Girls Game
Okoboji bounced back from a Tuesday loss to Sioux Center on with a 65-46 win over Emmetsburg on Thursday night in Milford. The Pioneers jumped to a quick 12-0 lead behind strong inside play from Montana Wilson and a 3-pointer by Ella Stoll. The E-Hawks would respond however, and trim that lead to 17-11 at the end of the first quarter. Emmetsburg cut the lead to 19-15 midway through the second quarter before Okoboji would respond with an 11-2 run to take a 30-17 lead at halftime. The Pioneers pushed that lead to 40-24 before the E-Hawks went on an 8-0 run to trim the lead to eight before Okoboji pushed it back to 46-35 entering the final quarter. Okoboji put the game away with an 8-3 start to the quarter to push the lead to 64-49 and the E-Hawks would never get closer then 15 the rest of the game. Montana Wilson led Okoboji with 16 points and 10 rebounds; Ava Packebush also scored 16 points to go with 6 rebounds and 2 assists and Ella Stoll would add 11 points and 4 assists. Nique Balliran and Megan Dunlap each had 13 points for Emmetsburg. Okoboji improves to 6-5 on the season while Emmetsburg drops to 4-6.
Comments From Okoboji Coach John Adams
We were really pleased with how the girls responded from a tough outing on Tuesday night. We had a fantastic practice on Wednesday with some great leadership from our captains and tremendous effort from all the girls. Ava had one of her best games in her promising, young career; Montana was dominant inside and did a good job battling some foul trouble, and Ella had an outstanding all-around game. I also thought our guards did a fantastic job of setting the tempo for the game with their defensive pressure. We knew Emmetsburg would play hard and guard really well, and they were coming off a big win over #7 South Central Calhoun right before break, so we knew this would be a tough game and we’re really happy to come out with the big win.
Boys Game
The Pioneers hosted Emmetsburg Thursday night in a non-conference matchup against the E-Hawks. Okoboji got jumped out to a 22-13 lead and went into the half with a 48-18 advantage. The Pioneers held a 69-27 lead going into the fourth quarter and ended the game with a 75-42 victory.
The Pioneers were led by Lucas Lorenzen’s 28 points. Kaleb Peschong contributed 15 and Austin Harms 14 points on the night. Emmetsburg was led by Byron Maina’s 14 points. Keegan Joyce also added 10 points.
Comments From Okoboji Coach Ryan Stumbo
We did a nice job tonight of setting the tone around the rim on offense and working hard to challenge shots and rebound on defense. It was nice for us to put together a complete game and were encouraged tonight by the effort and discipline we showed on both sides of the ball. Lucas, Kaleb, and Austin all had great games for us tonight and did a nice job finishing and shooting from the outside. It was another great overall team effort that we will need to build off of in our upcoming games.
