The Cinderella Moose strike again

PALMER — The Palmer Moose have done it again.

After posting a sub-.500 Northern Lights Conference record for the second consecutive season, the Moose battled through the NLC tournament and are headed to the state tournament, also for the second straight season.

With a 66-57 win over rival Wasilla, Palmer secured the NLC’s third and final state tournament berth.

“I’m about as excited as it gets,” Palmer head coach Greg Fullmer said after the game. “I’m really proud of them.”

Junior Bryce Jacobson scored a team-high 20 points in the win. Jacobson’s inside scoring fueled Palmer’s offensive attack for the Moose, who also got key buckets inside from Jake Hillis, Shaq Odom and Gabe Gatto,.

“We tried to do that,” Fullmer said. “We just really felt we could get the ball into the low post.”

In addition to getting to the basket, the Moose also won the battle on the boards, outrebounding the Warriors.

“They got second and third chances,” Wasilla head coach Ryan Engebretsen said.

Powered by play inside, the Moose — who had not beaten a Wasilla team since 2004 — worked their way to the early advantage and never trailed after the the six-minute mark of the third quarter.

Wasilla senior Shane Green’s lay-up gave the Warriors the 27-26 advantage with 6:26 left in the third quarter.

But the Wasilla lead was only temporary.

On the ensuing possession, senior T.J. Fullmer found Jacobson underneath and Jacobson converted the easy lay-in to give the Moose the 28-27 lead.

After that, Palmer wouldn’t trail again.

That bucket would mark the first of three straight baskets for Jacobson, who also scored a game-high 23 points in Palmer’s 66-60 win over Kodiak in the consolation semifinals — the victory that set up Palmer’s meeting with Wasilla in the third-place game.

Jacobson’s six straight points started an 11-0 run for the Moose in the third. Late in the period, T.J. Fullmer hit a deep three-pointer to give Palmer the 32-27 lead and gave the Moose the 10-point advantage when he drove the lane with two minutes left.

The senior guard scored 15 points in the win. But he also consistently fed Palmer’s low post scorers.

“T.J.’s a heck of a passer when he wants to be,” the elder Fullmer siad.

Palmer led by as many as 12 points in the fourth and held a 51-39 lead with four minutes left in regulation. But the Warriors scored 23 points in the fourth quarter and made the Moose work for the win.

“They weren’t going to quit,” Engebretsen said.

Tyler Johannes scored eight of his game-high 22 points in the final frame, and was 5-of-6 from the free-throw line in the fourth. Guards Adrese LaVern and Tillerman Kroon combined for 11 points in the fourth.

Kroon nailed one of Wasilla’s two three-pointers with 1:12 left to cut the Palmer lead to five. Johannes converted a lay-up and drew a foul with 55 seconds left. The senior completed the three-point play, to cut Palmer’s lead to three points.

During a timeout following that play, Greg Fullmer had a simple message for his team. “Attack, attack, attack.”

On the team’s next possession, T.J. Fullmer hit Gatto with an alley-oop that helped finish off Wasilla.

Justin Draughon’s lay-up with 20 seconds left gave the Moose the insurmountable seven-point lead.

Palmer finished the regular season with a 3-7 record in NLC play. After beating Skyview, one of the three NLC teams Palmer beat during the regular season, on Friday in the consolation quarterfinals, the Moose beat two teams on Saturday that had swept Palmer during the regular season.

Kodiak beat Palmer twice at Kodiak High in January, and the Moose beat Kodiak in the consolation semifinals on Saturday morning.

Wasilla beat Palmer handily in January and February before losing to the Moose in the third-place game.

The Moose are no strangers to the Cinderalla story. Last year, despite finishing 2-8 in NLC play during the regular season, the Moose won the conference tournament’s third-place game and went to the state tourney.

For Wasilla, the loss ends the defending state champions’ 2007-08 campaign.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

Palmer 66, Wasilla 57

NLC third-place game

Saturday, Palmer High School

Wasilla 11-12-11-23—57

Palmer 14-12-13-26—66

Wasilla (57) — Gray 2 3-4 7, Kroon 3 1-2 8, Sliwa 1 0-0 2, LaVern 4 2-2 10, Johannes 6 7-8 22, S. Green 2 0-2 4, D. Green 1 0-2 2, Knowles 1 0-0 2.

Palmer (66) — Draughon 4 1-1 1-, Gatto 2 0-0 4, Hillis 3 3-4 9, Odom 3 1-2 7, Jacobson 3-3 20.

Three-point field goals: 23 15-19 65.

Warriors get past Stars

PALMER — From the look of the first quarter of its consolation match against Soldonta on Saturday, it would have seemed like Wasilla would effortlessly move into the Northern Lights Conference third-place game.

Ah, not so much.

The Stars made the Warriors work for it. And after seeing a tremendous first-half lead disappear, the Warriors used 25 fourth-quarter points to score a 72-64 win over the Stars at Colony High School.

The win propelled the Warriors into the third-place game against Valley rival Palmer.

Soldotna’s season was ended with the loss.

Junior Adrese LaVern scored all of his game-high 26 points in the final three quarters to lead Wasilla to the win. LaVern hit the first two three-pointers he attempted, and capped the game with nine fourth-quarter points.

Tim Gray scored 11 points for WHS, and was 4-for-6 from the free-throw line down the stretch.

Larson Kohler led the Stars with 22 points. He hit a game-high four three-pointers in the win.

Brad Blossom added 10 for Soldotna.

Wasilla 72, Soldotna 64

NLC consolation semifinals

Wasilla (72) — Gray 3 5-8 11, Kroon 2 2-2 6, Sliwa 2 0-0 4, LaVern 10 3-4 26, Johannes 4 1-2 10, Pfeifer 2 0-0 4, S. Green 3 0-0 9, D. Green 1 0-0 2.

Soldotna (64) — B. Blossom 3 2-2 10, Grubb 1 1-2 5, Geller 3 3-4 9, Kohler 7 3-5 21, Shelton 0 4-4 4.

Three-point field goals: Wasilla 5 (LaVern 3), Soldotna 7 (Kohler 4); Total fouls: Wasilla 18, Soldotna 20.