Neligh-Oakdale Tips Off Season With Split With Ewing

Neligh-Oakdale tipped off the season Thursday night with a split against nearby Ewing.

The girls started things off, with Ewing taking home the 69-38 win. The Warriors kept things within striking distance throughout the first half, entering the break down just 36-23. However, the Tigers locked down on defense in the second half to pull away for the win.

Neligh-Oakdale was led by senior Bailey Frey and Freshman Paige Furstenau, who each recorded 11 points. Jaclynn Hixson added eight points, Rachel Higgins and Trinity Kuprgeweit each had three and Kenzi Tschirren added two.

In the boys game, the roles were reversed as Neligh-Oakdale controlled the game all the way through to a 52-26 win. They didn't allow the Tigers to hit double figures in a single quarter throughout the night.

The Warriors were led by Cole Belitz, who dropped in 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting. He also dished out seven assists on the night and came away with six steals. Nate Buck added 12 points down low for the Warriors and Hunter Charf added seven.

Austin Rice did most of his damage on the glass, pulling in 18 rebounds, including seven on the offensive end.