Early in the season, Olpe coach Chris Schmidt had watched with frustration as his team tried to dribble through every full-court press thrown its way. The result was turnover after turnover.
The Eagles showed just how far they had come as a team on Saturday.
Olpe was nearly flawless in its press execution, holding off a late charge in a 71-59 victory over Goessel in the Class 1A Sub-State Championship at White Auditorium.
Despite returning only two starters and losing 10 players from last year’s roster, the Eagles (22-2) will be making a return trip to the 1A State Tournament.
“It’s just phenomenal,” Olpe forward Josh Klumpe said. “We started out the season with a lot of people having doubts that we could make it back to State this year.
“We’ve pulled through and came together real well.”
Olpe’s improvement was most evident in its press break late.
On four different occasions in the fourth quarter, Goessel cut Olpe’s lead under six points.
Each time, the Eagles cut through the full-court pressure and answered with points of their own.
Cole Krueger and Ethan Schneider both contributed fast-break layups to push the lead back to eight, while Alex Medenciy and Krueger also knocked down free throws on two other instances after beating the press.
“We knew they were going to double us right away, so the big thing was not to panic,” Schmidt said. “When teams press you, you’ve got to beat them at the other end, and we were able to do that.”
Olpe was able to advance with big games from its post players.
Schneider tied a team high with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting. He also added five rebounds.
“He sometimes doesn’t get the headlines that all the other starters do, but tonight, I think he was the key,” Schmidt said. “He got us off to a good start, and he was solid all the way through the game.”
Schneider also came through on one of the game’s most significant plays.
On a fast break in the third quarter, the 6-foot-3 forward put in a layup before drawing a flagrant foul.
“I just went up for it, and I got shoved in the back,” Schneider said. “I wasn’t expecting it.”
The senior made both his free throws, and Matt Redeker followed with a layup as Olpe used a six-point possession to take its largest lead at 51-36.
Klumpe also stepped up for Olpe, scoring 12 points to go with seven rebounds.
At the start of the second quarter, he scored 10 straight points for the Eagles to help them take a double-digit lead.
“Coach is always on me about finishing (shots),” Klumpe said. “Every time I came down, I just tried to finish it, and it went well.”
The 6-foot-2 Klumpe played just as well on the defensive end. Along with Schneider, Klumpe held Goessel’s 6-7 Nathan Ensz to just 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting.
Krueger added 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Medenciy also hit double figures with 11 points.
Bradley Argabright contributed nine points and six assists.
“We’re really excited,” Schneider said. “Nobody expected us to make it this far.”
“It’s what they’ve deserved,” Schmidt added. “They’ve come and worked hard every day.”
Sub-State Championship
Olpe boys 71, Goessel 59
Saturday at White Auditorium
Olpe 19 12 22 18 — 71
Goessel 8 18 15 18 — 59
Olpe (22-2) — Cole Krueger 5-11 5-6 15, Bradley Argabright 3-9 2-3 9, Alex Medenciy 3-11 2-4 11, Josh Klumpe 6-8 0-1 12, Ethan Schneider 6-9 3-3 15, Nathan Hammond 0-1 0-0 0, Matt Redeker 2-5 5-5 9, Bryant Duenas 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-54 17-22 71.
Goessel (18-6) — Craig Banman 7-13 3-4 21, Kurtis Duerksen 1-4 0-0 3, Kendall Voth 2-9 2-2 8, Weston Hiebert 0-1 2-2 2, Nathan Ensz 4-9 5-6 13, Travis Fensky 2-6 0-0 6, Cameron Voth 0-0 0-0 0, Seth Ott 0-1 0-0 0, Austin Unruh 2-3 2-3 6. Totals 18-46 14-17 59.
Three-point goals — Olpe 4-13 (Medenciy 3-10, Argabright 1-3), Goessel 9-19 (Banman 4-6, Fensky 2-4, K. Voth 2-5, Duerksen 1-2, Ott 0-1, Unruh 0-1). Rebounds — Olpe 33 (Krueger 10), Goessel 30 (Unruh 9). Assists — Olpe 10 (Argabright 6), Goessel 10 (Fensky 3). Turnovers — Olpe 11, Goessel 16. Total fouls — Olpe 19, Goessel 22. Fouled out — Goessel: Banman, Hiebert, Ensz.