You might say that Wahoo had the jitters. Although Ogallala had been eliminated from the 1994 Class B State Tournament in the first round, and Wahoo’s opponent in the semifinal was Omaha Gross, Ogallala was on Coach Anderson’s mind when the Cougars took a four point lead over the Warriors half way through the second quarter.  Ogallala was the last team to have beaten the Warriors in the state tournament, eliminating Wahoo in the semifinal in 1992.  According to the script, the Warriors would make the championship game, but that had been the expectation in 1992.  That jittery feeling evoked by the Ogallala memories wouldn’t go away as Gross battled the Warriors and stayed within striking distance right up until the final minutes of the game.

Added to Coach Anderson’s anxiety was the nature of Wahoo’s opponent.  Omaha Gross did not have the unblemished record of the top seed in the 1994 tournament, Norris, had.  In fact, the Cougars were the sixth seed and had lost eight games.  But Gross was a team with a mostly Class A schedule.  They played in the Omaha Metro Conference and all of their losses had come from Class A teams.  Prior to the district tournament, the Cougars had only played three Class B teams, victories over Elkhorn, Elkhorn Mt. Michael, and Gretna.  Omaha Gross was clearly a better team than their 13 – 8 record might have indicated. But they also weren’t a team that would scare the Warriors.  Wahoo wasn’t going up against a giant as Gross had barely defeated Mt. Michael (a team Wahoo had dominated) and only won their way into the tournament with a two-point victory over Waverly.  The Cougars were also severely tested in the first round of the state tournament.  While the Warriors were enjoying their first round waltz with Aurora, Omaha Gross escaped elimination when a Wayne three point shot barely missed at the buzzer.  Wahoo had been able to rest players in the first round while Omaha Gross played the late game and had to fight down to the wire – advantage Wahoo.  Wahoo hadn’t really been challenged through the district and first round at state while the Cougars had been to the edge and survived – advantage Omaha Gross.  Some thought Omaha Gross would be the team to beat Wahoo.  As the game progressed, more started to see that as a possibility.

The score was knotted at four apiece half way through the first quarter as the two teams mostly exchanged turnovers, but then Greg Hain netted a three from the top of the key that ignited a Wahoo run.  Hain scored nine straight points and the Warriors built a 15 – 8 lead.  But Omaha Gross then showed what kind of game it would be as they answered with the final six points of the quarter to cut Wahoo’s lead to one.  Half way through the second period, the Cougars claimed a 19 – 15 lead.  Then Wahoo answered with a 9-0 run, five coming from Mike Hancock.  Cougar Coach Mike Dempsey saw that run as a turning point in the game:  “I though that was one of the key moments of the game when they got that 9-0 run.”  The Warriors quickly added to their halftime lead as Mike Simons scored back to back goals to start the third period.  But Gross kept battling and the third quarter proved to be a sixteen point stalemate with Wahoo still leading 40 – 35.  For the first half of the final period the Wahoo lead bounced back and forth between three and five points.  At the three minute mark Hain stole the ball, flipped it to Hancock, who found Travis Toline for a lay-up that put Wahoo up 53 – 46.  Following a Cougar freethrow, the Warriors went into a delay game.  With Hain sinking five of six freethrows and Simons making two more down the stretch, Wahoo eventually prevailed 64 – 49.

Coach Anderson was relieved to get the win:  “I thought we got a great shot from Gross.  The first half it looked like we might be vulnerable, but it takes a good team to hang in there.”  Coach Dempsey was also proud of his team’s effort:  “Our kids played like champions.  We proved that we could play with anybody.  Wahoo had been really spanking and torturing people as they’ve gone along.”  The victory put the Warriors in position to win their sixth title in seven years.  It was a familiar place for the Wahoo players and coaches.  Maybe overcoming the challenge from Omaha Gross had settled the nerves.  The ghost of Ogallala had been laid to rest.  It remained to be seen if the final dance would end with a requiem for the Warriors, or, as it had been scripted, a shout it out celebration.