Neoga Claims Girls Regional With Win Over Altamont

BY DUSTIN WHITE

Neoga limited Altamont to just 15 points in the second half Saturday, claiming the championship of the Class 1A Altamont girls basketball regional by a 48-32 margin in the rubber match of three meetings between the clubs this season.

In a game heard on KJ Country 102.3 and www.kjcountry.com, Neoga led 12-6 after a quarter and worked its edge up to 18-9 before a stingy Altamont full-court press led to some turnovers and easy buckets as Coach Katie Lurkins’ club narrowed the gap to 20-17 at halftime.

With sophomore sensation Grace Nelson having scored all 17 of Altamont’s points at the break, Neoga made what turned out to be some fruitful halftime adjustments and limited her to just five in the second half while outscoring its opposition 28-15 in the final two periods.

Nelson, who crossed the 1000-point plateau early in the season, ended up with 22. She averaged 29.1 points per game this year and totaled 932. Peyton Osteen scored four, while Brianna Grunloh, Kylie Ostend, and Skylie Klien each chipped in two. Claire Boehm, Libby Reardon, Sophia Pearcy and Ana Fulk also saw action; Altamont’s season ends at 16-16 with a roster that featured zero seniors.

For Neoga, three players hit double figures. Haylee Campbell and Sydney Richards each tallied 14, while Trista Moore came in at 11. Brynn Richards tallied five, Avery Fearday scored four, and Allison Sampson saw action. Sydney Hakman didn’t score for Neoga, but ran the point and was the primary defender on Nelson.

It was by far the most lopsided game of the season series between Neoga and Altamont, who finished third and fourth respectively in the final National Trail Conference standings. Neoga won the NTC Tournament title over Altamont 64-58 in double overtime on Jan. 21, but Altamont went to Neoga and grabbed a 59-57 regular season victory 10 days later.

For Neoga, it was the first regional championship since 2011-12; that was the last year at the helm for Kevin Haarman before current head coach Kim Romack took the helm for her alma mater. In this, her tenth year, the Lady Indians finally got over the hump after four previous regional title game appearances. Romack’s assistant throughout her tenure, Seth James, was her varsity coach as a player and won 133 games over six season but could never claim a regional title in the old two-class system.

The win also improved Neoga to 25-7, equaling a program record for wins in a season with Romack’s 2014-15 squad. It’ll play Tuscola Tuesday night at 7:30 in the Tuscola Sectional; that’s a rematch of the title game at the Monticello Holiday Hoopla Tournament, which Neoga won 49-36.

Class 1A Altamont Regional

Championship

ALTAMONT (32)

Grunloh 1-0 -- 2, Pearcy 0-0 -- 0, Boehm 0-0 -- 0, P. Osteen 1-1 -- 4, K. Osteen 1-0 -- 2, Nelson 6-9 -- 22, Fulk 0-0 -- 0, Klein 0-2 -- 2, Reardon 0-0 -- 0. TOTALS 9 FG, 12 FT.

NEOGA (48)

B. Ricahrds 2-1-- 5, Sampson 0-0 -- 0, Hakman 0-0 -- 0, S. Richards 6-2 -- 14, Fearday 2-0 -- 4, Moore 3-4 -- 11, Campbell 6-2 -- 14. TOALS 19 FG, 9 FT.

Altamont             6    11      6     9    --    32

Neoga               12     8    14    14    --    48

3-point FG -- Altamont 2 (P. Osteen 1, Nelson 1), Neoga 1 (Moore 1).