Two years of opening round frustration in the Class 4A District 1 tournament came to an end Wednesday night for the Oak Harbor Wildcats.

In the opening round of the district in 2007 and again last year, Oak Harbor came up on the short end of the score against the top-seeded Jackson Timberwolves.

This time around the Cats proved beyond a doubt that the third time is truly the charm, when junior Nicole Mobray hit an uncontested put-back shot with less than three seconds remaining in the game to give Oak Harbor a 52-51 victory.

Some people might think the game was an upset victory, but Oak Harbor coach Brett McLeod has said all season long that when the team plays hard and plays smart they are one of the best teams in the league.

Jackson outscored Oak Harbor 21-11 in the third period and the Wildcats went into the final eight minutes of the contest down by eight points.

That’s when Jennifer Jansen went to work.

The senior knocked down eight points over a 5-minute span when the Wildcats went on a 12-2 run to take a 47-45 lead.

Jensen finished the game with 17 points and eight rebounds.

After Chanel Sam gave the Timberwolves a one point, 51-50, lead, McLeod called a time out and set up a play to give Jansen a chance down low to put the game away.

Jansen’s shot sailed over the rim, but Mowbray was right there to bury the game-winner.

Mowbray finished with 13 points and Jessica Danmon scored a game-high 18 points.