The Valley City Hi-Liners and the Northern Cass Jaguars left the offenses at home for the Region One Final as the Jaguars prevailed with a 47-36 win over the Hi-Liners.
Valley City and Northern Cass exchanged pleasantries in the first quarter as the Jaguars predictably went to Haidyn Crockett early to carry the offense. Crockett, who came in averaging 40ppg in the Region One Tournament, finished the opening frame with nine points. The Hi-Liners would respond with Katie Burchill, Drew Potratz, and Tesa Olson, who combined for 13 points in the quarter as Valley City held a slim 13-12 lead after one.
The shooting woes began in the second quarter as the Hi-Liner offense only mustered four points in the second frame, all coming by way of Tesa Olson. Crockett would continue to charge headlong into the Valley City defense, tacking on six more points as she went into the break with 15. The real difference in the quarter would be made by the play of the Jaguars center Josie Jensen, who controlled the rebounding down low while chipping in her first four points of the game. The surprisingly balanced offensive attack by the Jaguars helped them take a 24-17 lead into the break.
The third quarter would, unfortunately, be more of the same for Valley City, as they could not get the lid off the basket as they only managed six points in the quarter. The Hi-Liner defense did what no other team had done in the tournament, holding Crockett silent for an entire quarter as they looked to keep the deficit manageable. However, Jensen would steady the ship with another four points as Tess Jalbert and Addy Rust carried the Jaguars to a 35-23 lead going into the fourth.
The Hi-Liner offense would get going early. Olson and Burchill would finish with 11 points in the game as Valley City tried to mount a desperate charge. But Jensen would pour water on the burgeoning Valley City run as she took over the fourth offensively and defensively, finishing the game with 16 points. Jensen’s takeover would snuff out the Valley City rally as the game ground slowly and agonizingly to a 47-36 conclusion. Crockett would get herself back on the board with two more to finish with 17 points to lead all scorers, finishing with 97 total points in the tournament.
The next game for Valley City will be Saturday at Mayville State at 1:00 pm as the Hi-Liners will be taking on the winner of Four Winds/Minnewaukan and Carrington in the State Qualifiers. That game can be heard live on 1490AM/96.3FM KOVC.
The Hi-Liners would take home several awards after the final buzzer as Olson, Burchill, and Dacota Potratz would be named to the all-region team, with Jimmy Howard picking up coach of the year honors. The biggest individual honor of the day would belong to Tesa Olson, who was named the Region One Senior Basketball Athlete of the Year.
Ivy Real Estate Group Player of the Game: Tesa Olson