The Sigourney Savages and WACO Warriors met for non-conference play Thursday, with Sigourney coming out on top in both contests. The girls won 56-53, while the boys won 53-42.
Both Sigourney teams were hunting their tenth win of the season. In the beginning, it looked like Thursday would be light work for the Savages, as they jumped to an 18-11 lead and led by as many as 15 en route to a 29-17 halftime score. After the break, it became increasingly clear that WACO would not be going away. Little by little, the Warriors cut into the deficit, before finally bringing it to just a 1-point lead at 52-51, a few minutes away from the end of the game. Unfortunately for WACO, Sigourney forced a turnover on what could have been the decisive possession, forcing the Warriors to foul and send Sigourney to the line. The Savages made their free throws, and despite a buzzer beater to end the game, all it served was to change the final score, with Sigourney claiming a 56-53 win.
Brynn Clarahan led Sigourney with 23 points, while Becca Gretter also reached double-digits with 10. A trio of Warriors found their way into double-digits, with Courtney Waterhouse leading the way with 14, Madelyn Farmer behind her with 13, and Ava Wagler right behind them with 12.
Sigourney head coach Kaylee Weber says it wasn’t the Savages’ best game of the season, but she still liked their determination to hold on to the win. “Yeah, you know, I don’t think it was quite our best game. We had a sloppy second half. But that happens, we had a really hard week, we played really hard on Tuesday. And, you know they’re ready to go home, they don’t want to be here in the weather either. I can’t say I blame them. So, not our best half, but I’m glad they scrapped it out and stuck with it and just kept going.”
Sigourney improves to 10-4 on the season. WACO falls to 7-9.
Meanwhile, the WACO boys jumped out to a quick 9-4 lead in the nightcap, but that lead was quickly erased by Sigourney’s boys, and with the lead change at 10-9, that would be that. The Savages led 21-16 after a high scoring first quarter, but did enough to build on that lead despite the offenses slowing down in the second quarter. Sigourney led at the break, 32-24. The second half was largely a back-and-forth affair, with every attempt by WACO to reduce the deficit being met by Sigourney finding a few counter-buckets themselves. A 21-18 second half gave the Sigourney boys their tenth win of the season as well, 53-42.
John Berg was the high scorer for the Savages, recording 13 points. Solon Yates added 12. WACO, missing leading scorer Holden Hughes due to sickness, instead relied on Hayden Shelman, who found 16 points to lead all scorers on the day.
Sigourney head coach Mitch Eslick says it’s a good win ahead of a busy week, with the Savages playing four games next week over five days, but that’s the way they like it. “They love to be able to play, and for coaches, it’s a lot of film, a lot of prep, and a lot of late nights, but that’s why they pay us the big bucks, right?”
The Savages are now 10-3 on the year, while WACO falls a step closer to .500 at 8-7.