Family affair for Preston as boys and girls teams claim area tournament titles
By George Mitchell
WILBURTON - Chase Littlejohn thinks he has an excellent deal.
The third-year head coach won his first area tournament title, and he gets to share with his wife, Rylie Torrey-Littlejohn, who also won her first area title as Preston swept the Class 2A Area IV titles in Wilburton on Friday.
They both serve as each other’s assistants while the other is coaching.
“I got the best assistant coach in the world,” Chase Littlejohn said. “We make a great team. It’s been fun and a lot of late nights.
"We’re still in coaching mode even after we leave the gym. We get home, and we watch film and go over everything together. It’s been a dream to have her as my assistant. I think we make a pretty solid duo.”
Check It Out: Basketball a way of life, and a family affair, for Preston's boys and girls teams
The Preston boys team defeated Pocola, 46-39. The Preston girls held off Hartshorne, 49-45, as each punch tickets to next week's 2A state tournament.
Pocola will face Rejoice Christian for one last chance to reach the state tournament on Saturday night, while Hartshorne takes on Okemah in the girls Area IV consolation contest.
Boys
Preston 46, Pocola 39
Pocola remained within striking distance for most of the game until a 10-0 run at the start of the fourth quarter gave Preston a double-digit lead, 39-28, with 3:11 remaining.
Preston senior Malachi Ligons scored five points and had an assist during the run. He finished the game with seven points.
This is Littlejohn’s third season with Preston as he picked up his 51st career win with the school.
“These guys have been through so much, and it means more than anything in the world to them,” Littlejohn said. “I’m just happy they trusted me, and I get to be a part of it. We’re on top of the world right now.
"They’re all related. They’ve played a lot of basketball in the driveway together, which they’ve dreamed about since they were little kids. They have put so much work into this and earned it.”
Check It Out: Caddo and Okay to meet for Class A boys championship after semifinal victories
Preston saw Pocola last season in the regionals, and the LeFlore County squad won that contest, 46-43.
Dakotah Terrell tied up the game for Pocola with 46.4 seconds left in the first half. Still, on Preston’s next possession, juniors Giorgio Spencer-Dunn got a put-back, and Jervais Goree came up with a steal and converted it into points to give the Pirates a 20-16 lead at the break.
Pocola played catch-up for most of the third quarter before the Indians were able to get within one, 29-28, at the 7:36 mark in the final quarter. But Pocola never got any closer for the duration of the game.
Spencer-Dunn and Goree led their squad with 17 and 12 points, respectively. Spencer-Dunn had three steals and two rebounds. Keyton Smith tied with a game-high eight rebounds.
Terrell had a team-high 12 points, and eight rebounds for Pocola, and Garrett Scott had 11 points.
Girls
Preston 49, Hartshorne 45
The Lady Pirates survived a slow start and punched their ticket to the state tournament.
The team wasn’t used to trailing early in the game as Harshorne built an 11-3 lead with 1:32 remaining in the opening quarter. However, the squad roared back with a 13-0 run that lasted into the second quarter to take the lead for good.
“We were a little nervous because we haven’t been in a situation quite like that,” Torrey-Littlejohn said. “We might have had a slow start, but we found a way to punch back.
“These girls made plays down the stretch and got the stops we needed. They did everything we asked them to do. We’ve been preparing the last four days for this exact thing, and they came out and executed well.”
Check It Out: Clutch performance from Emily Robinson enables Caddo girls to reach Class A title game
Preston senior Jadyn Roberts had 11 points with three assists, two rebounds and a steal. She had a key defensive rebound in the fourth quarter, and her steal was also in the fourth quarter, as Roberts quickly passed the ball off to Shaunassi Jordan, who converted it into a couple of points.
“Jadyn made shots, made plays that were key for us. She stepped up for us,” said Torrey-Littlejohn, who got the 61st win of her career at Preston. “But that’s what seniors do.
"All my leading scorers are seniors, and I’ve been with them for three years, and they’ve been good leaders down the stretch. They really wanted to get to the state tournament, and that was their goal since they were in middle school, and they get to go.”
Adrianne Wilson had 19 points for Preston, and Jordan added 14.
Hartshorne's Alana Williams led her squad with 19 points, while Brooky Surginer had nine and Jayda Moore tossed in seven.
Girls
Okemah 49, Pocola 44
Pocola tied it up at 36-all with 2:40 left in the game, but Maddie Gaxiola answered with a 3-pointer to help carry the Lady Panthers in the upset against the defending 2A champions in the Class 2A Area IV consolation semifinal.
Okemah (24-4) faces Hartshorne on Saturday, with the winner advancing to state.
Okemah had balanced scoring with four players in double digits. Raven Deer led with 12 points, while Miranda Switch opened the game with 10 points in the first quarter and finished with 12.
Elaine Berryhill scored nine of her 11 points in the fourth quarter, and Gaxiola had 10 points.
The loss ended the season for Pocola (20-7). Allyssa Parker led the game with 16 points for Pocola, and Kylee Smith added 12. Bailey Lairamore tossed in 10.
Boys
Rejoice Christian 54, Pawnee 28
The Eagles keep finding a way to extend their season.
After defeating Latta on Thursday to move one game above .500, Rejoice Christian came out with a 15-2 lead in the first quarter to advance to Saturday’s game and a shot to the state tournament.
Rejoice Christian (14-12) had 10 players contribute to the scoring, with six hitting 3-pointers. Braden Washam and Jaron Foote had four 3's each and finished with 12 and 13 points, respectively.
The team finished with 12 3-pointers.
Kyler Thompson led Pawnee (11-18) with 16 points.
