Lady Cardinals Fall To Wynot In First Round Of State Tourney

Cardinal Mya Hedstrom goes up for a shot against Kenna Oligmueller of Wynot at the state tourney in Lincoln.

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Cardinal Hope Williamson goes up for a shot against Allison Wieseler of Wynot at the state tourney in Lincoln.

The 2023 NSAA State Girls Basketball Championships Tournament kicked off last week on March 2. The lady Cardinals of St. Mary's had managed to make their way into the tournament this year, winning their district game at Broken Bow with ease. 

The Cardinals were first pitted against the number six seated Wynot Blue Devils in the quarterfinals bracket at 7:45 p.m. at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Cardinals went in with a hot 18-win streak, with the Blue Devils at four before the tournament. 

Things got off to a rough start for the Cardinals as the Blue Devils went on a nine-point run on the Cards from the get-go. Mya Hedstrom gave the Cards a fright as she fouled twice in the first few minutes of the first quarters, causing coach Berg to pull her off the court. This left the Cards in a period of disarray until she returned. The Cards got their feet back under them and worked at closing their deficit after that. The Blue Devils managed more than double their opponent's points in the first quarter; however, the Cards came back and were within one at the half.

Third quarter wasn't quite what the Cards were looking for, with them falling back by an additional four points. The Cards had trouble with ball control against Wynot during the match, turning the ball over 21 times. Things weren't looking too great for the Cardinals at this point, but the game wasn't over. They still had one more chance to make it to semifinals the next day. This final quarter was going to make or break the entire match. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Blue Devils defense overpowered them further, bringing them down to a nine-point disadvantage in the end.

The St. Mary's lady Cardinals put forth a fantastic effort however, and should be applauded for making it this far in their 2022-2023 season. 

Mya Hedstrom leads the girl's final match with 12 points, shooting two of three three-pointers for 67 percent and three of nine two-pointers for 33 percent, as well as four rebounds; In close second would be Hope Williamson with 11 points and seven rebounds; Alissa Brabec 10 points and one rebound; Lorissa Reiman eight points and 10 rebounds; Annabelle Barlow three points; and Gracie Williamson three rebounds.

SMH        6     12      16      10      44

WHS      13       6      20      14       53

This match marks the end of the 2022-2023 Basketball season here in O'Neill. Every team the Holt County Independent have reported on has done some great things this past season, and we can't wait to see what's in store next year!

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