Desales, Tekoa-Oakesdale Head To State
District 7-B
The DeSales boys are going to the State B Tournament for the first time in 44 years and won’t mind if anyone considers them a long shot, not after draining 12 of 20 3-pointers in Saturday night’s 72-56 victory over Blue Mountain rival Waitsburg in a District 9-B elimination game at Friel Court.
“After yesterday’s victory (over Garfield-Palouse), the guys weren’t going to be denied,” Irish coach Joe Lesko said.
The Tekoa-Oakesdale girls, no strangers to state, used unrelenting defense to earn a return trip to Spokane. The Nighthawks held the LaCrosse-Washtucna Tigercats to a single point in the fourth quarter of their 40-28 victory in the early game.
“Defense has always been our thing,” said T-O’s Sara Driscoll.
DeSales 72, Waitsburg 56
The Irish (18-5) scored four 3-pointers in the first 2:30, taking a 12-2 lead that they never surrendered.
Brian Lingren, a 6-foot-4 junior forward, hit six 3s and led all scorers with 27 points. Lefty point guard Joe Levens hit five 3s en route to 16 points. He also dished out eight assists.
“The penetration by our guards opened things up,” Lingren said.
Center Scott Zea matched Levens with 16 points, giving the Irish an inside threat.
Jesse McCaw scored 16 points for Waitsburg, which was playing without injured star Ryan Leid.
DeSales hit six 3-pointers in taking a 24-10 lead after the first quarter. Waitsburg would get no closer than 29-21 the rest of the way.
The Irish had not made a state boys basketball tournament since three-sport star Brian Richard led the 1981-82 squad to the State A. DeSales returned to Class B for the 1984-85 season. Their State B entry of 44 years ago was when the school was called St. Patrick’s.
“This takes a lot of weight off our shoulders,” Lesko said.
DeSales 24 9 12 27 - 72
Waitsburg 10 13 6 27 - 56
DESALES - Lindgren 27, Stanley 6, Wolfram 0, Heinzman 0, Levens 16, T.Baffney 0, Barry 0, Richard 0, Zea 16, Michels 0, C.Baffney 7, Rusch 0.
WAITSBURG - Adams 0, Scott 9, Pearson 11, Wyatt 11, McCaw 16, Archer 4, Ruzicka 5.
Girls
T-O 40, L-W 28
Miranda Brown scored 10, leading four Nighthawks with at least eight, but it was defense that carried T-O to state.
The Nighthawks (23-3) led 30-27 at halftime and pulled away by holding the Tigercats scoreless for the first 6:06 of the fourth quarter.
Rochelle Schneider led L-W with 15 points. Her 3-pointer midway through the third quarter pulled L-W within 26-24, but she didn’t score again until making a free throw with 1:54 to go.
Heather Cox, who played a key role in T-O’s defensive charge, broke the game open by swishing a 3-pointer for a 36-27 lead early in the fourth quarter.
“We hit the boards a lot harder in the second half - that was the key defensively,” said Cox, who scored eight.
L-W was denied its first state berth.
LaC-Wash 7 14 6 1 - 28
Tek-Oakesdale 12 8 10 10 - 40
LaCROSSE-WASHTUCNA - Bay 0, Wigen 0, Cronrath 0, Kinch 4, N.Schneider 2, R.Schneider 15, Larsen 0, Baumann 2, Blankenship 0.
TEKOA-OAKESDALE - K.Driscoll 0, S.Brown 0, S.Driscoll 8, Smart 2, Brown 10, Hay 9, Graffis 3, Smith 0, Je.Bruce 0, Ja.Bruce 0, Cox 8.
, DataTimes