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2026 Nebraska Girls Basketball State Championships Semifinals Roundup

by Mar 6, 2026Preps Girls Basketball

2026 Nebraska Girls Basketball State Championships Semifinals Roundup
Photo Credit: Jackson Luethje

Twelve teams earned their place in the finals as the 2026 NSAA Girls Basketball State Championships rolled on Friday at Pinnacle Bank Arena and the Devaney Center.

We’ll have rolling coverage of the semifinals here and on the NebPreps social pages.

Quarterfinal Round-ups: Wednesday | Thursday

PINNACLE BANK ARENA

CLASS C1

No. 1 Milford 63, No. 5 Gothenburg 51

Milford dug itself out of a double-digit first-half hole then turned the tables with a big run in the third quarter to punch a return trip to the state championship game.

Sophomore Abby Crabtree shined, fellow sophomore Shayla Rautenberg dominated the glass and junior Ashlynn Miller converted some timely buckets to lead the Eagles to the comeback victory.

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Milford sophomore Abby Crabtree prepares to shoot a free throw against Gothenburg. Photo by Jackson Luethje.

The Swedes couldn’t have asked for a better start as senior Halsey Thomalla continued her heater from Thursday’s quarterfinal win. After scoring 24 points in the second half against Ogallala, Thomalla poured in 13 more in the first quarter as the Swedes used a 13-0 run to take an 18-6 lead.

However, Miller converted a put-back to end the run then Crabtree tossed in a buzzer-beater from beyond halfcourt to cut it to 18-11 at the end of the first.

However, Thomalla picked up her second and third fouls in the first three minutes of the second quarter and took a seat for the rest of the half. Milford took advantage to cut the deficit to two before Gothenburg senior Zoe Beveridge responded with a 3 and a put-back to push it back to seven.

However, the Eagles ended the half on a 7-0 run to tie it at 30-all at the break. Thomalla returned to the floor for the second half and knocked down a 3 on Gothenburg’s first possession, but Milford ripped off a 16-0 run after that to build a 13-point lead in the third. Thomalla picked up her fourth late in the period.

The Eagles led by 11 going into the fourth quarter, and when Gothenburg made its final push, they had the answer.

Beveridge and Thomalla hit back-to-back 3s to pull the Pioneers within three, triggering a Milford timeout with five and a half to go. Out of the break, sophomore Adalyn Cisneros knocked down a 3, then senior Kylie Jakub did the same on the next possession, sparking a 15-3 Milford finish to the game.

Crabtree led the Eagles with 22 points on 6-of-12 from the field (4-of-5 from 3) and 6-of-7 from the free-throw line while dishing out five assists. Rautenberg struggled offensively as the Swedes swarmed her in the post and made her touches difficult, but she still scored 11 points and corralled 20 rebounds, including seven on the offensive end. Miller added 15 points and six rebounds.

Thomalla finished with 24 points on 8-of-13 from the field (6-of-9 from 3) and 2-of-2 from the foul line. Beveridge added 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

No. 3 Malcolm 72, No. 7 Fort Calhoun 59

The Clippers secured a wire-to-wire win, leading for all but 40- seconds and repelling every Fort Calhoun rally to advance to Saturday’s championship.

The Dolliver sisters combined for 57 points and 29 rebounds, nearly outpacing the whole Fort Calhoun team by themselves after doing just that in Malcolm’s quarterfinal win over Holdrege.

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Malcolm sophomore Payton Dolliver dribbles the ball up the floor against Fort Calhoun. Photo by Jack Stephens.

Payton Dolliver, a sophomore, finished with 30 points on 10-of-18 from the field and 10-of-11 from the free-throw line plus eight rebounds. Senior Halle Dolliver, a future Omaha Maverick, totaled 27 points on 8-of-16 from the field (2-of-3 from deep) and 9-of-11 from the charity stripe, 21 rebounds, four blocks and three assists. The Clippers overcame 19 turnovers (including 16 Pioneer steals) but holding Fort Calhoun under 35% from the field.

Malcolm built a 17-5 lead to start the game, but the Pioneers didn’t fold. They used a 10-run to cut the deficit to four late in the second quarter, but with her sister on the bench with two fouls, Halle Dolliver took over down the stretch with a 3-pointer, a three-point play and assist to Lena Schmidt to end the half on an 8-2 run and push the lead back to 10.

Malcolm maintained a double-digit lead for most of the third quarter, but the Pioneers used a 7-0 run to pull within five midway through the fourth. This time it was the younger Dolliver who responded with back-to-back buckets, the second a three-point play. Halle added a free throw to push the lead back to 11, and the Clippers closed it out from there.

