1st Annual
North Central District "A/B"
Girls Basketball Tournament
1975

Champ

ionship

Decem

ber 18

Om

ak

Score

: 33-30

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Ephrata 41, Liberty Bell 28
Game 1.
At Waterville, WA

Liberty Bell came back from a 10-0 deficit to gain a 25-25 tie with Ephrata at the end of three quarters, then the Methow Valley team turned cold, failing to score for four and a half minutes. Ephrata, meantime, reeled off eight unanswered points to take command.
Teresa Smick poured in 20 points to lead Ephrata. Joni Haugen was high for Liberty Bell with 11.

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Okanogan 42, Soap Lake 39 (OT)
Game 2.
At Waterville, WA

Okanogan's Mary Skirko accounted for the only three points scored in overtime.
Soap Lake had battled from behind to take a 26-23 lead on one occasion in the third quarter. Then a nip and tuck fourth quarter, Gina Burnett lifted Soap Lake into a 39-37 lead with 45 seconds remaining, only to have Kelly Morris score the tying basket for Okanogan at the 26-second mark.
Burnett and Skirko shared scoring honors with 18 points apiece. Kay Roche collected 13 for Soap Lake, which lost four players to fouls.

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Cashmere 46, Entiat 24
Game 3.
At Waterville, WA

Ten players, led by Diane Kenoyer's 12 points contributed to the Cashmere attack.

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Omak 49, Brewster 30
Game 4.
At Waterville, WA

Lois Opdycke gathered 16 points to spark the Omak victory. Teresa Gauthier was high for Brewster with 12.

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Okanogan 32, Ephrata 28
Game 5. (Semifinal)
At Waterville, WA

The Bulldogs put on a strong defensive effort to shut off the scoring threat Ephrata had developed in recent games, and led by Mary Skirko's second 18-point effort of the tournament kept a grip on the lead.
Connie Eighme helped that cause with good ball control work in the closing minutes of the game, and Jan Spence was credited with a strong rebounding performance.  Eighme grabbed a rebound, a couple of loose balls, and stole a pass to keep Okanogan in possession.

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Omak 46, Cashmere 37
Game 6. (Semifinal)
At Waterville, WA

Omak produced another smooth team effort and a double-figure scoring effort by three players to post its 46-37 win over Cashmere on Monday night.
The Pioneers jumped to a 14-3 first quarter lead as Lindy Holt bombed the basket for eight points on four field goals. She went on to add three more goals in the second period to lead Omak's scoring effort with 14 at halftime. She didn't score again.
The second half belonged to Joleen Orr and Lois Opdycke, each of whom scored six points.
Omak led 26-9 at halftime and had to hold off a 10-point third quarter flurry by Annette Whitaker to keep a 40-23 edge. The Pioneers coasted home with a six point fourth quarter while Diane Kenoyer paced Cashmere with six counters as the Bulldogs tallied 14.
Holt's 14 was high for the game. Whitaker's 11 led Cashmere.  Whitaker, a speedy senior, transferred to Cashmere from Tonasket.
"We're ecstatic," said Omak coach Meredith Beals. "Okanogan is next, I know. I just know our girls can beat them."
It is to be the fourth meeting this season of the Bulldogs vs. Pioneers as Okanogan has won the first three previous encounters.

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Cashmere 37, Ephrata 36
Game 7. (Loser out)
At Waterville, WA

The Bulldogs scored a miraculous come-from-behind victory over Ephrata to keep its hopes alive for a state trip. The loss knocked Ephrata out of the picture.
Ephrata seemingly had victory within its grasp as it constructed a huge 30-12 lead. Then Annette Whitaker led an amazing Cashmere comeback. The Basin team still boasted a 32-22 lead entering the final period.
Two field goals by Whitaker pulled Cashmere to within two, and Cashmere tied the score with 41 seconds to play, then got the game winners on two free throws at the 18-second mark.
Ephrata's Teresa Smick then went to the line with a one-and-one with six seconds on the clock. She canned the first, missed the second and the issue was decided.
Whitaker sank seven field goals and totaled 14 points. Julie Holmer added 10 to the Cashmere total.

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Omak 33, Okanogan 30
Game 8. (Championship, winner to state)
At Waterville, WA

Omak and Okanogan High School girls basketball teams met for the fourth time this season here Wednesday night, and Omak emerged victorious in this showdown test after having lost three previous meetings to its neighboring rival.
With the win, a pulsating, 33-30 affair, Omak captured the North Central District girls basketball tournament title and a berth in the state tournament.
Okanogan gets another crack at a berth in the state meet, when it tangles with Cashmere here tonight.  That second-place battle is scheduled for 7pm.
In the championship test, a match-up of two stubborn zone defenses, Omak came from six points off the pace at one stage of the first half to show an 18-16 halftime lead. Omak, in taking control, led by as much as six points in the second half, then saw this margin shrink to a shaky two points toward the end.
Okanogan missed some opportunities to tie it up in the final minutes.
The Bulldogs were in control much of the first half due to the scoring of Mary Skirko, coupled with a full-court press. The worked the ball into Skirko inside the zone defense and she responded with eight field goals and a 19-point output.

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Cashmere 40, Okanogan 30
Game 9. (Winner #2 to state, loser out)
At Waterville, WA

"It was a difficult loss and really took the heart of our girls," said Okanogan coach Sybil Gibson afterwards. "We had to go back the next night and play Cashmere and we just had run out of steam and drive."
Cashmere won the right to represent the district as the number two team by overcoming Okanogan, 40-30, in the final game December 18, after having come from behind to oust Ephrata.
Annette Whitaker (formerly of Tonasket) led that comeback with 13 points, several of them in the key turn around period when Cashmere romped from a 18-point deficit in the third period to a thrilling one-point victory over Ephrata.
Cashmere, again led by Whitaker, came from behind a 12-9 first quarter deficit to a 19-18 halftime lead over Okanogan.
Okanogan managed only six points a quarter after the first 12-point splurge in the first period as the game fell apart. Patty Klein led Okanogan with 11 points, while Mary Skirko contributed 10.
Whitaker's 13 was game high and led Cashmere as Patty Shafer added 11.
Cashmere's turnover of the favored Ephrata Tigers was a high point in the tournament. During the contest virtually every spectator not from Ephrata was rooting for the spunky Cashmere crew in a game that grew more and more physical as the Bulldogs returned contact for contact with the bigger Tigers.
Whatever the cause, the tactic, plus a periodic full-court press, flustered the Tigers and tipped the margin to the Bulldogs.

Tournament Scoring Leaders

Caribou Trail League
North Division Standings

Caribou Trail League
South Division Standings

Team

Team

Caribou Trail League Tournament

Wednesday, December 3 @ Okanogan High School
CTL North Tiebreaker - Okanogan 33, Tonasket 31 (Winner #2 seed to district, loser out)

Monday, December 8 @ Okanogan High School
Game 1. 6:30pm, South #1 Ephrata 41, North #1 Omak 27 (Winner CTL champion & #1 seed to district)
Game 2. 8:00pm, South #2 Cashmere 36, North #2 Okanogan 30 (Loser #4 seed to district)

Tuesday, December 9 @ Okanogan High School
Game 3. 6:30pm, Cashmere 35, Omak 32 (Winner #2 seed to district, loser #3 seed to district)

1975 Regular Season Game-by-Game Results