Kremlin-Hillsdale upsets Lomega to win title

Tana Gragg had a parade of community members waiting near The Big House floor.

Each one was dressed in red of Kremlin-Hillsdale High School. They hugged her. She cried more each time.

They had already done the same for each member of the girls basketball team.

“It’s like an out-of-body experience,” said Gragg, Kremlin-Hillsdale’s coach.

For a small community north of Enid, celebrity status was achieved for a team that wouldn’t stop coming despite the odds.

No. 3 Kremlin-Hillsdale delivered an upset few thought possible against Lomega — Class B’s topranked team and two-time defending champion — in a 53-45 victory during the state championship game Saturday at State Fair Arena.

It’s the program’s first state title and the school’s first in any sport since the 2000 football championship.

“We were always the underdogs,” said senior Rebecca Wasson, who scored 15 points to go along with 14 rebounds, six steals and three assists. “So, to be here is proving that we deserve to be here and we deserve to win. I hope everyone sees how hard we worked and how much it paid off in the end.”

Everything appeared stacked against Kremlin-Hillsdale (26-3).

Lomega (28-3) had won the two regular season matchups in conference play. It was coming off a record-setting state tournament semifinal victory with 112 points.

Lomega took a 10-point lead midway through the third quarter against Kremlin-Hillsdale, which had scored just 29 Friday.

Kremlin-Hillsdale rallied to get within five by the quarter. Gragg told her team not to think of the big picture. Continue playing her father Randy Turner’s stout 3-2 zone defense and the offense will work itself out.

Kremlin-Hillsdale slowed things down, made two baskets and hit 14 free throws in the final 4:14 that took the lead and ultimately put it out of reach.

The defense also forced five turnovers in the final period as Lomega’s 3-pointers would not fall. It went 1 of 17 from 3 in the second half and finished 6 of 33 from behind the arc.

“We had practiced for this as long as I can remember,” said senior Kalli Rundle, who scored 16 points and made 6 of 8 from the line in the fourth. “Beginning of the playoffs we knew we would be here and Lomega would be who we were playing.”