In just its second state tournament appearance in school history, the Oakland-Craig girls basketball team squared off with Ponca in the opening round of the C2 bracket at Lincoln Southwest High School on Thursday, as heard on 107.9 The Bull.
The Knights hit five three pointers in the first quarter, including three in a row to end the period, and took a 17-5 lead into the second.
Ponca came out strong in the second quarter, outscoring the Knights 15-14, but it was Oakland-Craig leading at halftime 31-20.
Ashley Denton connected on five shots from three point range in the first half for 15 points.
Ponca again came out strong in the third quarter and cut the deficit to just two points, but Oakland-Craig caught fire toward the end of the frame, thanks in part to Dacey Nelson scoring 14 points in the quarter. The Knights led 50-38 after three.
Ponca made one more run in the fourth, but Oakland-Craig was able to stay on top and pull away for the 59-47 victory.
Nelson ended up with 25 points on the game, to go along with 15 from Denton and 11 from Kennedy Benne.
Oakland-Craig lost an overtime thriller 72-68 to Hastings St. Cecilia in the semifinals of the Class C2 state tournament at the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Action heard on 107.9 The Bull Friday.
The Knights jumped out to a 12-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
HSC caught fire offensively in the second period, outscoring Oakland-Craig 20-10 in the frame, while taking a 30-22 lead into halftime.
The third quarter favored the Hawkettes as well, with HSC now leading 42-30 heading into the final quarter.
Oakland-Craig came to life in the final period, erupting for 27 points and even taking a lead for a short while.
HSC hit a three pointer with 9 seconds to go, giving them a 57-54 lead.
The Knights took the ball down to their end of the floor and called timeout with 3.6 seconds left in the game.
On the ensuing play, Dacey Nelson hit a three pointer as time expired to tie the game at 57-57, sending things into overtime.
Teams swapped leads a couple times early in the extra period, but HSC was able to make free throws when it counted, holding on for the 72-68 victory.
Nelson finished the game with 33 points for the Knights, including an 11-12 performance from the free throw line.
Benne went 15-18 from the foul line to finish with 15 points, and Jeannina Blahak added 12.
As a team, Oakland-Craig finished 30-37 from the charity stripe.
Oakland-Craig earned bronze, defeating Fillmore Central 68-60 in the third place game at Lincoln Southeast on Saturday morning.
The Knights led from start to finish, taking a 19-16 lead at the end of the first quarter, and a 33-32 lead into halftime.
Oakland-Craig continued its strong offensive performance in the second half, outscoring the Panthers 18-13 in the third quarter and 17-14 in the fourth quarter, on their way to the 68-60 victory.
The Knights were great again from the free throw line, converting on 25 of 30 attempts.
Nelson scored 31 points to lead Oakland-Craig, bringing her three day tournament total to 89 points. Benne added 13.
What a fantastic and amazing season for the Knights. Oakland-Craig certainly had a great run.
Oakland-Craig ends their 2018-2019 campaign with a 23-4 record and a third place finish.
Nelson received All-Tournament honors from both major Nebraska publications following her stellar performance at the girls state basketball tournament Feb. 28 – March 2. Nelson was named to the All-Class tournament team, as well as the Class C2 team for the Omaha World Herald. Nelson also received Class C2 honors for the Lincoln Journal Star.
What a ride it was for the team this year.
Nelson averaged 27 points on the season while Benne averaged 14 a game.
The St. Cecilia game was basically the state championship game, in my opinion.
The Knights say goodbye to Nelson, Denton, Grace Pille, Natalia McNeill, and Ellie Weitzenkamp.
This senior class accounted for so much for Oakland-Craig, helping lead the Knights to their first two State Tournament appearances in School History.
Oakland-Craig brings back a lot of talent though in Benne, Makenna Pearson, Blahak, Ashten Rennerfeldt, and Mya Guzinski.
This team can certainly be great again next year and make state for the 3rd time in the last 5 years, in my opinion.
I look for Benne to take on the type of scoring role she took on when Nelson was hurt last year.
The Knights will need to develop a second and third scoring option with the departure of Nelson and others though.
But from what I understand Oakland-Craig has some good talent coming up.
The Knights should sit back and enjoy this one for a little while, but be ready to get back to work when the time calls.
Oakland-Craig can't be complacent or satisfied with this season's success...the Knights have to want more next year.
It's going to take a lot of hard work in the offseason for Oakland-Craig to get back to state, but it can definitely happen.
This was the Knights' year though, and they certainly had a great and tremendous State Tournament showing.
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