Roundup: Cougars, Vikings advance to semis
Kingston 58, St. Paul 52
CALEDONIA – Keith Jessen netted a game-high 17 points, and fourth-seeded Kingston squeezed past St. Paul Lutheran 58-52 in the boys first round of the Valley Tournament on Tuesday night.
Freshman Matt Nelson provided 16 points with 14 rebounds and multiple blocks before fouling out, and sank a go-ahead basket to spark the closing 10-4 run by the Cougars over the final 3:30.
Kingston (2-0) immediately extended a modest 38-35 halftime lead to nine when Kyle Vandergriff and Tyler Hochstatter drilled consecutive 3-pointers to begin the third quarter.
St. Paul (0-4) clawed back with a strong finish by Ethan Wright before the period concluded, and Caleb Detring nailed a tying three to make it 48-48 with about four minutes to play.
A driving bank shot by Troy Gildehaus gave Kingston a 54-50 edge, and four free throws capped the outcome after the Giants missed a chance to draw even from the line with 36 seconds left.
Jessen inflicted most of his damage with 14 points prior to the break. Jason Everett and Vandergriff injected several hustling plays for the Cougars, who advanced to face Bunker in the semifinal round on Thursday.
Gabe Ayers totaled 14 points and seven rebounds for St. Paul, including two free throws after earning a fourth chance within a single possession down the stretch.
Wright supplied 10 points and Detring added nine more for the Giants, who unofficially shot just 3-of-23 from beyond the arc.
Valley 65, Viburnum 47
CALEDONIA – No. 4 seed and tournament host Valley attacked in transition to produce a crucial 14-2 scoring outburst heading into halftime, and outlasted Viburnum 65-47 on Tuesday.
Michael Presley finished with 16 points, and Isaiah Gallaher scored 12 for the Vikings (3-0), who will challenge top seed Bourbon on Thursday.
Ethan Boyle totaled 21 points and 10 rebounds for Viburnum, and tied the game at 20-20 with a layup in the second quarter before Valley gained control.
Gallaher notched a pair of fast-break finishes after Presley sank a pull-up jumper on the move, and the Vikings posted a 34-22 halftime advantage.
Presley splashed a 3-pointer late in the third quarter, and connected from long range again before Skyler DeClue dropped in a putback for a 59-42 separation late.
Dylan Turner added 10 points and Keeton Loughary scored eight for Valley. DeClue claimed 11 rebounds along with six points.
Cameron Payne tallied 10 points, and put the Blue Jays ahead 15-10 with a field goal from the paint. Turner answered with a corner 3-pointer that ended the opening quarter.
Bunker 38, Bismarck 32
CALEDONIA – Bunker dominated the boards as neither team shot the basketball well, and emerged past Bismarck 38-32 in another first-round game at the Valley Tournament.
Mason Davis provided 12 points and 15 rebounds for the Eagles, who erased two second-quarter deficits to lead 19-18 when Chase Wisdom beat the halftime buzzer with a 3-pointer.
Jory Skaggs added 14 rebounds while equaling Blake Mathes with eight points each. Bunker advanced to face Kingston in the semifinal round on Thursday.
Bismarck (0-3) trailed by six on two occasions in the fourth quarter, but drew within 34-32 when Austin Droege sank a pull-up jumper with 1:58 to play.
Logan Dunn executed a steal and layup moments earlier, and paced the Indians with 11 points while Droege ended with 10 in a frustrating finish.
Skaggs scored from the post following a timeout to restore a four-point lead, and Droege was unable to finish a couple of frenetic drives in the final minute.
Bismarck was shut out for more than six minutes of the third quarter until senior Jason Boyer connected from deep range and scored again off a steal after his club trailed 28-21.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Fredericktown 42, Perryville 32
FREDERICKTOWN – Senior Kylee Bastie scored a game-high 12 points, and tourney host Fredericktown stifled Perryville 42-32 for its first victory.
Kyndal Dodd added eight points for the Lady Blackcats, who built a 14-6 lead through one quarter, and rode effective defense to a 32-15 advantage after three.
Fredericktown (1-1) will land in the third-place game on Saturday if top seed Central defeats Perryville in the last round of pool play on Thursday.
Evann Davis, Marissa Hale and Mallory Mathes contributed six points each to the win. Kirstin Jannin had 10 points, and Sydney Spears pitched in eight for the Pirates.
Naylor rebounded from its loss against Arcadia Valley to knock off Potosi 50-46 in the other tournament game on Tuesday night.
