Cadet boys edge No. 10 Lions in 2OT; defeated by W-SR

WAVERLY - Showing tremendous heart and spirit, the Crestwood boys' basketball team rallied from a five-point deficit in the first overtime to down No. 10 Clear Lake, 87-83, in double overtime on Tuesday, Feb. 20 at Waverly in the Class 3A Substate 2 quarterfinal playoff game.

Facing a strong Waverly-Shell Rock squad in the semifinals on Feb. 22, the Cadets fell behind by nine points at halftime and were unable to rally all the way back as W-SR tallied a 52-41 win. W-SR (17-6) advanced to the Substate Final against Charles City (18-4) on Feb. 26. The loss ended Crestwood’s season at 9-14 overall.

Cadets 87, C.L. 83

The district quarterfinal against Clear Lake was a tight, back-and-forth battle the entire game. 

Both teams traded buckets for the first eight minutes. Crestwood took a 19-17 lead on a two-pointer by Clayton Ollendieck with two seconds left before Clear Lake hit a three-pointer from beyond halfcourt at the buzzer to take a 20-19 lead.

In the second period, the Lions grabbed a 30-23 lead with five minutes remaining before a 7-0 run by the Cadets tied the game at 30 at the 2:25 mark. At halftime, Clear Lake held a 34-32 lead.

In the third quarter, Crestwood took a 44-40 lead at the 4:35 mark. Going into the fourth period, the Cadets held a 51-48 lead.

In the fourth, Crestwood went on a 9-5 run to take a 60-53 lead, but Clear Lake answered with a 13-4 run to take a 66-64 lead with 44 seconds left.

Crestwood took a 67-66 lead on two free throws by Clayton Ollendieck with 26 seconds left in the fourth. However, the Lions took the lead back at 68-67 on a layup by Zach Lester with 1.9 seconds left. On the inbounds play, Clear Lake fouled Crestwood's Zack Lane, who made one of two free throws to tie the game at 68 and sent it into overtime.

In the first overtime, Clear Lake took a 75-70 lead with 36 seconds remaining before a layup and a three-pointer by Kristian Szajna tied the game at 75 with 12 ticks left. Two free throws by the Lions gave them a 77-75 lead, but Szajna converted another layup with two seconds left to tie the game at 77 and sent it into the second overtime.

In the second overtime, Crestwood snagged an 84-81 lead on a layup by Zack Lane with 30 seconds left before two Clear Lake foul shots cut the lead to 84-83. Szajna made one free throw with 11 seconds left, grabbed a rebound and hit two free throws with six seconds left to clinch the win.

Crestwood Head Coach Lynn McCormick gave kudos to all his players after the thrilling win.

“This was a great effort by all of our kids,” McCormick said. “We had so many chances to win the game. Our guys showed so much heart and determination. We made some big stops on defense and made some big shots (down the stretch).

“Zack Lane (32 points) had one heck of a game for us, and so did Clayton Ollendieck (26 points). Kristian Szajna hit a big-three pointer to tie the game up for us in the first overtime, and then he made a heck of a play to get the rebound and hit two free throws in the second overtime. 

“All of our kids showed a lot of grit, and I’m so proud of all of them. Things have gone against us during games like this all year, and I think we were due to win (a game like this),” McCormick said.

The coach added that even though the Lions beat the Cadets earlier this season (57-56 on Jan. 25), he knew his team would be ready for Clear Lake in the playoffs.

“We had confidence going into this game because the first time we played them, it was such a great game,” McCormick said. “We knew we could play with Clear Lake, but we wanted to try to control their guard, Zach Lester, a little bit. He got his points (48), and he’s a great player, but we got stops on defense and rebounds when we needed them (down the stretch),” McCormick said.

Cadet statistics

Zack Lane tallied 32 points and nine rebounds. Clatyon Ollendieck tallied a double-double with 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Kristian Szajna had 17 points, including two three-pointers, and six assists. 

Jon Henry had five points, six rebounds and three assists. Shane Vokaty had four points and four assists. Nathan Martinek had three points on one three-pointer and one assist. Boston Ferrie had one block. Garret Ollendieck had one rebound.

Score by quarters

CW 19  13  19  17  9  10 - 87

CL  20  14  14  20  9   6  - 83

 

W-SR 52, Cadets 41

A strong effort by the Crestwood boys’ basketball team fell short on the scoreboard as Waverly-SR defeated the Cadets, 52-41.

Crestwood grabbed a 7-4 lead with 2:44 left in the first period on two-pointers by Kristian Szajna and Clayton Ollendieck. However, the Go-Hawks closed the period with a 10-0 run to take a 14-7 lead.

In the second period, a three-point play by Szajna sliced the lead to 18-15 at the 5:06 mark, but W-SR answered with a 10-4 run over the final five minutes to grab a 28-19 halftime lead.

The Cadets were unable to get into a rhythm in the third period as W-SR went on an 8-2 run to extend its advantage to 36-21 going into the fourth.

In the final period, the Go-Hawks led 47-30 at the 2:27 mark before an 11-4 run by the Cadets cut the gap to 51-41 with 42 seconds left, but Crestwood was unable to get any closer.

“Late in the first half, we had Waverly’s lead down to four points, but then we turned the ball over and took some bad shots,” McCormick said. “At the start of the second half, we had to make sure we got some scores and some stops on defense, but we only scored two points (in the third).

“Waverly’s defense took us out of some of the things we wanted to do on offense. Waverly has a good combination of size and quickness. They cut to the basket well, and we didn’t stop their penetration to the basket,” McCormick said.

The coach praised the solid effort all the Cadet players showed.

“I loved our kids’ effort all year,” McCormick said. “We always played with a lot of heart. We could have folded against Waverly, but we didn’t. We cut their lead to a reasonable amount near the end of the game, and we kept battling. Waverly was the better team tonight, but I loved the heart our kids showed. We have a great group of kids.

“(Seniors) Clayton Ollendieck and Kristian Szajna have been awesome for us. Kristian was a starter for three years, and Clayton started as a junior and senior. Those two have been outstanding leaders for us. I couldn’t ask for two better young men to represent our program. They both had outstanding careers, and I’m happy for them. Both of them will have great futures,” McCormick said.

Cadet statistics

Clayton Ollendieck tallied 17 points, including one three-pointer, and had five rebounds. Kristian Szajna had 11 points and four rebounds. Jon Henry posted four points.

Nathan Martinek and Shane Vokaty each had three points on one three-pointer.  Vokaty had two rebounds.  Zack Lane tallied three points and two assists. Boston Ferrie and Garret Ollendieck each had one rebound.

Score by quarters

CW     7   12   2   20  - 41

WSR 14   14   8   16  - 52