ABILENE, Kan.—
The 2012 portion of the North Central Kansas League is all but complete and in all three of the NCKL winter standings things are as clear as mud.In wrestling two teams, Abilene and Clay Center, share the top spot in the standings with 1-0 NCKL records with Clay Center topping Chapman earlier this season in a dual and this past week Abilene defeated Wamego 55-15 but Abilene and Clay Center each hosted tournaments this past week where the Cowboys finished third in a dual tournament and the Tigers finished ninth out of nine teams in their own tournament.
In basketball, there are six NCKL teams with perfect records this season, leaving things as uncertain there as well. This past week Marysville and Clay Center met on the hardwood for the first NCKL games of the season, Marysville won the boys’ contest while the Lady Tigers won the girls’ contest.
Concordia
In basketball Concordia played Republic County on Tuesday, with the boys winning 61-51 and the girls losing 55-13 and on Friday the Panthers and Lady Panthers played Smoky Valley where the boys won 61-51 but the Lady Panthers fell to 0-3 on the season with a 57-50 loss. In wrestling the Panthers traveled to Colby for a dual tournament where they placed 10th, going 2-5 in their seven duals.
Abilene
The Cowboys and Cowgirls had a successful week in the athletic world with both basketball teams winning their four games and their wrestling team opened the NCKL season with a 55-15 win over Wamego and placed third in a dual tournament they hosted with upper classification teams. In basketball the Cowboys topped Rock Creek 70-47 on Tuesday and Augusta 64-50 on Friday while the Cowgirls defeated Rock Creek 40-26 and Augusta 32-29.
Clay Center
In basketball the Tigers and Lady Tigers played Beloit on Tuesday with the Tiger boys falling 64-58 and the Lady Tigers rolling to a 79-26 win and on Friday Clay Center basketball played its NCKL opener of the 2012-2013 season against Marysville where the Clay Center boys lost 55-45 and the Lady Tigers earned a 50-36 victory. In wrestling Clay Center hosted its annual tournament on Saturday but the Tigers only managed 35.5 points and finished ninth out of nine teams in the tournament.
Marysville
The Marysville basketball teams had Tuesday off but opened the 2012-2013 NCKL campaign against Clay Center on Friday where the Bulldog boys picked up a 55-45 win but the Lady Bulldogs lost 50-36. The Marysville wrestling team traveled to Clay Center on Saturday where the Bulldog grapplers compiled 72 points which was good for sixth place.
Wamego
The Wamego basketball teams played Nemaha Valley on Tuesday where the Red Raider boys lost 45-44 but the Lady Raiders were able to pick up a 42-30 victory. Thursday the Wamego wrestling team opened its NCKL season by traveling to Abilene where it suffered a 55-15 defeat. Saturday the Wamego wrestling team competed in the Sabetha Tournament where the Red Raiders earned 153 points which was good for second place.
Chapman
The Chapman basketball teams played their first action of the 2012-2013 season when it played host to the 1st Annual Chapman Fighting Irish Basketball Classic. The Fighting Irish boys opened the tournament with a 45-32 win over Rossville but lost on the second two days of the tournament, falling56-39 to El Dorado on Friday and 42-37 to Salina Sacred Heart on Saturday. The Lady Irish, meanwhile, lost all three of their games in the tournament, falling 45-41 to Rossville, 49-37 to El Dorado and 47-44 to Salina Sacred Heart. The Chapman wrestling team traveled to Minneapolis for tournament action on Saturday and earned 96 points to place fourth as a team.
