Esko Boys Capture Polar League Crown

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Feb 24, 2012

Dwight Cadwell-NSO

The Esko Eskomos captured the 2011-2012 Polar League Championship for the first time since 2006 as the Eskomos defeated the Cromwell Cardinals by a score of 73-60. The Eskomos, who have gone through the Polar league without loss, finish the conference season with a perfect 11-0 record in conference play.

The first half in this conference battle in Cromwell saw both teams exchanging leads with the game being tied several times. The largest lead was five points in the first half by the Eskomos when Kory Deadrick nailed a shot with 9:43 remaining to create an Eskomos lead of 19-14. The Cardinals didn’t quit as they went on an 8-0 and took a three point lead themselves.

Both teams battled as the first half wore down and the Eskomos and the Cardinals went into their locker rooms tied a 32-32. With the start of the second half it was Esko who quickly dictated the tempo as they open up with a 10-0 run to start the second half. By the midway mark of the half, Esko had rolled on a 29-10 run and the outcome was decided by that point.

Casey Staniger paced the Eskomos with 29 points on the night including seven 3-pointers. Jackson Lindquist added 22 points, and he also hit on four long range bombs. Kory Deadrick and Jarred Harms both added 8 points while Marc Peterson finished with 5. Ben Hanson closed the scoring with 1 point for the Eskomos.

The Cardinals were led by Austin Johnson, who finished with 18 points including going perfect from the free throw line. Jake Ramberg added 15, Jared Hutar chipped in with 11 and he added three 3-pointers on the night. Richard Olson scored 9, Josh Oliver had 5, and it was Alex Hakamaki finishing with 2 points for the Cardinals.

Esko improves to 20-4 on the season and they are in action again Tuesday night when they travel to Pequot Lakes to face the Patriots in a non-conference battle. The Cardinals fall to 9-14 and they close their season out on Friday night at home when they host East Central in a non-conference contest.

Dwight Cadwell can be reached at dwight@northlandsportsonline.com