Okoboji won a hard-fought game over Sheldon, 57-54 on Thursday night in Milford. The first quarter was played evenly with Okoboji taking a slim 16-14 lead into the second frame. The Pioneers would push that lead to 28-20 with 3:00 left in the half but Sheldon held Okoboji scoreless for the rest of the half and pulled within 28-23 at the break. Okoboji built the lead to 38-30 midway through the third quarter, but the Orabs would not go away, and closed the quarter on a 5-0 run to make the score 38-35 entering the final frame. The fourth quarter was full of action and back and forth, with Sheldon taking their first lead of the game at 43-41, but Okoboji would respond and take the lead back at 51-49 on a driving layup by Carly Carstens. Sheldon would answer with a three pointer by Taya Sudbeck to take a 52-51 lead, but Ava Packebush would answer with a huge basket to give Okoboji a lead they would not relinquish. Okoboji got a key stop, and then Packebush made two free throws to make the score 54-51. Claire Johnson hit a short jumper to pull Sheldon within 54-53 with :05 left but Packebush would hit two more huge free throws to give Okoboji a 57-54 lead, and the Orabs would miss a desperation three pointer at the end of the game. Packebush led Okoboji with a career-high 28 points to go along with three steals; Carly Carstens added 14 points while Courtney Bockman chipped in with 9 points and Zoey Holmes grabbed 7 rebounds. Claire Johnson led Sheldon with 22 points. Okoboji improves to 6-12 on the season while Sheldon falls to 3-14.
Quotes from John Adams
“We are super proud of how the team battled tonight and responded to Sheldon taking the lead in the fourth quarter. The girls did a fantastic job of sticking together out there, having great energy on the bench, and finding a way to pull out the victory. Ava was sensational tonight, and really took over the game in the fourth quarter when we needed a play. Carly hit some big shots late for us, Zoey really rebounded well and Courntey played a great game on both ends of the court.”
