Kerkman's Overtime Three Lifts Warriors Over Cardinals

It has been a rough couple of days for the Neligh-Oakdale basketball squads.

A day after taking losses to strong O'Neill teams, the girls and boys were both back in action Friday night against another two impressive teams, this time from Randolph.

The boys overcame a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime. In the extra period, the two teams continued to trade blows. Neither team was able to take command until the waning seconds when the Warriors' Alex Kerkman stepped back and nailed a three from the corner to give Neligh-Oakdale a 60-59 win.

After a slow start, Neligh-Oakdale coach Frank Gade knew his team could do better.

"There were just small things that we weren't doing, that we did last night, less than 24 hours ago, that allowed us to compete with a rated team like O'Neill that we weren't doing in the first half," he said. "We say this all the time, the little things, they add up to the big things."

Individual statistics will be added when they become available.

Earlier in the night, the girls weren't quite as fortunate. Clearly tired from a tough game the night before, the Warriors were unable to keep up with a hot-shooting Randolph squad in a 62-31 loss.

Bailey Frey and Alexis Jensen led the Warriors with nine and eight points, respectively. Jayda Chance put in the work down low for Neligh-Oakdale, pulling down six rebounds and taking away three steals.