The Plainville boys and Smith Center girls will take flawless records into yet another week of action on the hardcourt after another successful week.
Trego
The Lady Golden Eagles picked up an MCL win on Friday, edging out Hill City 66-64. Trego is now 4-1 in league play and 9-5 overall. The Golden Eagles fell behind 20-16 on Friday, then bounced back to lead 36-33 by halftime, and 52-45 after three quarters. Trego staved off a Hill City comeback in the fourth quarter to hang on for the win.
“Hill City was definitely a big win for us,” said Trego coach Ricky Snyder. “We didn’t play great defensively, but somehow found a way to win and get enough defensive stops when we had to have them. I think the girls are starting to understand how much effort it is going to take for us to win on a consistent basis. We seem to be finding ourselves in a lot of close games at the end and so far, we’ve played well enough down the stretch to earn some victories. I’m hoping that this builds their confidence as substate comes around the corner and we can continue to get better and be playing our best basketball come substate time.”
For the second time this season, a Golden Eagle scored more than 30 points. Senior Hannah Dietz doubled her average to lead the way with 34 points. Haley Dietz, who scored 32 points in a tournament game, added 19 points. Lexi Riedel added seven points as only six players scored for Trego in the win.
The Trego boys remain winless in league play, falling to 5-10 overall with a 57-47 loss to the Ringnecks. Hill City took a 23-8 lead before Trego battled back to get within 42-35 after three quarters. Clayton Riedel led Trego with 16 points. John Griffith added 15 points, and Blake Fritts 14 points.
Phillipsburg
The Panther boys dropped to 7-7, 3-2 in MCL play, with a 61-59 loss to Smith Center on Friday. Phillipsburg had to battle to get back into the game, trailing 31-26 at the half, and falling behind 47-34 after three quarters. The Panthers outscored Smith Center 25-14 in the final eight minutes but could not erase that deficit.
Senior Jeff Dusin is averaging less than six points a game this year, but had the hot-hand Friday with 16 points, including 4-of-6 shooting from behind the arc. Dusin also grabbed seven rebounds. Sean Newlan and Seth Derr each contributed 11 points, and Newlan led the Panthers with 10 rebounds.
The Lady Panthers suffered their first league loss, falling to 4-1 against MCL teams and 10-4 overall with a 69-39 loss to No. 4 Smith Center. Phillipsburg was able to stay close at 25-20 through two quarters, but Smith Center turned it on to outscore the Panthers 43-19 in the second half. Mattison Dusin had 10 points in the loss, followed by seven points from Raegan Vanderplas.
Plainville
The No. 3 Cardinal boys climbed a spot in the 2A ranks last week. That showed on Tuesday as the squad downed Lincoln 79-37. Friday, Plainville had to fight against Ellis for a 59-51. The Cardinals are 15-0 on the year, and 6-0 in MCL play.
Plainville used offense to turn away with things early at Lincoln, scoring more than 20 points in each of the first three quarters to lead 41-25 at the half, and 68-35 after three quarters. Andrew Casey hit three threes to finish with 17 points, rounding out a solid night with six steals, five assists, and five rebounds. Nolan Brungardt also hit a trio of triples, finishing with 13 points. Kyle Becker and Hadley Gillum each scored 13 points, and Nolan Weiser hit double-figures with 12 points.
The Lady Cardinals dropped to 3-13, 0-7 with a 50-31 loss to No. 9 Lincoln on Tuesday, and a 43-36 loss to Ellis on Friday.
Stockton
The Lady Tigers dropped to 1-9 on the year, and remain winless in the MCL following two losses last week. Thursday, Stockton fell to Norton 48-37. Friday, the girls lost to Osborne 46-28. In that game, the damage was done early as the Tigers scored only two points in the first quarter and trailed 25-10 at the half. Eight Lady Tigers scored in the contest. Freshman Morgan Beougher led the team with nine points. Haley Dix and Janassa Swaney each added four points.
The Tiger boys are 3-9 overall, and did get their first MCL win Friday by doubling-up Osborne 50-25. Thursday, the squad fell to Norton 48-38. In that loss, Stockton outscored Norton 25-15 in the second and fourth quarters combined, but managed only 13 points in the other two quarters.
Ellis
The Railroader boys went 1-1 last week and are 8-6 on the year. Tuesday, Ellis squeaked out a 43-40 win against Victoria. Friday, the team gave unbeaten Plainville a rare fight in a 59-51 loss. Ellis had control of the game on Tuesday, taking a 13-12 lead after one quarter, and holding the Knights scoreless in the second quarter to lead 20-12 at the break. That advantage was pushed to 37-24 by the end of the third quarter before Victoria tallied 16 points in the fourth quarter to make things interesting.
