The Fort Calhoun Pioneers' two second-half scoring runs overcame Nebraska City's dominant second quarter Tuesday night.
After a 9-0 third period run, the FCHS girls went on a 12-0 tear in the fourth to beat the purple Pioneers, 34-32. The win was the orange Pioneers' ninth of the season and came on senior Tess Skelton's last Parents Night.
“It was my mom's hometown, so it felt good to beat them,” she said through a smile.
Coach Marty Plum's home team started strong, jumping out to a 9-5 advantage before its offense went cold. Nebraska City took advantage, going on a 12-0 scoring run that nearly encapsulated the entire second period.
Calhoun sophomore Raegen Wells made a free throw with zeroes left on the first-half clock, though, preventing a scoreless quarter and pulling the Pioneers within 17-10 at the break.
Skelton, who finished with a team-best 15 points, scored the second half's first bucket, but also the 3-pointer that kicked off FCHS' first scoring streak of the second half. Bria Bench and Maddy Tinkham scored the next six points as the Pioneers pulled within 23-21 of the visiting Pioneers.
Nebraska City built its lead back up to 29-21 into the fourth period, however. Coach Plum's team found itself in a struggle, but got back into the game with effort.
“It was our defense,” Skelton said. “Our defense led into our offense because, when we were lacking on defense, our offense wasn't working.”
It started producing after Tinkham scored another two points to pull the Pioneers within 29-23. The bucket — and FCHS' defensive effort — led to a 12-0 run. Next, Kylie Perfetti hit a free throw before Skelton scored and Tinkham knocked down a baseline jumper.
A pair of Bench foul shots at the 2:10 mark of the final period gave the hometown Pioneers a 30-29 advantage. Skelton and Wells added to the lead at the charity stripe, too, as FCHS pulled off the Parents Night victory.
Coach Plum's team was scheduled to compete Thursday at Tekamah-Herman and hosts Raymond Central tonight at 6. Fort Calhoun then travels to the Class C1 Subdistrict 6 Tournament on Monday, though matchups and the location were unavailable as of press time.
FCHS is 9-11 this season.
Fort Calhoun girls 34, Nebraska City 32
NC (3-19) 7 10 10 5 — 32
FCHS (9-11) 9 1 11 13 — 34
Scoring: FCHS — Tess Skelton 15, Bria Bench 9, Maddy Tinkham 6, Raegen Wells 3, Kylie Perfetti 1.
NC — Halle Thompson 17, Katie Schreiter 7, Tarryn Godsey 4, Emilee Marth 2, Kendyl Schmitz 2.
Fort Calhoun boys edge Pioneers by 5
Three Pioneers scored all but one of the boys team's 45 points Tuesday, but that was enough.
Grayson Bouwman, Zane Schwarz and Carsen Schwarz scored 44 points during the ninth-ranked FCHS boys' 45-40 home win over Nebraska City on Parents Night. The senior Schwarz brothers combined for 25 points, while Bouwman, a sophomore, notched a team-high 19.
Owen Newbold, another senior playing on his final Parents Night, added a free throw during the Pioneers' 12-9 fourth quarter.
Coach TJ O'Connor's basketball team trailed 24-21 at halftime, but earned a 33-31 lead after three quarters when both Bouwman and Zane Schwarz scored five points during the 8 minutes after halftime. Bouwman then scored seven during the final period to close out the win.
FCHS was 15-4 this season with three regular season games to go. The Pioneers were scheduled to play at Tekamah-Herman on Thursday night and will face Raymond Central tonight. The home game starts at approximately 7:30 p.m.
No. 9 Fort Calhoun boys 45, Nebraska City 40
NC (9-11) 13 11 7 9 — 40
FCHS (15-4) 12 9 12 12 — 45
Scoring: FCHS — Grayson Bouwman 19, Zane Schwarz 13, Carsen Schwarz 12, Owen Newbold 1.
NC — Chase Brown 15, Braden Thompson 9, Nyuon Thuokok 7, MJ Nelson 5, Jayden Borns 2, Connor Causgrove 2.
