Tiger Girls Rally to Down Southwest Livingston, Make Fourth Quarter Defensive Stand

Worth County came into the Sectional game with Southwest Livingston with one goal in mind – keep them down to 50 points or less. They held them to exactly 50 points and got the 59-50 win over the Wildcats, ranked third in the state coming into Tuesday’s game. It was the first-ever ranked team Worth County had beaten since the 2003-2004 season. The Wildcats came into the game with the leading scorer in the area, Kortlyn Rounkles, averaging around 27 points per game. She got her points, getting 24 for the night. But she had to earn everything she got, being guarded by either Anna Gladstone and Kristin New all night. They have both established themselves as two of the best on the ball defenders in the area.

The News-Press called the win an upset, but in fact, it was simply a matter of the Tigers flying under the radar all year. They have played a tough schedule including the likes of King City (twice), Mount Ayr, NEN, Jefferson, Stanberry, Princeton (twice), South Nodaway, North Nodaway (twice), East Harrison (twice), North Harrison (twice), East Atchison, and North Andrew all year. All were teams capable of beating anyone on a given night and blowing teams out of the gym that didn’t bring their “A” game. They were used to guarding people who could score, having guarded Payton Craig (twice) and Jaycee Graves, also high on the News-Press leaderboard. Other people on the leaderboard who Worth County has played against include Lily Osborn (Stanberry), Megan Cottrell (Gilman City), Jasmine Taylor (Braymer), Brandy Rivet (North Harrison), and Brooke McDaniel (North Andrew). To win 21 games against this caliber of competition speaks to the strength of Worth County’s team.

Southwest came into the game averaging 65 points per game, including a high of 87. But Worth County held them to 15 below their average and held them to their 3rd lowest point total of the year out of their 26 games.

Worth County got off to a torrid start as Regan Allee hit a triple from the right side off a pass from Anna Gladstone and then Anna got a putback and an inside shot as Meredith Oesch went to the bench early with two fouls. This was critical, as Worth County was able to exploit Southwest’s lack of depth all night long. Two more free throws from Gladstone made it 9-0, but it was only a matter of time before Southwest responded.

They did with a drive from Rounkles. Allee hit a triple from the right wing off a pass from Kristin New, but then Kaylie Campbell scored off a drive and Rounkles and Campbell scored off steals to make it 12-8.

Jessi Badell got a putback, but Southwest got back to within 14-13 after one. The two teams traded blows until Rounkles got loose in transition to put Southwest up 25-24 at the 3:25 mark of the second. What could have been disaster for Worth County happened at the end of the half; they held for the last shot down 30-27, only for Regan Allee to pull the trigger prematurely and Rounkles to hit Worth County with a layup at the other end to put her team up 32-27 at the half.

It looked like all the momentum was in Southwest’s favor as Rounkles’ NBA three put them in front 37-30 at the 6:34 mark of the third quarter. But then Worth County stopped the bleeding as all of a sudden, Kaylee McElvain realized she could take her defender to the basket at will, getting two drives, a putback, and a midrange shot for eight points in the period to keep Worth County in the game as Rounkles kept right on hitting.

But then it looked like Worth County’s best efforts might be in vain as Kaylee Campbell’s triple put the Wildcats up 49-41 after three. Little did they know that they would only get one more point for the whole game.

Worth County had the ball to start the fourth and Anna Gladstone got a drive, kicked out to Kaylee, who drove and completed a three point play to make it 49-44. All of a sudden, Jill Hardy got back to back threes, the first on a possession that Anna Gladstone kept alive with an offensive board, and all of a sudden, Worth County had wiped out their deficit in just over a minute in a half, leading 50-49 again.

Kaylie Campbell’s free throw tied it up at 50, but then Southwest didn’t score for the remaining 5:59 of the game and Worth County took over the game from there. Regan Allee’s drive and pullup off a pass from Anna Gladstone made it 52-50. After a series of stops, Kaylee McElvain scored from inside to make it 54-50 and make it two possessions with 3:15 left. Trying to close off the driving lanes, Southwest left Jessi Badell on the right wing just inside the three point line with 2:28 left. She missed a similar shot against King City with Worth County protecting a late lead in King City, but this time, she made it to put Worth County up 56-50.

Rounkles had a good look at an NBA three, but missed it, got her own board, but threw away the ball and then picked up her fourth foul. Oesch fouled out and Jessi Badell hit a free throw to make it three possessions at 57-50. Rounkles went to the rim and got on the line, but missed both free throws and subsequently fouled out trying to get the ball from Anna Gladstone, who had gotten the defensive board. It was similar to Anna’s play last year, when she drew Payton Craig’s fifth foul in double overtime with six seconds left and Worth County protecting a 52-50 lead against the Shamrocks; she missed both free throws, but Jessi Badell’s putback iced a winning season for Worth County.

This time, Anna missed a one and one with 1:06 left, but Kaylee McElvain dove on the floor to secure an offensive board and Worth County took another 13 seconds off before Southwest could get the clock stopped. Regan Allee hit one of two to make it 58-50 and McKenzie Anderson missed a point blank shot at the other end. Worth County ran it all the way down to 17 seconds left and Jessi Badell hit a free throw before Anna Gladstone picked Kaylie Campbell’s wallet from behind to ice it.
Regan Allee had 18 points to lead Worth County. Anna Gladstone and Kaylee McElvain had 13, Jessi Badell and Jill Hardy had 6, Merrideth Spiers 2, and Kristin New 1.