Junior Raeann Massey led Fort Calhoun with 24 points while shooting 5-for-8 from deep. Senior Ansley Elofson added 11 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks and four assists

Malcolm advances to Saturday’s final at Pinnacle Bank Arena, setting up a rematch from one of the best C1 games of the regular season against No. 1 Milford. The Eagles beat the Clippers 66-64 on Jan. 8. Tipoff is set for 1 1a.m.

Fort Calhoun will face No. 5 Gothenburg in the third-place game at Lincoln Southeast Saturday, also set for 11 a.m.

CLASS A

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The Lincoln North Star Navigators celebrate after clinching a spot in the Class A state championship for the first time. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.

No. 1 Lincoln North Star 46, No. 4 Millard West 31

Lights-out shooting from senior K.J. Pinchon in the first half and smothering defense in the second powered the Navigators into the state title game for the first time.

The Wildcats sent North Star home in the semifinals in the previous two seasons, and on Friday, the Gators returned the favor to dash Millard West’s hopes for a three-peat.

The teams played to a draw in the first eight minutes before the Gators created some separation late in the first half, using back-to-back 3-pointers from Pinchon and Omaha commit Ani Leu to take a 29-20 lead into halftime.

After starting the season blazing hot from 3 (31-for-57, 54.4% in her first 14 games), the out-of-state transfer fell into a shooting slump over the second half of the season. She made just 11 of her 61 3s (18%) in her last 12 entering Friday’s semifinal. She hadn’t made more than two 3s in any game during that stretch, but she let it fly confidently against the Wildcats and went 4-for-6 from deep in the first half.

Millard West opened the third quarter with a free throw from sophomore Londyn Whitney… then didn’t score again until the 5:51 mark of the fourth quarter. The Gators scored 14 straight to turn the game into a rout before sitting their starters late.

Leu finished with 17 points on 6-of-9 from the field (1-of-3 from 3) and 4-of-6 from the line, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Pinchon finished with four points and four steals. Senior Kendall Anderson added 10 points. The Gators held the Wildcats under 30% from the field and forced 20 turnovers.

Whitney and Minnesota commit Kylee Paben scored 11 points apiece and combined for 12 rebounds to lead Millard West.

No. 3 Omaha North 59, No. 2 Kearney 47

The second Class A semifinal set a new standard for intensity both on the court and in the stands, but the Vikings made some big plays in the fourth quarter to earn their first state championship appearance since 2000.

The Vikings never trailed and played with a lead for all but 36 seconds, but they were never in complete control until the end as Kearney kept attacking every time the Vikings threatened to pull away.

North outscored Kearney by 10 in the paint, by 11 in points off turnovers and by five at the foul line (despite the same number of attempts).

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Omaha North junior Himayajo Metoyer scores two of her game-high 21 points against Kearney. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.

After a tight first quarter, the second saw some bigger swings with three straight 7-0 runs (two by North sandwiching one by Kearney). The Bearcats ended the half with back-to-back buckets to trim North’s lead to 23-19 at the break.

The Vikings extended the advantage to double figures multiple times in the third, but the Bearcats put together a final push in the fourth. Kearney used an 8-2 run — including four apiece by junior Libby Province and freshman Hallie Garner — to pull within five at 47-42 with just under five minutes to play.

After four straight empty possessions, and nearly a fifth, Alaeya Randle grabbed an offensive rebound and drew a foul. On the ensuing in-bound play, senior Justine Tcheuhchoua found classmate Akazja Foster in the corner for a 3. After a stop, Tcheuhchoua added a pair of free throws to push the lead back to 10 with just over three minutes to play, and the Vikings closed it out from there.

Junior Himayajo Metoyer led North with 21 points while shooting 9-for-11 from the foul line. Classmate T’Niyah Wilson-Smith pulled down 20 rebounds, scored 11 points, nabbed four steals, dished out three assists and blocked two shots. Tcheuhchoua chipped in 11 points and four steals.

Province and senior Addie Snyder scored 11 apiece for the Bearcats.

Omaha North will face No. 1 Lincoln North Star in the Class A championship, set for Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena at 1 p.m. The Vikings handed the Navigators their lone loss, 53-45 back on Jan. 23.

 

CLASS B

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Gretna East freshman Elayne Graver (25) celebrates after the final buzzer sounded against Norris. Photo by Jack Stephens.

No. 4 Gretna East 45, No. 1 Norris 43

Gretna East became the first team to knock off a No. 1 seed, and in doing so the Griffins will play for a Class B championship for the second straight year.

Friday’s hero proved to be junior Madi Shelburne, an Omaha soccer commit who saved the best performance of her basketball career for the biggest stage.

With the game knotted at 43-all and 9.4 on the clock, Gretna East ran an in-bounds play under the basket. Taryn French passed the ball in to Shelburne along the baseline and when her defender went for the steal, Shelburne spun the other way, gathered herself and dribbled in for the layup to give her team the lead — and the win. She finished with a season-high 19 points on 8-of-13 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3 and grabbed 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season.

