The Plainview-Osmond elementary girls’basketball teams have been busy with league play, the fifth and sixth grades in the Stanton League, and third and fourth graders beginning their season
Sixth Grade Action
The Plainview/Osmond 6th grade continued their hot start to the season in the Stanton League in the last couple of weeks. The team came out hot against West Point on Jan. 11. They led at the half 23-5 with great defensive play that led to many fast break opportunities. The team was able to maintain the 18-point lead throughout the game with a final score of 37-19.
“The game allowed for well rounded play by the whole team. More players are learning to execute their role to contribute to the team’s success. We had good effort by everyone to maintain the lead while allowing different combinations of players” reported Coach Dave Dougherty.
Leading the team in points were Swayzey Alexander with 15, Bentley Dougherty 8, Bristal Stelling 6, Shay Miller 4, and Emerson Wagner 4.
Rebounds were led by Wagner and Bethany Krause with 2; followed by Stelling, Wagner, Henley Marks, Jocelynn Buck, Miller, and Alexander all with 1. Dougherty led the team in steals with 5, followed by Alexander and Stelling 3, Miller 2; Krause, Wagner, Hailey Gutz, Buck, and Kiley Friedrich 1.
Next, the team faced off against a tough Howells/Dodge team on Jan. 18. The Pirates continued their winning efforts with a 43-30 ending score. The Pirates were able to get off to a good start leading by 23 at the half. The half ended with an exciting buzzer beating 3-pointer from the volleyball line by Dougherty to carry the momentum into the second half.
The Pirates were able to get all players valuable minutes in the second half while maintaining the lead.
Scoring was led by Alexander 26, Dougherty 11, Miller 4, and Wagner 2.
Rebounding leaders were Alexander 6, B Krause and Miller 4, Wagner 3, Grace Krause and Buck 1. Steals were led by Alexander and Dougherty 4, Miller 1.
On Sunday, the Pirates defeated the Stanton Mustangs. They were led by Alexander with 14, followed by Dougherty with 10, Miller 5, and Friedrich 4. Rebounds: Miller 4, Alexander 2, Dougherty, Buck, and Wagner 1. Steals: Miller, Alexander and Stelling 3, Dougherty 2, and Marks 1.
The Pirates are currently sitting first in their league standings and will continue league play through mid-February. They begin tournament play next week in Laurel.
Fifth Grade Play
Plainview/Osmond 5th grade girls have been battling their way through the Stanton League in the past few weeks. The team had tough backto- back games on Jan. 11, taking on Wisner and Lutheran High.
With only 5 players able to be there, the girls started off slow on the offensive side against Wisner. They trailed at half 3-8.
The team settled in for the second half of play. However, the Pirates could not overcome the deficit, los ing 10-22.
“Wisner was much taller than us, giving them a rebounding advantage and many second and third chance shots, allowing them to pull away from us in scoring. The game taught us a valuable lesson in the importance of fundamentally sound footwork and aggressively pursuing rebounds.” states Coach Mary Dougherty. “We are short on numbers in this group and relied on younger players to round out the team. It will help us in the long run but causes struggles now.
The girls are learning confidence and how to use our strengths to achieve our preseason goals.”
The team was led by Harper Stec with 4 points, Aven Torrey 3, Remi Schieffer 2, and Merrit Tarr 1. Rebounds were led by Torrey 8; Tarr 7; McKenzie Riley 2, Stec, Raelynn Scheiffer and Remi Scheiffer, 1 each.
Defensive effort was led by Tarr with 5 steals, followed by Riley 2, and Stec, Raelynn Scheiffer, and Aubrey Dougherty, 1 each. Tarr and Riley also chipped in 1 blocked shot each.
The 5th grade finished their day with a heart-breaking loss to Lutheran High, 22-19. The team played with a lot of determination to come back in the 20-minute 2nd half with no subs. The team was led by Torrey with 7 points, followed by Stec and Tarr 4, Remi Scheiffer 3, Raelynn Scheiffer 1. Riley made her presence known in the paint this game, leading with 6 rebounds, followed by Tarr 3, Torrey and Raelynn Scheiffer 2, and Remi Scheiffer 1.
Steals were evenly distributed throughout the team with Torrey, Riley, Tarr, and Dougherty, all with 1. Stec had the single block of the game to aid the effort.
On Sunday, the 5th graders took on Stanton and came up a little short in a 15-18 loss. Scoring was led by Brailey Thornburg, Shailey Orr, and Paige Hodson with 4 apiece, followed by Harper Stec with 2, and Aubrey Dougherty 1. Rebounds: Thornburg 11, Hodson 9, Dougherty 5, Stec 4, and Raelynn Scheiffer and Remi Scheiffer 1 each. Steals: Orr 5, Thornburg and Hodson 3, Stec 1.
The Pirates will begin tournament play on Jan. 31 in Laurel and continue league play through February. The 5th graders are knocking on the door of the league championship with their current standing of 3rd.
Third-fourth grade girls season update
The third and fourth grade girls’ basketball seasons are underway. The third grade team is comprised of: Aria Bowman, Gracie Forbes, Quinn Williams, Kally Hodson, Skylar Mendlik, Breanna Bruha, Olivia Schramm, Zoey Halsey, Rowan Gansebom, Bristol Evans, Berkley Aschoff, Novella Mitchell, Kendall Weber, and Aurora Sinkler. The team is coached by Kevin Weber and Nolan Aschoff.
The fourth grade includes: Aubrey Dougherty, Brailey Thornburg, Sadie Diedrichson, Camryn Brookhouser, Shailey Orr, Remi Schieffer, Hazel Steinkraus, Kinsley Wilson, Mary Meuret, Xaivy Anderson, and Zaira Forsch. The fourth Grade is coached by Leah Orr, Averi Diedrichsen, and Mary Dougherty.
Coach Kevin Weber summed up the season saying, “These girls have been working hard and improving from practice to practice. As coaches, we have focused a lot of time on teaching them the fundamentals to create a solid foundation for this team. Now as we move into playing games, the girls get opportunities to show what they have been learning and apply that into game situations. We will continue to improve on fundamentals to get them prepared for the tournaments they will be playing in the coming weeks. Thank you to the parents who have taken the time to get these girls to practice, it’s been fun to work with them and watch them improve up to this point.”
The third grade team will continue their season in Osmond on Feb. 1 with a game against Bloomfield, followed by games in Creighton on Feb. 8 and the Plainview Tournament on March 7-8. The fourth grade team will play in Creighton on Feb. 8, followed by tournaments in Norfolk on Feb. 21-22 and Plainview on March 7-8.