Kaylee McElvain had 10 boards for the Tigers. Anna Gladstone and Kristin New had 6, Jessi Badell 5, Regan Allee 3, and Jill Hardy 2.

Anna Gladstone had 7 assists to lead the Tigers. Regan Allee had 4, Kristin New 4, Jill Hardy 1, and Jessi Badell 1.

Regan Allee had 6 tips, while Kristin New, Kaylee McElvain, and Anna Gladstone all had 1. Regan Allee and Anna Gladstone had 2 steals, while Kristin New, Jessi Badell, and Kaylee McElvain had 1.

But just as important was what Worth County didn’t do – turn the ball over. After turning it over five times in the first quarter, they only turned it over four more times the rest of the game, for a total of nine. And they only gave up eight offensive boards.

Shamrock Baseball Schedule (Revised and updated with new games added)

March 9th -- Home Jamboree with Pattonsburg and South Harrison, 4:00 pm.
March 16th – North Nodaway, 4:30 pm.
March 17th – at Trenton vs. East Harrison and Trenton, 10 am.
March 21st -- at Cameron, 5:00 pm.
March 23rd – at Pattonsburg, 5:00 pm.
March 26th -- Mercer/Princeton, 5:00 pm.
March 29th -- Putnam County, 5:00 pm.
March 31st – North Harrison Tournament, 9:00 am.
April 5th – East Harrison, 5:00 pm.
April 9th -- at Southwest Livingston, 5:00 pm.
April 10th – at Putnam County, 5:00 pm.
April 12th – at South Harrison, 5:00 pm.
April 13th – at Tri-County.
April 14th -- North Harrison Tournament, 9:00 am.
April 17th – at Mercer/Princeton, 5:00 pm. Game will be played at Lineville (IA).
April 21st -- at Platte Valley.
April 23rd – at Lathrop, 4:30 pm.
April 24th – Milan, 5:00 pm.
April 26th – Grundy County, 5:00 pm.
April 28th – Platte Valley Tournament.
May 1st – Platte Valley, 4:30 pm.
May 3rd – at East Harrison, 5:30 pm.
May 7th – NEN, 4:30 pm.
May 8th – at Braymer, 5:00 pm.

Shamrock Varsity Track Schedule

March 22nd – Worth County Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
March 27th – South Harrison Quad, 3:30 pm.
April 2nd – Warrior Relays.
April 4th – Pattonsburg Invitational, 2:30 pm.
April 5th – Stanberry, 3:30 pm.
April 12th – Trenton Bulldog Relays, 3:00 pm.
April 17th – Tiger Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 18th – Milan Wildcat Relays.
April 25th – HDC Track Meet, 10:00 am.
April 27th – South Harrison Relays, 3:30 pm.

Shamrock Junior High Track Schedule

March 27th – Worth County Junior High Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
April 3rd – Putnam County, 4:00 pm.
April 4th – Pattonsburg, 2:30 pm.
April 6th – Albany, 3:30 pm.
April 9th – South Harrison, 3:30 pm.
April 10th – Lamoni, 3:30 pm.
April 12th – Stanberry, 4:00 pm.
April 18th – Milan.
April 25th – HDC Conference Meet at Bethany.
April 26th – Tiger Junior High Relays, 3:30 pm.

NEN Junior High Track Schedule

March 27th – Worth County Junior High Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
April 9th – Squaw Creek Relays, 4:00 pm.
April 12th – Stanberry, 3:30 pm.
April 19th – Maryville, 3:30 pm.
April 26th – Junior High Tiger Relays, 3:30 pm.
May 1st – 275 Conference Meet.

Musket Varsity Track Schedule

March 29th – Rock Port, 4:00 pm.
April 6th – Stanberry, 3:30 pm.
April 10th – Rock Port, 1:30 pm.
April 17th – Tiger Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 20th – Tarkio Relays, 3:30 pm.
April 24th – Stanberry, 3:30 pm.
April 27th – Mound City, 3:30 pm.
May 1st – 275 Conference Meet, TBA.
May 5th – District Track.

Bluejay Varsity Track Schedule

March 22nd – Worth County Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
April 3rd – Warrior Relays, 3:30 pm.
April 6th – Stanberry Invitational, 3:30 pm.
April 10th – Rock Port Relays, 3:30 pm.
April 17th – Tiger Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 27th – Panther Relays, 3:30 pm.
May 1st – 275 Conference Meet, TBA.

Musket Junior High Track Schedule

March 27th – Worth County Junior High Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
April 5th – Tarkio, 4:00 pm.
April 9th – Mound City, 4:00 pm.
April 12th – North Andrew, 4:00 pm.
April 19th – Rock Port, 4:00 pm.
April 24th – Tarkio, 3:30 pm.
April 26th – Tiger Junior High Relays, 3:30 pm.
May 1st – 275 Conference Meet, TBA

Bluejay Baseball Schedule

All game times are 4:30 except for tournaments.
March 16th – St. Joseph Christian.
March 19th – at Mid-Buchanan.
March 22nd – at North Nodaway.
March 26th – Platte Valley.
March 29th – DeKalb.
April 3rd – at East Atchison (Double Header).
April 5th – West Nodaway.
April 7th – North Platte Tournament.
April 10th – North Nodaway.
April 12th – at Platte Valley.
April 16th – at DeKalb.
April 23rd – East Atchison (Double Header).
April 26th – at West Nodaway.
May 7th – at North Harrison.

