Barnum Girls State Champs!!

Wes Vork-NSO

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Mar 20

Dwight Cadwell-NSO

MINNEAPOLIS – A statement that Katrina Newman made Saturday afternoon to Northland Sports Online, “It’s a dream come true,” captured the euphoria the Barnum Lady Bombers felt as they defeated the Wildcats of Goodhue to capture their first ever girls basketball championship. The Bombers took care of the Wildcats and went on to win by a score of 43-31.

The excitement showed Saturday afternoon when the buzzer sounded and the Lady Bombers celebrated at mid-court. It was not only a celebration of the state championship, but a celebration of overcoming falling short the past few seasons.

The Bombers started the first half by jumping out to an early 4-0 lead off of baskets by Katrina Newman and a jumper by Jessica Newman. With that lead, the Bombers dictated how the game would be played. They were to use stellar defense and forced turnovers in getting several easy baskets in the game.

Goodhue battled back and managed to take the lead twice in the first half, once at 10-8 and again at 12-11. However, a three-pointer by Sarah Myhre gave Barnum a 14-12 lead and they never looked back, rolling to the 12-point win.

“The Wildcats did a good job in the first half shutting Kat down inside” head coach Randy Myhre told Northland Sports Online. “We made the adjustments at half and opened the middle up a little more, which let Jess take advantage and she made some nice shots in the lane. Our offense wasn’t at its peak today, but our defense was and it showed as we shut them down.

The Bombers took a 20-16 lead going into the locker room at half time. Once again, pressure defense was the story of the day with the Bombers creating 23 turnovers. In the first half, the Bombers created 10 turnovers, converting them into 14 of their 20 first half points. A total of 26 of Barnum’s 43 points on the day was courtesy of turnovers.

The second half opened with the Bombers going on a 16-3 run to open a 17-point lead. The Bombers then cruised over the final six minutes to capture the 2009-2010 Minnesota Single A Girls Championship.

“It’s an amazing feeling to reach our goals,” Sarah Myhre told NSO, “We have worked so hard and come so close that today we left it all on the floor and we came out on top and achieved our goals. We knew this was going to be our last game [for the seniors], we said it was our time and we did it.”

All season long the Bombers were an offensive machine, averaging 75 points per game, but the Bombers should also be known as a defensive team as well. In the three state tournament games this season, the Bombers held their opponents to 107 points in three games, five points less per game then their season average.

“We have so many solid players who step up and play so hard on defense; Leah Nordvall is one of those players. She works so hard on defense that sometimes we don’t give enough credit to all of her hard work and dedication,” Myhre mentioned. “We also want to thank the community, the parents, and fans for all their support. There are no better fans than Bomber fans!”

The Bombers finish the season 31-2 overall and will be recognized at a welcome home ceremony Sunday afternoon at the Barnum Gymnasium at 5:00 pm. Barnum also holds another honor with the Lady Bombers holding the best win-loss percentage in the state since 2005. Barnum has compiled an overall record of 180-14 since 2005, which tops every boys and girls basketball team in the state.

Barnum was led Saturday in scoring by Jessica Newman, who finished with a game high 19 points. Katrina Newman ended with 16, Sarah Myhre finished with 6 points, and Leah Nordvall ended with 2 in the Barnum win. Erica Tipcke led Goodhue with 10 points on the afternoon. The Wildcats finish their season 25-8.

The Bombers celebration continued after the conclusion of the Class 2A championship game where Barnum got to cut the nets down at one end of the courts in the last act of a champion Saturday afternoon. “It was a special game, a memorable feeling, something I will never forget, we did it!!!!” Katrina Newman told NSO as they take the championship trophy back to Barnum.

Northland Sports Online would like to congratulate the Barnum Bombers on their state Championship and also like to recognize the graduating seniors for all of their hard work and dedication to Bomber basketball. These seniors include Sarah Myhre, Candice Paulson, Leah Nordvall, Jenna Zymslony, and Katrina Newman.

Dwight Cadwell can be reached at dwight@northlandsportsonline.com