Norris called timeout with 5.3 remaining give itself a chance at a rebuttal and to draw up a length-of-the court play. Senior Ize Tidball threw the ball up to Alli Bornschlegl, a star volleyball player for the Titans, just inside halfcourt. Bornschlegl caught the ball in traffic then threw it ahead to Marlee Emerson, but the junior’s layup rimmed out as time expired.

The game saw eight lead changes and seven ties, though the Titans played from ahead for nearly 20 minutes while Gretna East led for less than five.

Norris scored the first five points of the second quarter to pull ahead by seven, the biggest advantage for either side, but the Griffins responded with a 7-0 run to tie it up. Norris led by one at halftime and by two at the end of the third, setting up a back-and-forth final period that went down to the final second.

Junior Landri Gates led Norris with 11 points, four assists and two steals while Tidball added 10 points, six boards, three assists and two steals.

No. 2 Bennington 55, No. 3 Lincoln Pius X 52

The Thunderbolts had the Badgers on the ropes, but junior Harper Bohaboj put Bennington on her back and punched her way out of the corner with big play after big play to send her team to the final.

Ava Markowski gave the Thunderbolts a five-point lead with less than three minutes to play on a slick step-through move. After a Pius timeout, freshman Macie Reiner converted a tough bucket inside to spark an 8-0 run, turning the deficit into a three-point lead with less than 30 seconds to play. Bohaboj had a put-back, another bucket, a defensive rebound and a block during the run.

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Bennington junior point guard Harper Bohaboj initiates the offense for the Badgers against Lincoln Pius X. Photo by Jack Stevens.

Pius X opted for the quick 2-pointer out of the timeout as Markowski drove inside for a layup, and Skylar Johnson split the free throws on the ensuing foul to make it 54-52 with just under 13 seconds to play.

Markowski ran a dribble handoff to Austen Davis and the junior got two feet in the paint, but her floater caught the front lip off the rim off the glass and rolled out. Bohaboj secured the final rebound with 1.8 to go and split her free throws to create the final margin.

Bennington raced out to 15-6 lead five minutes into the game, but to the Thunderbolts’ credit, they weathered the storm in their first meeting with the top-ranked Badgers then flipped the switch with an 11-0 run the second quarter, setting up a back-and-forth second half.

Bohaboj finished with a game-high 19 points, including seven in the fourth quarter. She added six points and four steals. Johnson totaled 15 points on 4-of-9 from the field (2-of-5 from 3) and 3-of-4 from the line. Reiner notched a double-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three steals.

Bennington’s pressure defense made the difference. The Badgers forced 16 Thunderbolts turnovers — 12 of which were steals — and turned them into a 17-3 advantage in points off takeaways.

Senior Kate Miller capped her Pius X career with a double-double of her own, recording 17 points and 10 rebounds. Markowski, on Omaha commit, added 15 points and seven rebounds despite battling cramps in the fourth quarter. Junior Kendal Heimes chipped in 11 points and six rebounds.

The Badgers will take on No. 4 Gretna East in Saturday’s championship, set for 6:15 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena. The 27-0 Badgers defeated the Griffins 69-47 back on Dec. 16.

 

DEVANEY CENTER

CLASS D2

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The Dundy County Stratton bench celebrates during the Class D2 semifinals. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.

No. 1 Dundy County Stratton 45, No. 5 Archangels Catholic 25

The top-seeded Tigers blew the game open in the second quarter then cruised through the second half to punch their ticket to the final.

Dundy County Stratton outscored Archangels Catholic 15-5 in the second quarter to build a 14-point halftime lead then gradually extended it after halftime. The Tigers held the Defenders to 21.7% shooting, including 0-for-10 from deep.

Sophomore Abi Spargo stuffed the state sheet for Dundy County Stratton, finishing with 15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, five steals and three blocks — all game highs. Junior Emily Schack just missed her own doubpe-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. Senior Clara Spargo added eight points and eight rebounds.

No. 6 Wynot 59, No. 2 Red Cloud 48

The Blue Devils made it rain from deep to pull off their second upset in Lincoln and earn a spot in the D2 championship.

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Wynott senior Jaylin Geisen celebrates with freshman Makenzie Foxhoven. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.

Wynot shot 11-for-27 (40.7%) from deep at the Devaney Center, outscoring the Warriors by 18 from the arc to end Red Cloud’s title hops.

Senior Kenna Oligmueller led the way for Wynott with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting (including 3-of-4 from 3), 11 rebounds and six blocks. Fellow senior Addison Sharpe shot 4-of-9 from deep for 12 points.

Red Cloud sophomore Josie Faimon put up a game-high 21 points, 10 rebounds and four steals. Fellow Sophomore Aiva Rust added 10 points, seven boards and four steals.