Tiger Junior High Track Schedule

All meet times are 3:30 pm unless otherwise noted.
March 27th – Worth County Junior High Early Bird.
April 5th – Albany Junior High Warrior Relays.
April 9th – South Harrison Relays.
April 12th – Stanberry Invitational.
April 16th – Worth County Junior High Quad, 4:00 pm.
April 19th – Rock Port Relays.
April 24th – Tarkio Relays.
April 26th – Junior High Tiger Relays.
May 3rd – GRC Meet at Albany.

Tiger Varsity Track Schedule

March 22nd – Worth County Early Bird, 3:30 pm.
April 3rd – Albany Warrior Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 6th – Stanberry Invitational, 3:30 pm.
April 10th – Rock Port Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 13th – Worth County Quad, 3:45 pm.
April 17th – Tiger Relays, 1:30 pm.
April 20th – Indian Relays at Tarkio, 3:30 pm.
April 24th – Bulldog Relays at Stanberry, 3:30 pm.
April 27th – Panther Relays at Mound City, 3:30 pm.
April 30th – GRC Meet, 10:00 am, St. Joseph Christian.
May 5th – Districts.
May 12th – Sectionals.
May 18th to 19th – State Track Meet, Jefferson City.

Courthouse News for February 28th

On Friday, February 23rd, the Missouri State Highway Patrol arrested Kevin Hernandez (21) of St. Joseph in Nodaway County on a St. Joseph Police Department warrant for a traffic violation. He was held at the Nodaway County Jail.

On Friday, the Patrol arrested a Cainsville man, Dustin Stone (20) of Cainsville for Felony Possession of Marijuana, Failure to Display Valid Plates, No Driver’s License, and No Seat Belt. He was taken to the Harrison County Law Enforcement Center. The Patrol also arrested Brett Cruickshank (34) of Cainsville for Felony Possession of Marijuana and No Seat Belt.

On Saturday, the Patrol arrested Jeffrey Lovins (36) of Bethany in Harrison County on a Daviess County Warrant for Failure to Appear on charges of Driving Without a Valid License. He was also charged with Operating a Vehicle Without a Valid License.

On Saturday, the Patrol arrested a Blythedale man, Jacob Thomsen (27) in Daviess County on charges of DWI, speeding, and No Valid Operator’s License.

Information was taken off the Missouri State Highway Patrol website. The above charges are mere accusations and not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty it is to determine guilt or innocence.

Grant City Woman Injured in Savannah Wreck

A Grant City woman was injured in a wreck near Savannah on Route 59 Monday at around 11:04 am. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports that a 2002 Ford Ranger driven by Sandra Patterson (61) of Grant City was southbound on 59 when she traveled off the right side of the roadway, returned to the roadway, and traveled off the left side. The vehicle struck an embankment and came to rest on its wheels facing northwest. Patterson received minor injuries and was taken to Mosaic Life Care. She was wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident.

McFall Man Killed in Farming Accident

A McFall man was killed in a farming accident Monday at around 10:30 am. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports Victor Morgan (64) of McFall was loading a hay bale onto a McCormick 560 Tractor on private property off Route 69 one mile north of Pattonsburg. The Patrol says excessive weight on the front caused the tractor to tip and roll down an embankment and come to rest on the driver.

Eagleville Woman Injured in Wreck on Icy Roads

An Eagleville woman was injured in a wreck on ice covered roads Saturday morning at around 7:40. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports that a 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser driven by Dynelle Hendricks (27) of Eagleville was northbound on Route T three miles north of Blythdale when she lost control on the ice covered roadway, traveled off the east side of the road, and returned to the roadway. It then ran off the west side of the road and struck a fence. She received minor injuries and was taken to Harrison Community Hospital. She was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident.

Illinois Man Injured in Wreck Near Eagleville

An Illinois man was injured in a one car accident between Bethany and Eagleville Tuesday morning. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports that a 2017 Infinity driven by Darius Sturdivant (23) of South Holland (IL) was northbound on I-35 at the 96 mile marker four miles north of Bethany when it went off the east side, overcorrected, came back on the roadway, overcorrected again, went down an embankment, struck a ditch, and overturned.

A passenger, Edward Duie (23), of Dolton (IL), received moderate injuries and was taken to Harrison County Hospital. He was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident. Sturdivant was not injured; he was wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident.

Cooper Nally, Bedford Bulldogs On the Rise

Back in 1990, Troy Nally helped Worth County win a conference title; his free throws at the end provided the decisive margin in Worth County’s 62-60 victory over Princeton that gave them the conference title. Now, a new generation is helping Bedford rise to prominence. Cooper Nally, the son of Troy and Dana (Baldwin) Nally, is one of the main players for the Bedford Bulldogs as they are establishing themselves as one of the teams to beat in southwest Iowa. Troy is one of the Bedford coaches this year under Coach Frank Sefrit.

The Bulldogs did not get past St. Albert’s, who torched them 67-48 Monday in Shenandoah. The Falcons always seem to stand in the way of any team in the area that wants to go to state. The Bulldogs coaches had every reason to worry about the size of St. Albert’s; they have one player at 6’7” and another at 6’5” and every starter is over 6’1”. But it was St. Alberts’ guard play which buried the Bulldogs; one of their main guards, Tyler Blaha, can dunk, while the other, Jake Carley, went off for 29 points, driving to the basket at will with Bedford struggling with help defense all night long.

