The C2-4 Girls Basketball Sub-State Final at Fremont High Friday night saw Clarkson/Leigh escape with a 45-44 win over Guardian Angels Central Catholic in action aired on 107.9 the Bull.
GACC jumped out to an early 9-0 lead before the Patriots cut the score to 12-10 at the end of the first, still in favor of the Bluejays. GACC also took a 22-17 lead into halftime.
Clarkson/Leigh held GACC to just six points in the third quarter, but the Bluejays still led 28-25 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter was tightly contested, with both teams exchanging leads briefly. But the Patriots outscored the Bluejays 20-16 in the period, helping them to the win.
Kayden Schumacher came off the bench to lead Clarkson/Leigh with 12 points and also had 7 rebounds. Kennedy Settje added 8 points and 9 rebounds while Alissa Kasik totaled 7 points. Cassidy Hoffman posted 11 rebounds while Ashlynn Novotny chipped in 8.
Head Coach Matt Murren says his team remained calm, relaxed, and poised, and simply played their game. "The girls mindset, heart, effort, and ability to keep their composure all lead to us beating GACC Friday night and advancing. We got down 9-0 early on in that game and we took an early timeout. In the timeout we talked about relaxing, taking deep breaths, and just calming ourselves down. Once we settled in and played our game we were able to make plays. It was amazing to see the effort and heart the girls laid out there on the floor for one another. I can't count the number of times we had kids flying around on the ground for the basketball or diving for rebounds. It was an amazing team win and makes everyone in the community extremely excited to go to state."
Clarkson/Leigh improves to 20-5 by winning the C2-4 District title, and advances to the Class C2 state basketball tournament where the Patriots will meet top seeded Oakland-Craig (25-1) in the first round at Lincoln North Start at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday in action that will also be aired on the Bull.
The Knights defeated Wood River 55-39 in the C2-1 Sub-State Final from Columbus High Friday night.
Oakland-Craig beat Clarkson/Leigh 55-31 on December 10th in Clarkson in action we also had on the Bull.
Murren says it's been awesome to see things all come together for his team. "We had a talk during the final week of the regular season on what we needed to do if we wanted to give ourselves a chance at making it to state. Since that day, the girls mindset and mentality has been all on how we are going to get ourselves to Lincoln and how we can make it happen down there. They have gained confidence and a belief in one another that is amazing to see as a coach. It is amazing the difference it makes in a team that just plays free and plays with the ultimate trust in one another and that is what this team is currently doing. The vibe this week at practice has been great."
Murren adds the team has to do the things on Thursday that got them this far. "Oakland-Craig is a heck of a team, they are 25-1 for a reason and they just know how to win. We need to make sure that we come out and just execute our game plan for 32 minutes. That will be the key, we stick to the plan that we are bringing into the game and we execute it for a full game. At the end of the day, this is a team we are very familiar with as we see them in the regular season and they are in our conference. Both teams know a lot about each other, so it should be a fun game. As a coaching staff, it will be important that we keep the players relaxed and ready to enjoy the experience, that is the key thing with the atmosphere. We want to make sure the kids just play like themselves and do everything we can to advance. Making state is a great accomplishment, making a state run would be a memory these kids and this community would remember for a lifetime."
I think playing a familiar opponent will help the Patriots just settle in and play ball.
Clarkson/Leigh already beat GACC, and knows they can compete with anyone.
The Patriots should come in confident and ready to go come Thursday.
Murren says making state is a huge deal for everyone involved. "It is a giant step for our program in making state and for both the communities of Clarkson and Leigh. The excitement at the end of that basketball game is a memory that many will never forget. If you watch the film of it, the girls running to one another at mid-court, the student section trying to storm the court, the fans all high fiving and hugging. It was a surreal moment for everyone. We have great community support here for Clarkson-Leigh and it was evident as we came back to town Friday night. We were escorted in to town by fire trucks and taken down main street where all the fans were lined up to meet the girls and cheer them on. We will have great support on Thursday when we head down to Lincoln to play."
I'm sure Clarkson/Leigh is thrilled to be down at State, but has to come out and try and win at State as well.
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