Holland Hall opens ’22 campaign in 56-42 win over Verdigris
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VERDIGRIS 56, HOLLAND HALL 42
Verdigris could not delver retribution for its football team Monday night as Holland Hall’s Jadon Cool Jadon Cool 6'3" | CG Holland Hall | 2023 State OK controlled the game early.
Two schools with no shortage of history, the Cardinals and Dutch split the 2021 football season 1-1, with Verdigris besting its rival in a stunning 12-7 regular season upset Oct. 29, but the Dutch getting the last laugh as the eventual 3A state champs bounced the Cardinals 35-6 in the semifinal game Nov. 26.
With revenge on its mind, 10th-ranked Verdigris did its best to spoil No. 6 Holland Hall’s fun in the first round of the Inola Tournament, but a 28-point surge from the Cool junior prospect from Tulsa fended off the birds from Route 66.
TURNING POINT
After a deadlocked first period that paused on a 10-10 score, Cool went to work, scoring 11 points in the second period as the Dutch led by as many as 12.
During the Dutch second-period run, it wasn’t only Cool that played heroically, but the two-way play of Nate Mullendore Nate Mullendore 6'3" | PF Holland Hall | 2023 OK helped Holland Hall to establish a stout lead. Verdigris did its best to equalize, bringing it back within 8 at one point during the third quarter, but it was no use as Holland Hall never surrendered its lead again.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
It’s a remarkably easy pick, but post-game accolades can’t go anywhere before the appropriately surnamed scoring guard is recognized, the same who neared a 30-point performance in his junior debut; the same Cool who, by himself, equaled Verdigris’s entire team at the halfway mark.
Cool, a 6-foot-3-guard with Division-I aspirations, at one point knocked down five consecutive 3-point attempts during the second and third quarters, and each one looked like butter.
“All the time, I’m always in the gym trying to get the three perfect,” Cool said. “That’s a big part of my game, and it’s easier to score more points that way.”
Early on, Cool established that he couldn’t be taken for granted as a threat to drive, finished three tough lay-ups, each from a sharp angle, and one with his non-dominant hand, scoring six of the first 10 Dutch points. After that, it was a feat for No. 42.
“I think I’m coming more into being a leader and trying to lead this team. Last year, I don’t really think I was really trying to take over that,” Cool said. “So I think that’s a big improvement for this year.
QOTD
Said Cool, “We’re gonna win the State Championship.”
Don’t look at me, he said it.
BOX SCORE
Holland Hall 56, Verdigris 42
HH: 10 18 15 13 — 56
VHS: 10 7 14 11 — 42
HH: Cool 28, Mullendore 12, Benton 10, Jarver 4, Heldebrand 2
VHS: L. Lechlider 12, Lederman 9, Buntin 9, C. Lechlider 6, Willis 3, Scott 2, League 1