouglei netted 10 points.