But the Bulldogs got through districts for the first time in several years behind Cooper and several other players who will return in coming years. Cooper is also the cousin of North Nodaway athletes Bethany and Kristin Herndon and upcoming seventh grader Lauren. Another Bedford player also has local ties; Damien Henry, a shorter stocky guard who did a lot of dirty work defensively and who can pop a long three, is related to the Henrys of Jefferson; the whole clan, including Dan and Mary Collins and Theresa Schmitz were there.

Other Bedford players who will be a force for the Bulldogs in coming years include Brennan Sefrit, who can shoot from anywhere along with Abraham Weed, who is a strong driver.

It looked like Bedford was in control after Sefrit’s drive put them up 10-5 with 2:50 left in the first. But St. Albert’s was just getting started; Tyler Blaha’s free throws and dunk cut it to 10-9 before Nally’s putback made it 11-9 after one.

The two critical turning points came with three minutes left in the second quarter. First, Weed picked up his third foul; that seemed to take the wind out of Bedford’s sails. Second, St. Albert’s put on a half court trap that Bedford could not handle and they proceeded to start throwing the ball away. They surrendered the ball 10 times in the second quarter alone as they went from leading 17-15 at one point to trailing 29-17 at the half.

Joe Liston, St. Alberts’ 6’7” skyscraper, didn’t see a lot of action; he was taken out bleeding early in the game and then again early in the second half. But it didn’t matter as Fagan worked the offensive glass twice for scores and Carley took over, driving at will. The carnage was bad enough that St. Albert’s scored six points at the end without Bedford having benefit of a possession – Carley buried an NBA three, one of Bedford’s players was called for a foul after the shot, giving St. Albert’s the ball back, and Luke Waters buried another NBA three to make it 52-30 after three.

Bedford went on a 9-2 run to start the fourth – Weed scored off a drive, Sefrit – who had been heckled all night by the St. Albert’s student body after throwing up an airball earlier – finally got a 3-pointer to go down, Nally scored a pair of free throws, and Weed scored two more to make it 54-39. But by that time, the clock had gotten to the four minute mark and Bedford was forced to start fouling. St. Albert’s shot 11 for 13 in the last four minutes – with one of those misses turning into a third chance putback from Jared Gast.

But Nally did all he could to stave off defeat for his team despite only being a sophomore. He had 18 points, three blocks, and 8 boards to lead his Bulldogs. Sefrit added 16 more. Both will be a force in coming years for Bedford.

Tiger Girls Dismantle East Harrison to Reach Finals

Worth County’s girls had every right to expect a tough contest against East Harrison in the district semifinal game. The Bobcats had been working on the best season in recent years for both the Ridgeway and Cainsville schools, winning the HDC Tournament and building up an eight game winning streak. They were up to 17 wins and had a nearly identical record to the Tigers. They had only lost by four to Worth County last year and by eight in districts last year, took North Nodaway to overtime this year, lost by four to NEN, and played two tough games with North Harrison.

The Bobcats had been in all but three of their games this year going into Friday’s contest; they had a way of hanging around even against strong teams. But what happened defied all expectations as Worth County completely dismantled the Bobcats with a 66-40 win Friday to punch their ticket into the district finals.

The whole Bobcat scheme is designed to throw teams off their rhythm; throw teams multiple looks and most teams will run into something they haven’t seen yet this year. But it didn’t seem to matter against Worth County, who got into an offensive rhythm early against East Harrison as Regan Allee hit two triples and made another basket in the first four minutes of the game. Kristin New scored off a drive and a putback and Anna Gladstone, fully healthy from an ankle injury the week before, scored inside as Worth County led 14-6 halfway through the first.

True to form, East Harrison hung around for the rest of the quarter and Worth County helped them out by missing free throws. Lauryn Waddle got a putback off a steal with 46 seconds left to make it 16-11 after one.

Try as they might, Worth County could not shake East Harrison through much of the second quarter as Alyssa Andrew scored their next eight points and they were still very much part of the game despite Waddle picking up her third foul, down 27-19. Kaylee McElvain got untracked from medium range and Anna Gladstone and Regan Allee chipped in with putbacks to keep Worth County in front.

But then Worth County got an offensive board and two free throws from Jessi Badell and all of a sudden, Regan Allee figured out that she could steal the ball from Andrew and the rout was on. She hit two free throws, then scored off a pass from Kristin New and a drive, buried a three from the top of the key after Merrideth Spiers got an offensive glass, and picked Andrew’s wallet again to make it 38-19 and giving her 12 points for the quarter and 20 for the half. Jessi Badell hit two more free throws off a pass from Jill Hardy and Kristin New scored off a Badell steal to cap Worth County’s 26 point quarter and put them up 42-16. Worth County had played nearly flawlessly the first half, only getting three turnovers and giving up two offensive boards.

Selby sat on the bench for that stretch of the second quarter for some reason, and Waddle was out with foul trouble. They came back to start the third and tried to chip away, but Worth County was getting out in transition at will. Anna Gladstone kicked out to Kaylee McElvain in transition, Kristin New got a putback, and Regan Allee scored in transition off a pass from Kaylee McElvain to make it 48-24.

Selby scored off a steal to make it 48-26, but Kristin New skipped one to Kaylee for another midrange shot, Anna Gladstone went coast to coast after a defensive board, and then to show she was completely back, she had the highlight film play of the night. Anna dove on the floor as she somehow pushed the ball to Kaylee McElvain in traffic, and she got the finish and the chance for a three point play. Kaylee missed the free throw, but Gladstone was there for the putback for the four point play to make it 56-26. Kristin New aired one out to Jill Hardy to give Worth County its biggest lead of the night at 58-26, and East Harrison never got closer than the final score.

