Lesson learned
ORCS girls advance to second region tournament title game in school history
The way the ball bounces can often be the difference between winning and losing.
Such was the case Tuesday night in the Class B Region 6 girls basketball tournament semifinals between Rugby and Our Redeemer’s.
Rugby’s Maria Blessum had a potential game-winning shot bounce off the rim three different times as time expired, allowing ORCS to escape with a 51-50 win to advance to its second region title game appearance in school history. The Knights other region title game appearance came in 2006.
“It was a defensive stop,” ORCS coach Scott Peterson said of the final sequence. “We wanted no fouls, and we wanted to make sure we had their shooters covered.”
The Panthers’ last second shot came moments after ORCS’s Cara Steede scored on a drive to the basket on an assist from Morgan Olson.
The ending to Tuesday night’s contest was very similar to a contest between the two schools in late December at the Minot State Dome. In that game, the Panthers scored the final eight points in the final two minutes to win 52-48.
“We finished on our last two possessions tonight,” Peterson said. “And at this time of the year, that’s big.”
After the two teams exchanged leads in the first half, the Panthers used an 11-0 run in the late stages of the opening half to build a 30-24 lead. ORCS got a 3-pointer from Karolynn Winger in the final seconds to trim Rugby’s lead to 30-27 at the break.
In the second half, the Knights used a 16-9 edge in the third to take a 43-39 lead into the final period. ORCS stretched the lead out to 49-41 on a 3-pointer by Olson. At that point, it seemed ORCS was going to cruise to Thursday night’s title game.
Rugby responded in a big way.
The Panthers scored the next nine points, including a 3-pointer from Blessum to take a 50-49 with less than a minute to play.
ORCS then responded with Olson’s assist to Steede for the eventual game-winner.
“Hats off Our Redeemer’s,” Rugby coach Jen Brossart said. “They came ready to play.”
Brossart says the third quarter was the difference in the game.
“In the third quarter, we came out flat,” she said. “And they wanted it more.”
Winger finished with 16 points to pace ORCS, while Olson had nine points, rebounds and four assists.
Karsyn Hager had 17 points in the loss for the Panthers, while Madison Uhlenkamp had 16.
“It hurts,” Brossart said. “It stings a lot. We were playing really well.”
ORCS will play Velva-Sawyer Thursday night for the region title and a spot in the state tournament. The two teams split a pair of games during the regular-season.
“They are a team that mimics us to a T,” the ORCS coach said.
Rugby will play Bishop Ryan, who lost 48-37 to Velva-Sawyer in the other regional semifinal contest Tuesday night, for third place at 6 p.m. Thursday.
“We just got to come out and play,” Brossart said. “No one wants to end their season on a loss.”
Mark Jones covers high school sports and general assignments. Follow him on Twitter @MarkJones27_MDN.