WRESTLING
Central Triangular
PARK HILLS – Kade Willis created plenty of buzz last season as a newcomer to the Central varsity wrestling team, and eventually earned a fifth-place finish at 126 pounds in the Class 2 state tournament.
Willis opened his sophomore campaign at the 132-pound division with a pair of victories Tuesday night, including a massive triumph against a reigning state champion.
His thrilling 15-13 decision over Connor McAteer highlighted a triangular meet for the Rebels, who lost 50-24 at home to Ste. Genevieve and 63-15 to Class 1 powerhouse Whitfield.
Ste. Genevieve likewise dropped a 55-10 result to the Warriors, getting only a fall from Andrew Wolk and major decision from senior Grant Staffen along the way.
William Mayberry (160) pinned his opponent in the first period, and Josh Whaley received a forfeit for Central during its clash with Whitfield.
Ste. Genevieve and Central were each open in two divisions while squaring off, and the Dragons scored wins during seven of 10 contested bouts.
Dalton McNeal (120), Jacob Dickens (138), Josh Schmidt (170), Ty Brown (195) and Clayton Vaughn (285) registered falls for Ste. Genevieve.
Staffen notched a 22-6 technical fall against Michael Obenauer, and Noah Odgen followed with a 10-4 victory over Blake Bolin at 152 pounds.
Mayberry edged Andrew Wolk 7-6 complete his 2-0 night for Central. Willis finished off a 21-6 technical fall over Nathan Selby, and Garrett Smith grabbed a 16-5 major decision against Lucas Smith.
Ste. Genevieve 50, Central 24
106 – Gavin Gross (SG) win by forfeit
113 – Kacha Pholjan (SG) win by forfeit
120 – Dalton McNeal (SG) fall Gavin Ward, 1:21
126 – Garrett Smith (C) m-dec Lucas Smith, 16-5
132 – Kade Willis (C) tech fall Nathan Selby, 21-6, 5:57
138 – Jacob Dickens (SG) fall Dean Parker, 0:39
145 – Grant Staffen (SG) tech fall Michael Obenauer, 22-6, 5:56
152 – Noah Odgen (SG) dec Blake Bolin, 10-4
160 – William Mayberry (C) dec Andrew Wolk, 7-6
170 – Josh Schmidt (SG) fall Clayton McDonald, 0:48
182 – Cody Skaggs (C) win by forfeit
195 – Ty Brown (SG) fall Josh Whaley, 2:38
220 – Wyatt Crady (C) win by forfeit
285 – Clayton Vaughn (SG) fall Michael Weinhold, 2:20
Whitfield 55, Ste. Genevieve 10
106 – Evan Binder (W) fall Gavin Gross, 0:32
113 – Jason Shaw (W) fall Dalton McNeal, 3:17
120 – Logan Ferrero (W) fall Lucas Smith, 1:51
126 – Kobe Raeman (W) win by forfeit
132 – Connor McAteer (W) dec Jacob Dickens, 9-2
138 – Wade Raeman (W) tech fall Kaleb Myracle, 17-2, 4:44
145 – Grant Staffen (SG) m-dec Legend Alicea, 13-1
152 – Matthew Schueddig (W) fall Noah Odgen, 3:30
160 – Andrew Wolk (SG) fall Jeb Cavness, 1:52
170 – Chase Brock (W) tech fall Josh Schmidt, 18-1, 3:50
182 – Double Forfeit
195 – Ethan Hovis (W) fall Ty Brown, 3:35
220 – Double Forfeit
285 – Keith Miley (W) fall Clayton Vaughn, 2:57
Whitfield 63, Central 15
106 – Evan Binder (W) win by forfeit
113 – Jason Shaw (W) win by forfeit
120 – Logan Ferrero (W) fall Gavin Ward, 1:29
126 – Kobe Raeman (W) fall Garrett Smith, 1:19
132 – Kade Willis (C) dec Connor McAteer, 15-13
138 – Wade Raeman (W) fall Dean Parker, 0:41
145 – Legend Alicea (W) fall Michael Obenauer, 3:04
152 – Matthew Schueddig (W) dec Blake Bolin, 7-2
160 – William Mayberry (C) fall Jeb Cavness, 1:49
170 – Chase Brock (W) fall Clayton McDonald, 0:41
182 – Ethan Hovis (W) fall Cody Skaggs, 3:43
195 – Joshua Whaley (C) win by forfeit
220 – Alexander Tischler (W) fall Wyatt Crady, 0:12
285 – Keith Miley (W) fall Michael Weinhold, 0:26
Senior guard Kylee Bastie scored 12 points on Tuesday as the Fredericktown girls finished pool play at 1-1 in their home tournament.