Regan Allee had 22 points for the Tigers. Kaylee McElvain had 12, Anna Gladstone 9, Kristin New 8, Jill Hardy 7, Jessi Badell 4, and Megan Cassavaugh and EmiLee Brown 2.

Kristin New and Merrideth Spiers each had 1 block.

The Tigers had 48 boards for the night, leading to 18 second chance points. Anna Gladstone got 10, many of them defensive boards which fueled Worth County’s transition game. Fourteen different Tigers got boards, including both exchange students. Jessi Badell had 7, Regan Allee 6, Kaylee McElvain 5, Jill Hardy 4, Kristin New and Braidy Hunt 3, Merrideth Spiers 2, and Megan Cassavaugh, Haley Hunt, Jenna Smith, Christina Clementoni, Jessica Zhang, and EmiLee Brown all had 1.

Kristin New had 7 assists. Anna Gladstone and Jessi Badell had 3, Kaylee McElvain 2, and Regan Allee, Jill Hardy, Jenna Smith, Megan Cassavaugh, and Braidy Hunt all had 1.

Regan Allee and Anna Gladstone had 3 tips. Kristin New, Megan Cassavaugh, Kaylee McElvain, and Jessi Badell all had 1.

Regan Allee had 7 steals. Jessi Badell had 3, Anna Gladstone 2, and Kristin New, Jenna Smith, Jill Hardy, and Christina Clementoni all had 1.

Coach Aaron Long Won 150th Game for North Harrison’s Girls This Year

When North Harrison’s girls won 54-27 at Lamoni this year, it marked Coach Aaron Long’s 150th career win at North Harrison on the girls side. The Shamrocks finished the season this year with 23 wins, putting him at 168 career wins and 75 losses at North Harrison according to records on the North Harrison school website. He has coached for the Shamrocks since 2009-2010.

From the 1996-97 season to the 2009-2010 season, North Harrison had gone through a coaching carousel, with nobody staying on the job for more than two years. But when Long came on board, the Shamrocks showed a lot more fire on the floor, playing hardnosed physical ball and refusing to accept defeat until the final buzzer. The 2009-2010 season was North Harrison’s first winning season since the 2003-2004 season, when they went 24-3. They also got their first trophy since that time, getting consolation at the HDC Tournament.

Since then, North Harrison has had a winning season ever since. They have had some talented players come through, such as Payton and Haley Craig, Brandy Rivet, and Cooper Sadowski, among others. But under Long, North Harrison has had a steady supply of role players who do the kind of floor play and dirty work that is just as essential for winning games.

In 2011, North Harrison won its first tournament in seven years, winning at Gilman City. In 2013-14, they got their first 20-win season in 10 years and were runner-ups in districts. In the 2014-2015 season, Long became the winningest girls coach in school history and won his 100th game. And in 2015-16 and this year, they won 23 games. Overshadowed by Sierra Michaelis, Courtney Owens, Bailey Owens, and the Mercer Cardinals for the last several years, North Harrison finally got past Mercer along with other contenders East Harrison and Grundy County to win the HDC Conference Title this year.

Payton Craig Moves Into Second on Scoring List as Lady Shamrocks Advance to District Finals

Payton Craig moved past sister Haley into second in North Harrison’s all-time scoring list, getting 1,760 career points as North Harrison won the rubber game of the series between them and Mercer 47-36, identical to the first time they played them. With her subsequent 19 point effort against Worth County, she finished her career at North Harrison with 1,779 career points. According to the Albany District Tournament Program, Jill Wilcoxson is still 10th on the all-time state scoring list with 1,927 career points, which is first at North Harrison. She played from 1994 to 1997. The North Harrison website lists her with 1,963 points, but with three question marks beside it. With the win, they matched their win total from the 2015-2016 season, when they won 23. That season and this one were their two best seasons since 2003-2004, when they won 24 games.

While the scores were identical, North Harrison didn’t need any late heroics this time to down Mercer. The difference between their HDC Tournament loss and Friday’s game with the Cardinals was the rebounding battle – they had a crazy 48 boards Friday, doubling their total from the second time they played them, when they had 24. They did a much better job of creating contested looks, and there were plenty of green shirts around the ball on both ends of the floor.

When North Harrison won, they handed Mercer their first district loss since 2009, when the Cardinals lost to Newtown-Harris.

It looked like North Harrison would take control of this one early, as Payton Craig scored six of North Harrison’s seven points as they slowly built up a 7-3 lead, aided by the stingy defense they had emphasized since their previous 44-42 loss to Mercer. But then it looked like this one might go down the tubes as all of a sudden, Aubrey Wilson went off again, getting all 10 of Mercer’s points as the Cards built up a 10-7 lead after one.

This time, it was Emma Craig who came to North Harrison’s rescue as she suddenly started finishing as well as she has all year, scoring 10 points in the second period as North Harrison regained the lead. Olivia Babinski fed her inside twice, Payton Craig twice, and she added a putback as North Harrison scored nine straight to make it 20-11. Wilson struck again, but Carly Rinehart, back from her second shoulder injury of the year, hit from three to make it 22-14.

