With Class A title triumph, Seiling girls claim sixth state championship in eight years
By Josh Jennings | Photos by Michael Kinney
OKLAHOMA CITY - The Seiling girls know how to win state championships, as the Lady Wildcats defeated Caddo, 56-40, Saturday afternoon to win its sixth state championship in the last eight years.
Seiling has made it to the state tournament in seven of those eight years as well.
“This run we are on is incredible and these girls do whatever it takes to win,” coach Brady Hamar said. “We knew this group was good and it takes lots of things to go our way to win like we have been the past eight years.
"I am so happy for the town of Seiling and it means so much, since our community has supported us all these years.”
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Caddo built an early lead, but Seiling pressed the entire first quarter. Caddo found ways to get the ball across half-court and scored 15 points and was ahead, 15-7, going into the second quarter.
The Lady Wildcats opened the second quarter on a 23-8 run with plays like Aryahna Whestone knocking down an open 3-pointer. Teagan Hamar gave Seiling a 22-20 lead with five minutes to play in the second quarter.
Braci Nyberg was feeling it from the 3-point line, as she went 3-for-4 in the first half.
“I knew Caddo would face guard me and not allow me to drive to the rim,” Nyberg said. “I decided to shoot the ball and sure enough, they went in.”
Kenly Gore hit some contested layups and knocked down a 3-pointer at the top of the key, making the score 35-24, Seiling, at halftime.
“We did not play well in the first quarter,” Hamar said. “Credit to Caddo, as they prepared well and surprised us early. Kenly came up big for us and her leadership is awesome.
"Braci and Kenly are great leaders for us, which shows on the court.”
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Seiling kept up the intensity in the first half, as Nyberg scored six points in the third quarter. Caddo kept scoring, but could not get within striking distance in the third quarter, as Seiling held a 46-36 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
Caddo struggled to score and only scored four points in the final quarter.
The Lady Bruins' top scorer, Emily Robinson, finished the game with a double-double, as she scored 19 points and had 19 rebounds.
For Seiling, Nyberg finished with 17 points. Gore had a double-double, with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Gore said their goal was to attempt to shut down Robinson.
“We knew Emily was a great player, so our No. 1 goal was to defend her,” Gore said. “She still made some plays on us, but overall, I thought our defense did a great job.”
Teagan Hamar is the daughter of the Lady Wildcats' coach. Brady Hamar remarked it was an amazing feeling to give her a medal.
“It was a great feeling putting a state championship medal on Teagan,” Hamar said, “I love her so much and she works so hard for moments like this. She has sacrificed so much time practicing basketball.”
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Coach Hamar said his favorite memories of winning a gold ball is when the team returns home to Seiling.
“We had a pep assembly before we left for Oklahoma City and I said I did not want to return to Seiling until late Saturday night,” he said. “The last few times we have won, we returned around midnight and there were about 800 people welcoming us home.”
He added how thankful he is for the parents and the community in Seiling.
“We have really good players on our team who play travel ball and the parents also play a part in this run. They have raised great kids and invested so much into our basketball program.” Hamar said. “I know their parents really well since Teagan is friends with them and plays basketball with them.
"The money and hours they spend traveling across the country for games are for moments like this.”
Seiling has no seniors on its roster and looks to win another gold ball next year, as Gore, Nyberg and several others will be seniors.
