Oran girls basketball team cruises to district crown

ESSEX, Mo. -- A 31-percent outing from the floor usually doesn't lead to success, but the Oran girls basketball team got the job done in another way.

The top-seeded Eagles forced 41 turnovers and pounded the offensive glass, cruising to a 73-20 victory over third-seeded St. Paul Lutheran on Thursday in the Class 1 District 2 championship at Richland High School.

It marked the third straight district title for Oran (23-3), an unprecedented mark for the program.

"I hope we set the vibe for everyone else after us," said Ashlyn McIntosh, who's one of six seniors on this year's Eagles team. "I'm really excited and looking forward to watching this program in the future."

The Eagles carried a 36-8 lead into halftime and forced a running clock heading into the final period.

Freshman Leah Cauble led the way for Oran, finishing with a game-high 26 points. McIntosh added 13 points for the Eagles, while Brianna Stause contributed 11 points.

Despite finishing 26 of 85 from the field, Oran generated most of its success from a full-court press that forced 24 first-half turnovers.

"It was all about defense and working on the boards," Eagles coach Ethan Evans said. "We wanted to push our tempo and just bring the pressure to them and really key on their big girl inside. That's what we did.

"When we were missing shots, we were doing a good job of getting the offensive boards and getting some putbacks."

Catherine Mell, the Giants' go-to player in the post, finished without a point. She had two shot attempts but struggled against double teams around the basket. St. Paul Lutheran (6-21) was led by Katie Lapusan's eight points. The Giants shot 9 of 26 (35 percent) from the field.

Oran advances to take on Naylor in a Class 1 sectional at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Bloomfield High School. The two teams met in last year's sectional round when Naylor escaped with a 59-31 win.

"When you're hitting the boards like we were, that's all fine and good, but I'm looking at the next game and who we're going to have," Evans said. "They're not so easy to hit the boards against, so we're going to get in the gym and get a lot of shooting in and try to get our confidence up."

The biggest difference in this year's Eagles team is a pair of starting freshmen.

Cauble and post player Jessie Long, who tallied nine points in the win, have given Oran an offensive edge that didn't exist on last year's squad.

McIntosh said it's been a welcomed addition.

"They knew they had to step up quite a bit, and we expected a lot of them," McIntosh said. "It's good to see that they've stepped up and kind of taken some of the pressure.

"We've all become really close and a really good team. It's really nice to see that we can all work together, and we've learned so much."

St. Paul 4 4 7 5 -- 20

Oran 20 16 22 15 -- 73

ST. PAUL LUTHERAN (20) -- Kylie Lapusan 8, Stephane Whanger 3, Chloe Propst 3, Hailey Debert 2, Sarah Lacy 2, Emily Brakefield 2. FG 9-26, FT 0-0, F 18. (3-pointers: Whanger 1, Propst 1. Fouled out: None.)

ORAN (73) -- Leah Cauble 26, Ashlyn Macintosh 13, Brianna Stause 11, Jessie Long 9, Tatum May 5, Hannah Scherer 4, Claire Ramsey 3, Katelyn Streeter 2. FG 26-85, FT 14-22, F 9. (3-pointers: Stause 3, Cauble 3, Ramsey 1. Fouled out: None.)