The momentum threatened to swing again in Mercer’s favor as Jazmine Main scored off a drive, missed a free throw, but Esabel Holt got a rebound to make it 22-18 without North Harrison touching the ball going into the half. But the big difference from Games 1 and 2, which saw North Harrison trailing at half, was Payton Craig’s play on Morgan Eastin, whose ability to cut away from the ball hurt North Harrison the first time. She was scoreless the first half, as was Larayne Kost, who was shut down by Olivia Babinski and held scoreless.

Holt, who hurt North Harrison in Game 1, scored off a drive to start the second half, but then North Harrison got the momentum back after Payton Craig pulled up, took advantage of some lazy defense, and hit a three and then Mercer, down to six players, got four fouls from both Kaylee Duckworth and Holt.

Missed free throws hampered North Harrison’s ability to pull away, but Addie Slaughter got a fourth chance putback and then Payton Craig got a putback and a steal to make it 30-21 before Main, a sneaky player who hangs underneath the basket and collects putbacks, did so at the buzzer to make it 30-23 after three. Meanwhile, North Harrison adjusted to shut down Mercer’s scorers; Payton Craig moved to Wilson and shut her out in the second half until the closing seconds after Wilson had scored 14 of Mercer’s 18 in the first half. Brandy Rivet moved from Wilson to Kost, who she shut down and held scoreless in the second half, while Babinski took Eastin and held her in check for the most part.

Eastin went off to start the fourth quarter to cut it to 32-28, but then North Harrison got scoring from an unlikely source as Addie Slaughter hit Olivia Babinski inside to stop the bleeding. North Harrison got into foul trouble during the next stretch as Emma Craig picked up her fourth foul and Addie Slaughter her fifth, but Slaughter cut inside to score off a pass from Mason Cracraft before fouling out and Payton Craig hit two free throws as they took time off the clock while Wilson could not get free against the stubborn defense of Payton Craig.

Main got a putback to make it 38-31 with 2:23 left, but then Holt picked up her fifth foul with 1:31 left after North Harrison had taken a big chunk of time off the clock. Brandy Rivet missed the 1-1, but Emma Craig grabbed the offensive board and made one of two. Mercer couldn’t do anything and Emma scored off a drive to make it 41-31 with 1:09 left.

After being bottled up all night by Babinski and then Rivet, Kost got open for a split second for a good look at a three, but then Brandy Rivet closed out in a hurry, leaped into the air, and stuffed Kost as Mercer saw one of their last chances slip away.

Rivet hit a free throw, Main got a putback, but Rivet hit another with 27 seconds left to keep it at four possessions as Mercer burned their fourth timeout. But then Emma Craig got a steal and threw it to Payton for a layup to make it 45-33. With that basket, Payton Craig passed Haley on the all-time scoring list at North Harrison.

Mercer rushed up the floor and got a triple from Wilson with seven seconds left, but Olivia Babinski hit two free throws with 1.8 seconds left to close it out.

Payton Craig had 18 points to lead North Harrison. Emma Craig had 14, Olivia Babinski 6, Addie Slaughter 4, Carly Rinehart 3, and Brandy Rivet 2.

Olivia Babinski had 2 blocks, both in the fourth quarter back to back as Mercer was making a futile effort to come back. Brandy Rivet and Emma Craig had 1 each.

Emma Craig, Addie Slaughter, and Payton Craig all had 11 boards as the Shamrocks had three in double figures in rebounding. They nearly had four as Babinski had 9 more. Brandy Rivet and Mason Cracraft had 2, while Carly Rinehart and Kami Gibson had 1 each.

Payton Craig had 3 assists. Olivia Babinski, Addie Slaughter, Emma Craig, and Mason Cracraft all had 2, while Brandy Rivet had 1.

Payton Craig had 5 tips and 3 steals, while Emma Craig had 1 steal.

Tiger Boys Race Past Gilman City to Reach Finals

Cade Allee posted a career high with 29 points and Worth County’s boys raced past Gilman City 86-46 Wednesday night to reach the district finals for the 2nd time in a row. Gilman City morphed from being a stogy defensive team for much of this year and last to trying to run with the Tigers. This was the same group of players who faced each other last year in districts. Last year, Worth County trailed at halftime before pulling out the 56-43 win over Gilman City. But this time, Worth County put up a season high in points scored as they ran away with the game.

Gilman City seemingly decided that if they were going to go down against Worth County, they were going to go down swinging. For a while, they traded blows with the Tigers and Dakota Boe’s inside shot put the Hawks up 7-6. But then Cade Allee, who scored the first 13 points for the Tigers and 17 in the period, went off, scoring off a Tevin Cameron tip, driving off a pass from Ryan McClellan, and hitting a 3-pointer to make it 13-7.

Mitch Sievering’s free throw cut it to 15-8, but then Mason Hawk scored from inside, Cade Allee got a free throw and Mason Hawk converted his second miss into a basket to make it 20-8. Worth County was able to kill Gilman City on the boards, getting 40 for the night while only allowing 7.

Cornelius Peery scored backdoor to make it 20-10, but then Ryan McClellan hit Cade Allee for three, Ryan got loose in transition after a Mason Hawk outlet, Ryan hit Drake Kinsella for a three point play in transition, and Caleb Parman hit a three before Gage Sperry hit an NBA three at the buzzer to cut Gilman City’s deficit to 31-13.

For a while, Gilman City continued to keep up with the Tigers on the floor as Peery was clicking for the Hawks, while Ryan McClellan, Drake Kinsella, and Mason Hawk all chipped in for the Tigers. But with Worth County up 45-23 and both teams flying up and down the floor halfway through the second quarter, Peery suddenly picked up his third foul and went to the bench and the bottom dropped out.