Blake Hudson paced the Railroaders with 16 points on 2-of-4 shooting from the outside. Thatcher Brown was a basket away from a double-double with eight points and 11 rebounds. Luke Lohrmeyer added six points.
The Ellis girls also had a 1-1 week, moving to 6-8 on the season. Tuesday, the girls fell to Victoria 52-37. They rebounded to hand Plainville a 43-36 loss on Friday, improving to 3-3 against MCL teams.
Norton
The Bluejay boys picked up two wins last week to improve to 8-5. Tuesday, the squad edged out Goodland 73-70. Friday, the Jays returned to league play where they improved to 3-2 with a 48-38 win against Stockton.
Junior Jacob Brooks carried the team to the win on Friday, going 3-of-3 from beyond the arc to double his season average with 24 points. He was the only Bluejay to reach double-figures, and also led the team with eight rebounds. Dillon McConney finished with nine points, and Jordan Wahlmeier added eight points.
The Lady Jays also picked up two wins, improving to 7-6 with a 43-23 win over Goodland, and a 48-37 defeat of Stockton. Norton is 2-3 against MCL teams this year. A big third quarter lifted the Lady Jays over Stockton on Friday. Tied 13-13 at the half, Norton outscored the Tigers 18-6 in the third quarter, then held on to that margin for the win. Tawni Griffey hit three threes to lead the team with 15 points. Erin Terrell finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, and six steals. Bailey Ambrosier added eight points.
Smith Center
The No. 4 Lady Redmen showed their ability to dominate on Friday, handing Phillipsburg its first MCL loss with a 69-39 win. Smith Center improved to 12-0 overall, and 3-0 in league play with the win. The Redmen looked to have control early with a 16-7 lead, but Phillipsburg battled back to trail only 25-20 at the half. Smith Center scored 22 points in each fo the final two quarters to pull away for the lopsided win.
McKenzie Benoit finished with a double-double at 21 points and 13 rebounds. Tangie Hileman hit three threes and filled the stat sheet with 20 points, six steals, and five assists. Sydney Benoit knocked down two threes, finishing with 12 points, seven steals, and five assists. Trenna Cox added nine points. The team finished with 22 steals and 20 assists on the night.
The Smith Center boys edged out Phillipsburg 61-59 to improve to 8-4 overall and 3-1 in the MCL. Things were not always that close as the Redmen outscored the Panthers in each of the first three quarters to lead 47-34 with eight minutes to play. Phillipsburg scored 25 points in the fourth quarter to force the issue. Four Redmen reach double-figures, led by Payton Buckmaster’s 15 points. Alex Hoblemann finished with 14 points, Trevor Overmiller scored 13, and Nathan Cox contributed 12 points.
Hill City
The Hill City boys improved to 6-1 in the MCL with a 57-47 win at Trego on Friday. The squad dropped a 53-45 contest to Hoxie earlier in the week, and is 8-3 overall on the year. The Ringnecks came out inspired on Friday, outscoring the Golden Eagles 23-8 in the first quarter. Trego won the next two quarters, but that would not be enough to erase that gap. Solomon Wilson scored 19 points in the win. Jerry Isaksonson added 14 points, and Adam Pfeifer finished with 13 points.
The Lady Ringnecks have lost four straight after an 0-2 week. Tuesday, the girls fell to No. 2 (1A, Div. I) Hoxie 77-20. Friday, the squad fell short in a comeback bid against Trego, falling to 6-5 overall, 2-2 in MCL play with a 66-64 loss to the Golden Eagles. In that loss, the Ringnecks outscored Trego 20-16 in the first quarter. The Golden Eagles bounced back to lead at the half and take a 52-45 lead into the fourth quarter. Hill City was able to shave five points off that deficit but could not complete the comeback. Haley Dinkel paced the Ringnecks with 21 points. Darrien Collins added 10 points. Kelsey Keith, Leslie VanLoenen, and Tiffany Russell each finished with nine points.
Osborne
The Lady Bulldogs snapped a two-game losing streak on Tuesday with a 50-29 win against Lakeside. Friday, the girls downed Stockton 46-28 to improve to 4-0 in league play. Osborne improved to 7-6 on the season.
In Tuesday’s win, the Bulldogs outscored Lakeside in every quarter but the second, leading 22-13 at the half, and outscoring the Knights 28-16 in the second half. Caitlin Miller led Osborne with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Rachel St. Clair added 15 points, and Alyssa Windle scored eight points. Mallorie Thibault grabbed nine boards to go along with her one point.
The Bulldog boys dropped to 0-11 on the year, falling to Lakeside 50-35 on Tuesday, and dropping a 50-25 contest to Stockton on Friday.
