February 28, 2008
Needles Wins Girls 2A State Title

By Dave Maxwell, Staff Writer

Third time was the charm for Needles in the 2A Girls State Championship game in Reno Febreuary 23. Lincoln County was the opponent in the finals this year, but the Mustangs simply were not to be denied in their third straight appearance, and hammered a tired-out Lynx squad 63-39.

Lincoln Coach Henry Frehner said he thought his team was just worn out from the emotionally draining experience with Battle Mountain in the semi-finals. “We spent all of our energy Friday night,” he said. “You could tell we were slow and sluggish.”

Needles (30-3) had the experience of playing in the championship game for the third time, while the Lady Lynx (14-18) seemed to be a “bit star-struck,” Frehner said, playing in the 12,000 seat Lawlor Events Center, northern Nevada’s largest.

Needles, who had handily beaten Lincoln three times already during the season, jumped out to a 17-4 in the first quarter and were up 30-18 at halftime.

The Mustangs had four players in double figures led by Louise Solomon and Miranda Brackett with 14 each; Gena Chavira added 13 and Alex Chandler had 11.

Marissa Smerek and Kori Gloeckner were the top scores for Lincoln with 12 and 11 points respectively.