Ryan McClellan hit a free throw, missed the second, but Cade was there for the putback to make it 48-23. Mason scored from inside and Ryan McClellan scored off a drive to make it 52-23 at halftime.
Peery came back for the second half, but the momentum had permanently swung in the Tigers’ favor.

The two teams traded blows for the first three minutes of the third quarter, with Worth County leading 63-31, before the Tigers started pulling away. Mason Hawk got loose in transition after a Peery triple, Drake Kinsella scored off a Cade Allee steal, Mason Hawk got a third-chance putback, Cade Allee hit a free throw and then a three off a Jaxon Anderson steal, and Anderson got it into Drake Kinsella to put Worth County up 75-31 with 1:02 left to give them their biggest lead of the night. Gilman City never got the margin below 38 in the fourth quarter.

Cade Allee had 29 points to lead four Tigers in double figures. Drake Kinsella had 16, Mason Hawk 14, Ryan McClellan 13, Caleb Parman 8, and Tevin Cameron, Jaxon Anderson, and Ethan Thomas 2 each.

Mason Hawk had 4 blocks while Cade Allee had 3 and Ryan McClellan and Jaxon Anderson had 1 each.

Mason Hawk had 15 boards. Cade Allee had 5, Drake Kinsella, Ryan McClellan, and Caleb Parman had 4, Jaxon Anderson had 3, Tevin Cameron 2, and Jaxon Anderson, Wayde Parman, and Ethan Thomas had 1 each.

The Tigers posted a season-high 28 assists. Ryan McClellan had 8, Drake Kinsella 4, Tevin Cameron 3, Mason Hawk, Cade Allee, Ethan Thomas, Jaxon Anderson 2, and Caleb Parman, Jacob New, and Wayde Parman had 1.

Tevin Cameron had 4 tips while Mason Hawk and Wayde Parman had 3, Cade Allee, Drake Kinsella, Ryan McClellan, and Jaxon Anderson had 2, and Caleb Parman had 1.

Tevin Cameron had 4 steals while Ryan McClellan and Drake Kinsella had 3, Cade Allee, Caleb Parman, and Jaxon Anderson had 2, while Mason Hawk and Ethan Thomas had 1.

Tiger Boys Make School History with Back to Back District Titles; Down Mercer 67-49

The Tiger boys keep making school history as the wins keep mounting. They won their 23rd game with their 67-49 victory over Mercer Saturday afternoon, matching their win total from the 1982-1983 season, when they won 23 and the Regional Tournament. They won back to back district titles for the first time in school history, and they matched a school record, set in 1965-66 and 1982-83 with three tournament titles. The boys and girls won their first tournament together in the same year in school history; they had played together in a tournament title game three times before, but had never won one together.

This game followed the script of the South Harrison game. The Tigers were in trouble in the first half, only for them to fight back and take the lead before half. Against South Harrison, Mason the Hawk hit an improbable 3-pointer with a purple shirt in his face to tie it up at the halftime buzzer after the Tigers had been outplayed during the half; the Tigers held South Harrison scoreless in the fourth quarter and won by 14. In the Mercer game, something similar happened; Mercer was hitting everything, but Worth County had somehow fought back to take the lead. Finally, Drake Kinsella hit a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer with two defenders in his face to put Worth County up 33-29. The Tigers held Mercer to 20 points in the second half and pulled away for the win.

Mercer started off against the Tigers the way they had against Pattonsburg – by knocking down two quick three-pointers to take the lead. No matter what Worth County did, the Cardinals kept right on hitting, getting two each from Hunter Shipley and Porter Grey to make it 15-11 after one. Jonathan Johnson hit one in the second to make it 20-14 and then Hunter Shipley scored to make it 22-16 in the second.

But from there on out, Worth County began making use of its height, getting the ball inside at will, getting putbacks, and getting enough production from Ryan McClellan to start clicking. Drake Kinsella scored from inside, Mason Hawk got a putback, and Ryan McClellan jumped a pass and turned it into a three point play to put Worth County in front for the first time at 23-22.

Mercer kept hanging around, keeping it at 30-29 on Camden Hartley’s two free throws, but then Drake Kinsella’s guarded three at the buzzer put Worth County back up four at 33-29.

Hunter Shipley struck again for Mercer to make it 33-32 to start the third, but then Drake Kinsella got loose inside and Tevin Cameron, who had broken Mercer’s backs last year in North Harrison, got going, scoring off a Mason Hawk save and hitting a triple from the left wing to make it 40-32.

Camden Hartley scored off a drive, but then Worth County started getting steals in the third, starting with one from Mason the Hawk to force Mercer to burn its first timeout. It didn’t help matters as Drake Kinsella hit Mason Hawk inside, Ryan McClellan scored off a steal, Drake Kinsella scored a free throw off another, and Drake hit two more free throws and drew Shipley’s fourth foul to make it 49-34.

Drake Kinsella picked up his fourth foul with 39 seconds left in the third and Hartley’s free throws made it 49-36 after three. Mercer was capable of scoring a bunch of points in a hurry, and they put on a press to start the fourth quarter. But it didn’t matter as Ryan McClellan hit Cade Allee for three, Mason the Hawk got a monster stuff, and Caleb Parman hit a baseline shot off a Cade Allee drive to make it 18 at 54-36.

