Esko Dominates Coaches Classic

Dwight Cadwell – NSO

The Eskomo boys and girls basketball teams completed the sweep of their respective titles Saturday when the Eskomo boys topped Northwestern of Maple Wisconsin in the boys title game 54-51, and the girls beat previously unbeaten International Falls 68-55 to take their fifth consecutive Coaches Classic Title.

The Esko coaches classic being played for the 35th time this holiday season saw the Eskomos open the tournament on Saturday December 20th open the quarterfinals with 64-23 win over Mesabi East. The Eskomos would face Polar League rival Floodwood in the quarterfinals on Friday night.

The Polar Bear had beat Northwoods in their quarterfinal match-up 52-42. Ava Gonsorowski scored 16 points and Bailey Mudek hit for 15 as the Eskomos rolled to a 46-22 win Friday night. International Falls who beat Hermantown in the quarterfinals beat Eveleth-Gilbert 46-42 in the semi finals to set up a rematch of the first game of the season for both teams where the Broncos came away with a two point 50-48 win.

The rematch for the championship was a game of first half runs Saturday as both teams would use runs to hold leads but it was a late run by the Eskomos in the first half which was capped off by a three pointer from Mandi Dincau which gave the Eskomos a eight point 32-24 lead at the break.

The Broncos fought back in the second half cutting the lead down to four points at one point but steady ball movement and clutch free throw shooting the Eskomos cruised to the 13 point win. Barnum defeated Mesabi East to finish 7th, Hermantown beat Northwoods for the consolation title, and Eveleth-Gilbert beat Floodwood to finish third. Mudek was named the Tournament MVP, while her team mate Ava Gonsorowski along with Hermantown’s Jordyn Thomas were named to the all-tournament team.

Nate Johnson connected on 10-14 free throws in the second half for the Eskomos as they captured the boys title for the second consecutive season by a score of 54-51. In a slower paced contest the Eskomos used timely shooting along with free throws down the stretch the Eskomos earned the win after trailing in the first half. Jaxon Turner the Tournament MVP scored 13 points in the win, while Aaron Olson led all scorers with 20 points.

Cody Dunkley hit a 3 pointer as time expired to give Hinckely-Finlayson a one point 64-63 victory over Duluth Marshall to capture third place in the Esko Coaches Classic.

Dwight Cadwell can be reached at dwight@northlandsportsonline.com