Wyont led 10-9 at the end of a back-and-forth first period then extended it to nine in the second quarter and 16 in the third. Red Cloud made a push in the fourth, pulling within four a couple of times in the last three minutes, but the Blue Devils scored the last seven points to slam the door shut.

Wynot will face No. 1 Dundy County Stratton in the Class D2 final on Saturday, set for 9 a.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Red Cloud will face No. 5 Archangels Catholic in the first third-place game on Saturday, set for 9 a.m. at Lincoln Southeast.

 

CLASS C2

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The Pendragons celebrate after earning a spot in their fourth straight state championship appearance. Photo by Jansen Coburn.

No. 1 Pender 46, No. 4 Yutan 36

The Pendragons pulled off a second-half rally to keep their campaign for a fourth straight title alive.

Pender fell behind by nine after a Jenna Benjamin 3-pointer with two and a half remaining in the third quarter. From that point on, the Pendragons outscored the Chieftains 26-7, including 8-1 to end the third quarter and 7-0 late in the fourth to build a 10-point lead in the final minute.

Senior Madalyn Dolliver scored 10 of her game-high 16 points in the first half to keep the Pendragons afloat, then fellow senior Hadley Walsh scored nine of her 12 in the second half. Dolliver shot 5-for-8 from 3 while Walsh pulled down 11 rebounds for the double-double.

Senior Mylee Tichota led the Chieftains with 12 points and seven rebounds.

No. 2 Elkhorn Valley 48, No. 6 Guardian Angels Central Catholic 40

The Falcons trailed for almost 23 minutes but pitched a near shutout in the fourth quarter to keep their undefeated season alive and reach the Class C2 championship game for the second year in a row.

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Elkhorn Valley junior Cameron Rutjens dribbles the ball up the floor. Photo by Jansen Coburn.

Guardian Angels Central Catholic broke a 7-all tie with a 9-0 run in the first quarter then played from ahead throughout the second and third quarters. The lead peaked at 12 a few minutes into the third before a three-and-a-half-minute scoring drought.

Miley Broberg finally ended the cold spell with a 3 for the Falcons, sparking a 13-2 run that extended into the fourth quarter. Bailey Gerths scored a layup for the Bluejays at the 5:43 mark, then Elkhorn Valley shut them out the rest of the way.

Elkhorn Valley closed the game on an 11-0 run as Guardian Angels Central Catholic missed its last 10 shots.

Junior Cameron Rutjens led Elkhorn Valley 13 points and nine rebounds while shooting 3-of-6 from deep. Freshman Kayton Werner added 12 points on 5-of-7 from the field and 2-of-4 from the line. Sophomore Kyndal Werner chipped in 10 points.

Gerths, a sophomore, led the Bluejays with 14 points, 12 rebounds and four steals while senior Abi Toline added 11 points and four steals.

The Falcons will face No. 1 Pender in Saturday’s C2 final, set for 4:15 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The Bluejays will face No. 4 Yutan in the third-place game at Lincoln Southeast, with tipoff at 1 p.m.

 

CLASS D1

No. 1 Bloomfield 44, No. 5 Sutton 38

The Fillies gave the unbeaten Queen Bees all they could handle, but the Mlady sisters took over down the stretch to send Bloomfield to the championship.

The game saw five lead changes and seven ties, the last at 32-all with five minutes to play. From there, Bloomfield put together a 7-1 run to build a 39-33 lead with less than two minutes to play. Sophomore Madyson Mlady scored six of the seven, and the lead held as the Bees went 5-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final 45 seconds.

Mlady scored eight of her game-high 15 points in the fourth quarter, adding 13 rebounds and two blocks. Her sister Kennedy, a freshman, added 13 points, seven steals, five assists and five rebounds.

Senior Kyla Greiss led Sutton with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting including 2-fo-3 from deep.

No. 6 Howells-Dodge 44, No. 2 Elm Creek 31

The Jaguars used a dominant defensive effort in the Devaney Center nightcap to advance to the final.

Howells-Dodge got just four points in 13 minutes from leading scorer Kylie Brichacek (15.0 points per game heading in) before she fouled out, but freshman Brynn Throener (5.1 points per game) picked up the slack. She was the only double-digit scorer in the game, finishing with 12 points on 5-for-9 shooting (2-of-4 from 3) and four assists.

Brichacek played just five minutes in the first half, but the Jaguars took a 21-9 lead into halftime by limiting the Buffaloes to two points on 1-for-8 shooting with eight turnovers. The advantage swelled to 18 midway through the third quarter and the Jaguars did enough in the fourth quarter to hold on.

The Buffaloes shot 19.6% from the field for the game, converting just nine field goals.

The upstart Jaguars will take on top-seeded and unbeaten Bloomfield in Saturday’s final, set for 8:15 p.m.

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