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N.D.- The Ellendale basketball teams avenged their losses to Oakes on December 16th with wins over the Tornadoes at the Dakota Holiday Tournament in Ellendale on Friday night.
Boys 3rd place: Ellendale 58, Oakes 50
Ellendale freshmen post Adam White was a handful for the undersized Tornadoes. White had a game-high 22 points. White and James Johnston combines for 13 points in the 1st quarter as the Cardinals raced out to a 16-9 lead late in the 1st quarter. The Tornadoes trimmed it to 16-13 at the quarter break, capped off by a Simon Maddock steal and layup ahead of the buzzer. The Cardinals extended the lead to 34-23 at halftime despite having three starters with at least two fouls. White had 8 points, and reserves Chase Durheim and Jacob Enge added key 3-pointers. Brady Enge added eight points in the 3rd quarter, as Ellendale upped their edge to 50-30 late in the 3rd.
Led by Maddock, Oakes did mount a late rally but could not get the deficit into single digits until the game’s final seconds. Maddock led the Tornadoes with 24 points, and had 46 total points in the tournament. Adam Roney added nine points for Oakes, which dropped to 1-6 on the season. Ellendale moves to 2-7.
Girls championship: Ellendale 67, Oakes 41
Ellendale’s talent was a bright spot, as the Cardinals used a strong 2nd half to win decisively over the Tornadoes. Sophomore Shayna Mertz displayed a fine mid-range shooting touch with a game-high 24 points. For the game, the Cardinals drained eight 3-pointers. The opening quarter went back and forth, with Oakes taking what turned out to be their final lead of the game at 10-9 before the Cardinals went on a 6-0 run to lead 15-10 after one quarter. It was 30-24 Ellendale at the half. A key to win was the Cardinals’ improved defensive versus Oakes standout Nicole Warren. Warren, who torched Ellendale for 39 points in their December 16th matchup, was held to 13 points. Led by Mertz’s 9 points, the Cardinals started to pull away in the 3rd quarter, and led 47-34 after three. Ellendale finished strong, outscoring Oakes 20-7 in the 4th quarter. Fellow sophomores Madi Bommersbach and Rachel Herman added 14 and 10 points, respectively, for the Cardinals. Ellendale moves to 4-1 on the season, while the Tornadoes slide to 2-3.
Warren and Sydney Breitbach were selected to the all-tournament team for Oakes, with Warren chosen as the tournament MVP. Joining them were Bommersbach, Mertz, and Brianna Vance of Ellendale.