DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Alli Fey scored 20 points and hit three 3-pointers during a big second-half run that carried Nevada to a 58-54 victory over Pocahontas and the girls’ Class 3A state championship on Saturday.

Fey’s outside shooting complemented the strong inside play of Lexy Koudelka and Kati Casabaum, a combination that the quick but smaller Pocahontas players couldn’t overcome — even with the Indians’ Elle Ruffridge scoring 33 points.

Koudelka, a 6-foot-1 freshman, scored 15 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and forced Pocahontas into some difficult shots near the basket. Casabaum, a 6-foot junior, shot 6-for-7 from the field and scored 16 points.

VIERA, Fla. (AP) — Stephen Strasburg ran into a little trouble in his first spring start for Washington, allowing five straight batters to reach base Saturday in the Nationals’ 6-5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Strasburg quickly got through the first inning, then gave three hits and two walks to begin the second. The Cardinals scored twice and Strasburg left with two outs.

DALLAS (AP) — Roshunda Johnson scored 20 points and Brittney Martin added 17 to lead fourth-seeded Oklahoma State to a 67-58 win over No. 5 seed Iowa State on Saturday in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament. Liz Donohoe added 14 points for the Cowgirls (20-10), who face top-seeded and sixth-ranked Baylor in Sunday’s semifinals. Johnson hit 6 of 9 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Oklahoma State shot 55.6 percent in the first half to open a 34-21 lead.

After the Cyclones opened the second half with a basket, OSU reeled off nine straight points, with Donohoe’s free throws making it 43-23 with 15:54 left. The lead was 11 with five minutes to play when ISU scored eight straight, pulling within 59-56 with 1:32 to go on Nikki Moody’s 3 but the Cowgirls hit 4 of 6 free throws in the last minute.

Moody had 17 points for Iowa State (18-12) and Brynn Williamson and Seanna Johnson had 16 each and combined for 23 rebounds.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Senior Aaron White scored 25 points and Iowa beat Northwestern 69-52 on Saturday for its first six-game Big Ten winning streak in 28 years. White also passed Acie Earl for the second-most points in school history to lead the Hawkeyes (21-10, 12-6 Big Ten).

Iowa never trailed in its final home game of the year. The Hawkeyes turned a six-point halftime lead into a 52-35 advantage midway through the second half and finished their conference slate with identical 6-3 home and road records. Tre Demps had 15 points for Northwestern (15-16, 6-12), which lost for just the second time in seven games.

w/ Chris Parks

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (7.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Class 1-A Semi-Final

• Springville 68, Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton 57

Class 2-A Semi-Finals

• North Linn 73, Western Christian 70 (OT)
• Unity Christian 58, South Central Calhoun 47

Class 3-A Semi-Finals

• Nevada 52, Mediapolis 45
• Pocahontas Area 58, Crestwood 43

Class 4-A Semi-Finals

• Western Dubuque 47, Bishop Heelan Catholic 38
• Harlan 69, Carlisle 43

Friday Schedule

Class 5-A Semi-Finals

• West Des Moines Valley 57, Iowa City West 41
• Waukee 42, Dowling Catholic, West Des Moines 32

Class 1-A Championship –  Newell-Fonda 45,  Springville 43

Class 2-A Championship – Unity Christian 69, North Linn 40

Saturday Schedule

Class 3-A Championship – 4:00 pm – Nevada vs. Pocahontas Area

Class 4-A Championship – 6:00 pm – Harlan vs. Western Dubuque

Class 5-A Championship – 8:00 pm – Valley, West Des Moines vs. Waukee

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Kassidy De Jong scored 29 points and Orange City Unity Christian dominated from the start in rolling past North Linn 69-40 Friday night to win the Class 2A state championship.

Anna Kiel added 15 points and eight rebounds and Chanda Zomermaand scored 13 for the top-ranked Knights (26-0), who won their first state title in girls basketball after finishing as the Class 3A runners-up last year.

Seventh-ranked North Linn (25-2) had upset three-time defending champion Western Christian in the semifinals. But the Lynx were no match for a skilled Unity Christian team that had both good athletes and good shooters.

Drake University recruit and all-tournament captain Nicole Miller scored North Linn’s first 14 points and finished with 22.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Hailey Falline banked in a layup with 2 seconds left to give Newell-Fonda a 45-43 victory over Springville and the Class 1A girls state championship Friday night.

Falline delivered after Springville tied the score at 43 when freshman Madi Wagaman made the first of two free throws with 12.5 seconds remaining.

Newell-Fonda rebounded the miss and called time to set up a final play. The seventh-ranked Mustangs (23-4) made it work for their first state title.

The dramatic victory ended years of heartbreak for Newell-Fonda and its fans.

The Mustangs lost in the last two championship games and had been 0-5 in state finals, losing those games by a total of 18 points.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. (AP) – Ally Disterhoft led a balanced attack with 16 points and No. 14 Iowa, the second-seed, turned back seventh-seeded Nebraska 74-65 in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament on Friday.

Samantha Logic and Bethany Doolittle added 15 points and Kali Peschel had 13 off the bench for the Hawkeyes (24-6), who face third-seeded Ohio State in Saturday’s semifinals.

Iowa led 36-33 at halftime and scored the first five points of the second half before Peschel scored the last five points in a 9-0 run for a 53-38 lead with 14:05 to play.

Nebraska (21-10) got within seven at the 7:30 mark and cut it to six and five in the final minute before Disterhoft and Melissa Dixon combined for four free throws to close it out.

Tear’a Laudermill led the Cornhuskers with 16 points, Emily Cady added 15 and Natalie Romeo and Brandi Jeffery had 14 each.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS