Warrior girls defeat Watonga for third place in 2019 conference tournament at Enid’s CNB Center
By Trey Hunter
Sports Editor
The No. 9 Warriors finished third in the 2019 Three Rivers Conference Tournament after going 2-1 with wins over Seeworth Academy in the opening round and Class 2A Watonga in the consolation championship game.
With the pair of wins, Okarche improved to 12-5 on the season, including wins in nine of the team’s last 11 games. The Warriors only losses in that span have been to Oklahoma Christian Academy on Dec. 21 and Friday to Class 2A Crescent, 50-45 in the tournament semifinals.
The Warriors had no problems in their opening round win over Seeworth, knocking off the Eagles 86-10.
Four players scored in double digits for Okarche, including senior Kassidy Rother who led the team with 14 points. Freshman Karsyn Vallerand chipped in 13 while senior Jade Owens scored 12 and junior Rachel McDowell scored 10.
Junior Marlo Hunt chipped in nine points as well while junior Raegan Robinson scored seven. Senior Cydnie Hull scored six points, freshman Adyson Arms scored four, freshmen Mackenzie Schneiter and Savannah Mingus each scored three and freshman Ryen Wittrock scored two.
Okarche finished with 30 rebounds in the game, led by four apiece from Schneiter and Wittrock. Vallerand, McDowell, Arms and Hunt each grabbed three.
Robinson led the team with eight steals while Jade Owens finished with seven takeaways. Altogether the team forced over 30 turnovers.
The Warriors opened the game with a 35-0 run in the first eight minutes before closing the first half with a 16-5 run in the second quarter.
They extended the lead, outscoring the Eagles 24-5 in the third quarter before closing the game out with a 11-0 run.
The Warriors hit the road again Friday for a match up against Thomas before returning home to host Class 2A Hennessey Tuesday night at the Okarche Basketball Gymnasium.
