LINCOLN - Ossy Escareno exhorted the home crowd to make some noise, pumping his fist and waving as the Wolves faithful filled the arena with cheers.
Escareno didn’t fill the stat sheet with gaudy numbers Friday night in Lincoln’s 47-35 victory against Prairie Grove in the semifinals of the 4A North Regional Tournament, but what the 6-0 senior brings to the Wolves isn’t always measured in numbers.
“He leads in probably every category we have, except for blocked shots,” Lincoln Coach Tim Rich said. “He’s our heart and soul. He rebounds, he finds open teammates. He’s just a great asset to any team.”
Escareno scored nine points Friday, but he did not make a field goal until there were 30 seconds left in the game. Prior to that he made 7 of 9 free throws, grabbed 11 rebounds and had several assists as the Wolves advanced to tonight’s regional championship game.
Rich said the strength of Escareno’s game is his versatility.
He proved that again against Prairie Grove (17-12) as he led the charge for the Wolves to dominate the offensive boards, leading to numerous second and third chances.
“Coach Rich tells us you have to hustle,” Escareno said. “Even when your shots don’t fall, you can help the team in other ways. Being able to do other things just makes me play harder.”
The Wolves (21-4) seized control by hustling for rebounds on the offensive end. The extra scoring chances proved huge, especially in the third quarter when the Wolves took control of the game.
Shandon Goldman, Lincoln’s 6-8 junior forward, fueled a 13-0 third-quarter run that turned a three-point lead into a 16-point blowout. Goldman, who led Lincoln with 13 points, scored on a floater from the left side of the lane and made two three-pointers to key the surge.
Prairie Grove kept the game close in the first half by going inside to 6-7 sophomore Dylan Soehner, who scored 12 points, but once Lincoln took control the Tigers had no answer.
“This is the first time in a long time Lincoln has gone to a regional championship,” Escareno said.
“We need to get a good seeding to help our chances at state.”
The Wolves lost to Prairie Grove in the semifinals of the district tournament last week by one point. Escareno said the team used that as motivation for a better showing on its home floor.
“That kind of put us in a bad spot, but we know we can beat anybody,” he said. “All of us seniors, we did not want to go out in the first round.”
Sports, Pages 24 on 03/01/2014