Sami Jackson Wins 100th Game as Mustang Coach

North Nodaway posted four in double figures last Thursday as Coach Sami Jackson got her 100th coaching win Thursday in the first round of the Northwest Missouri Tournament. North Nodaway has had winning seasons all but one of the six years she has been there.

She constantly challenges her players to play every game like it might be their last, asking them how bad they want it. She constantly tells them that they are the best team on the floor and to act like it; they always seek to push it up the floor and pressure the other team on both sides of the ball. And if the other team is ahead, quitting is not an option; the players are expected to fight hard until the end. One never knows what will happen; for instance, during the 2016-2017 season, North Nodaway trailed East Atchison by eight in the last minute and a half of the game, only for Alisha Davison to hit back to back threes to put them right back in the game. North Nodaway won the game by one point, 47-46. At the end of her career, she got the “Heart” award from Jackson.

If Sami is the fiery leader pushing the team to do its best, her twin sister, Lyndsi, is the one who is keeping the players calmed down and focused on whatever needs to be done on the floor. They were standout players for South Nodaway under Coach Shawn Emerson, and played in college as well. But while they still like seeing their old school do well, they have found a home at North Nodaway.

And folding in the face of adversity is not an option. Last year, when they were down two players, North Nodaway could have very well written off the season, especially since they graduated six seniors. But they turned around a 1-4 start and went on to win 14 games and take Gabby Newman and Albany into overtime in districts. This year, the Mustangs are still winning despite two players injuring their knees in December.

One of the trademarks of Sami’s tenure has been the revenge game. As of Tuesday afternoon, she has won 101 games for the Mustangs. Out of those, 12 of them have been against teams who had previously beaten them. This includes five games from last year, including a win over a team who had beaten them with the running clock in their first meeting.

One of the players talked about the effect Sami has had on the team. The 2015-16 team struggled early, losing several games. North Nodaway turned around and won back to back revenge games, including a 52-48 win over South Holt, which had beaten them by almost 20 in Mound City. “We didn’t believe in ourselves early on,” said Madison Thompson at the time. “We believe now.”

The 100th win for Sami was by no means easy, as the Rockets are a team on the rise as they will join forces with Nodaway-Holt next year. Previously, West Nodaway had made a living off slashing to the hoop with their quick guards Sydney Marriott and Erin Cook. But the Rockets got Piper Hunt back unexpectedly after the previous game between the two teams; she had spent the previous few games shaking off the rust. In Thursday’s meeting, she showed no ill effects from her hand injury despite wearing a brace. The Rockets continued to crash the boards hard, getting 22 offensive boards for the game.

This time, West Nodaway came out firing from long distance and hit 3-pointers as well as they have all year. An early barrage from the Rockets gave them a 9-8 lead four minutes into the game, and they led 14-12 after one quarter. It would have been worse for North Nodaway, but Ellaina Renfro took a charge on defense for the Mustangs and Saryn Brown had six points on offense.

Then, things threatened to head south in a hurry for the Mustangs as Hunt hit eight straight, including two 3-pointers, and Marriott added one as West Nodaway jumped out to a 25-15 lead with 5:11 left. 

But then North Nodaway woke from their slumber as Saryn Brown scored off a drive, Lauren Herndon hit a 3-pointer off a pass from Jacquelyn Cline, Cline hit four free throws in a row, and Jadon Dobbins tied it at 25 with a free throw. The game was tied at 27 before Jacquelyn Cline hit a free throw to put North Nodaway up 28-27. Defensively, after they fell behind by 10, North Nodaway did a much better job of pressuring the shooters; the Rockets did not get a single 3-pointer the rest of the game and only scored 15 points after the 5:11 mark.

The Rockets committed a costly foul at the start of the third as Reagan Hagey, their best rebounder, picked up her fourth foul battling with Ellaina Renfro; without having to worry about keeping Hagey off the boards or getting the ball in the high post, North Nodaway started to take control of the game. Lauren Herndon and Saryn Brown each picked up free throws, and Jadon Dobbins hit a 3-pointer as North Nodaway finally gained some cushion to go up 33-27.

West Nodaway hung around for a while and kept their deficit at four until the two minute mark, when Lauren Herndon and Jadon Dobbins hit consecutive threes to put the Mustangs up double digits at 41-31. Hunt’s free throw cut it to nine, but Saryn Brown’s putback with 10 seconds left put the Mustangs up 43-32 after three.

Hunt scored off a drive for the Rockets to start the fourth, but then North Nodaway started bleeding the clock with Jacquelyn Cline and Jadon Dobbins handing the ball up top and keeping it away from the Rocket players. The Mustangs continued to pull away, with Cline scoring off a drive, Lauren Herndon hitting a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer, Saryn Brown hitting two free throws, and Cline driving in for a dagger layup after Hunt had broken a five minute Rocket scoring drought to make it 55-36.

For North Nodaway, Saryn Brown matched a career high with 17 points. Jacquelyn Cline had 16, and Jadon Dobbins and Lauren Herndon had 12 each.

Jacquelyn Cline had a double double, getting 11 boards to go with her 16 points. Saryn Brown, Jadon Dobbins, and Lauren Herndon all had 9, Ellaina Renfro 5, Sarah Wray 2, and Karissa Oberhauser 1.

Jadon Dobbins and Jacquelyn Cline had 5 assists. Lauren Herndon had 4, and Ellaina Renfro had 2.

Lauren Herndon had 5 tips. Jadon Dobbins had 3, and Jacquelyn Cline, Karissa Oberhauser, and Sarah Wray had 1.

Jadon Dobbins had 6 steals. Saryn Brown had 2, and Jacquelyn Cline, Ellaina Renfro, and Karissa Oberhauser had 1.