Big milestones, memories recorded at State Tournament
LINCOLN — Several big milestones were recorded as the Laurel-Concord-Coleridge Bear boys basketball team made a memory-filled run to the 2020 state title.
LCC set a state record for the biggest state tournament win in Class D1 State history with their 76-31 win over Southern Valley Saturday morning at the Pinnacle Bank Arena.
The title is something these players have been building towards since elementary school with many of these athletes playing together since second grade.
“It was long overdue with a lot of work put in by a lot of people,” Coach Todd Erwin said. “It is great to finally get it done to kind of set the tone for all the younger kids.
LCC also became the first team to ever invoke the mercy rule on its opponent during a state title game. The rule puts a running clock into play if a team leads by 40 points.
The weekend also involved another first, one that no one wanted to be involved in. The State Tournament marked the first time fan attendance was strictly limited to immediate family members of players and coaches in an effort to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus now sweeping across the country.
Two members of the LCC team also reached personal milestones during the tourney. Ty Erwin scored the 1,000th point in his career during the tournament, joining teammate Noah Schutte in the 1,000-point club. Earlier this year Schutte both broke the school’s all-time scoring record and collected the 2,000th point of his career.
Coach Erwin hit a big milestone with his 100th career win at the State Tournament.
Two other memorable milestones were also recorded.
This year’s State title marks the first time an LCC team has won a state title in any school activity since the Coleridge and Laurel-Concord schools consolidated in 2014.
It is the third-time a Laurel team has won the state title as the Bears also claimed state in 1995 and in their last appearance in Lincoln back in 2001.
Since Laurel and Concord consolidated into one school in the 1970s, they have now advanced to four boys state tournaments, posting a 9-1 record at State.
