Eagles to play for 3rd title
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson sophomore point guard Kelsi McQuinn ducks under the arm of Plattsburg’s Tori Kelley to get a shot up in the second half of the Lady Eagles’ 32-21 win over the Tigers Thursday night in the North Platte Invitational semifinals.
Last season, the Jefferson girls’ basketball team had to settle for second in the North Platte Invitational. With the finals of the 17th annual Invitational this season, the Lady Eagles will have a chance to win it, and potentially its third in-season tournament title of the year.
“To have a shot at our third in-season tournament title makes for a good year,” Jefferson head coach Tyler Pedersen said. “I think it’s a tribute to the girls and their focus. I think they’ve played the tournament season really well.”
This one — a 32-21 win over Plattsburg — didn’t come easy, though.
The Lady Eagles and the opposing Tigers, the tournament’s three seed, struggled through a defensive first quarter — each trying to figure out each other’s 2-3 zone.
“We got some looks that we’re going to finish,” Pedersen said. “Plattsburg put some length across the bottom of that 2-3, and they’re a little bit longer than what we see night-in, night-out. We had a hand in our face when maybe other times it’s a clear look. I think Plattsburg’s athleticism and size threw us off a little bit.”
Jefferson got the first points on the board at the 2:44 mark of the first quarter as freshman forward Josie Deen finished inside. Just over a minute later, Plattsburg tied things up on a short jumper from Tori Kelley.
Plattsburg took a 4-2 lead early in the second quarter on an 18-footer by Brooklyn Adam. Junior forward Jessie Henry, who missed the Lady Eagles’ 29-28 win over West Platte in the first round Tuesday with the flu, tied it and gave Jefferson a 6-4 lead with back-to-back layups at 5:57 and 5:30.
“It’s nice to get her back,” Pedersen said. “She does a lot for us in the middle of the zone. I’m not sure she was 100 percent yet, but eventually she’ll get back to that.”
A third Henry layup pushed the advantage to 8-5 after the Tigers hit a free throw.
A jumper from sophomore forward Kayla Schmitz and a layup by Deen gave the Eagles a 12-5 lead at halftime.
“We found the short corner a few times and found Jessie down there,” Pedersen said. “She didn’t score early, but she still attacked and they adjusted a little bit. A combination between that and our ball movement and we were able to get it to high post. As soon as you get it to high post, you’ve got their defense penetrated. Then, it’s just a matter of finding your teammate.”
As the Tigers flipped between 2-1-2 and 2-3 zones in the third quarter, the Eagles built a double-digit lead, and took a 22-11 lead into the third quarter after sophomore point guard Kelsi McQuinn inbounded off the back of a Plattsburg opponent and scored for the last points of the period.
“She’s just a heads-up player,” Pedersen said. “If she sees someone’s got their back to her, she’ll take a chance at it. I think that’s her third or fourth time (scoring off that this season).”
The Eagles opened the fourth quarter with a three-pointer from senior guard Brooklyn Stoll to give them a 14-point advantage, 25-11.
A late Tiger run didn’t amount to much as Jefferson held onto a double-digit lead the rest of the way to make it back to the title game.
Henry led the Lady Eagles with 10 points while sophomore guard Sarah Chor added six and Schmitz and Stoll finished with five each.
Jefferson (17-1, No. 5 in Class 1) takes on North Platte (15-1, No. 3 Class 2) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Dearborn for the tournament title, a rematch of last year’s title game, won 55-35 by the Panthers.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson senior guard Brooklyn Stoll finishes a fastbreak with a layup in Thursday night’s North Platte Invitational semifinal victory over Plattsburg. Stoll scored five points to help the Lady Eagles to a 32-21 win.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
Jefferson junior center Jessie Henry scored a team-high 10 points in the Lady Eagles’ 32-21 win over Plattsburg Thursday night after missing the first round of the North Platte Invitational with the flu.