Hartley scored off a drive with 5:14 left to make it 54-38, but then Drake Kinsella got a putback and Ryan McClellan added free throws with 4:04 left to give Worth County its biggest lead of the game at 60-40. Mercer never got closer than 15 the rest of the way.

Worth County took care of the ball with only 11 turnovers, only gave up four Mercer offensive boards, limited their transition opportunities, and shot 14 for 18 from the line. NEN and North Harrison could not slow down the Mercer transition game, but against Worth County, Mercer could get no transition points, forcing them to work against five players most of the night.

The Tigers got four in double figures, led by Drake Kinsella with 20 points. Tevin Cameron, who had a big night against Mercer last year in the district championship game, did so again Saturday with a season-high 13. Cade Allee had 12, Mason Hawk 11, Ryan McClellan 9, and Caleb Parman 2.

Mason Hawk had 3 blocks for the Tigers.

Mason the Hawk had 11 boards for Worth County. Drake Kinsella had 8, Cade Allee 4, Caleb Parman 3, Tevin Cameron 2, and Jaxon Anderson 1.

Tevin Cameron and Mason Hawk had 4 assists. Cade Allee and Ryan McClellan had 2 each, while Caleb Parman, Drake Kinsella, and Jaxon Anderson had 1.

Ryan McClellan had 3 tips for the Tigers. Tevin Cameron, Mason Hawk, and Jacob New had 2, while Drake Kinsella, Cade Allee, and Wayde Parman had 1.

Mason Hawk had 5 steals, while Cade Allee had 3, Ryan McClellan 2, and Tevin Cameron and Drake Kinsella had 1 each.

Tiger Girls Win Epic Thriller Over Shamrocks to Claim District Title

Worth County’s girls won their first district title game since 2004, beating North Harrison 51-46 in overtime and ending North Harrison’s season at 23-5. The last time Worth County had won a district title game, they had beaten the same team, again in overtime. Worth County, with their win, won their 20th game of the season, their first 20-win season since that 2003-2004 season.

For North Harrison, it was the second time in the last three years they had won 23 games. This season and the 2015-2016 season were their highest win total since the 2003-2004 season, in which they went 24-3. Seniors Brandy Rivet and Payton Craig had the most successful run of any group of players to come through North Harrison, with 84 wins over the last four years, since the teams from 1974-75 to 1977-78, which won 86.

But for the Tigers, assuming they stay healthy, their story is only half-written. Their core group of players consists of sophomores, and they will return everybody next year. They are already running ahead of April Miller (now Healy) and Charlea Lewis’ teams as far as postseason goes. While Miller and Lewis’ group dominated the GRC and won more regular season games, that team couldn’t get past Northeast Nodaway in districts for two years before they finally broke through in 2002-2003 after most of NEN’s players had graduated; that Tiger team went to state that year. April gave the current group of Tigers a pep talk before Saturday’s game.

Both teams Saturday afternoon laid it all on the line. At one point, it looked like Worth County was finished, only for them to fight back and take the lead. At another point, it looked like North Harrison was finished, only for them to fight back and take the lead. But at the end of the day, three factors decided the game in Worth County’s favor – they had a little more depth, they shot an insane 25 for 29 from the free throw line, and they forced 20 North Harrison turnovers while surrendering it only 12 times themselves.

It was the third time in the last 14 years that Worth County had broken North Harrison’s hearts in districts. The first was in 2004 in Pattonsburg in one overtime. The second was last year in North Harrison, when Jessi Badell’s putback with six seconds left in double overtime turned out to be the dagger in Worth County’s 54-50 win, which gave Worth County its first winning season since 2005-2006. In all three cases, North Harrison had beaten Worth County during the regular season.

For most of the year, Worth County had been flying under the radar. But they will not be able to remain under the radar anymore. They have won eight out of their last nine games as their postseason run has kicked into high gear.

The question was how Worth County would match up with North Harrison. They put Anna Gladstone on Payton Craig in the first half; Anna not only kept her off the scoreboard for extended periods of time, but took her first-ever charge in her high school career. Kristin New guarded Craig in the second half.

But none of that seemed to matter at first. Worth County was missing everything in the first quarter, while everyone was chipping in for North Harrison as they built up an 11-4 first quarter lead. Worth County’s only points game from a pair of free throws and a steal from Regan Allee. Meanwhile, Payton Craig hit Addie Slaughter backdoor and Brandy Rivet for three. Emma Craig scored off a drive, while Payton finally got untracked with a steal and added a putback later for four in the period.

Kaylee McElvain finally hit a pair of outside shots to make it 13-8 for Worth County early in the 2nd.
But again, none of that seemed to matter. Olivia Babinski threw a pass into three different black shirts that somehow found Payton Craig, who converted a three point play. Brandy Rivet scored off a Craig steal, while Rivet hit Emma Craig inside to make it 20-8 as Worth County’s shots were hopelessly clanking off the rim.

But then Worth County put on a full court man to man press, which seemed to bother the Shamrocks enough that they burned a timeout. Then, Kaylee McElvain and Kristin New took charges on consecutive possessions. Then, Worth County figured out that they could drive to the basket at will on North Harrison, something that they did for the remainder of the game. The Tigers chipped away at the free throw line, missing a couple but still getting to within 20-12 at the break.

Anna Gladstone then drove on Payton Craig and dropped one in over her outstretched hands to make it six. Kristin New hit a free throw off a drive to make it 20-15. Payton Craig hit a 3-pointer to temporarily restore order for North Harrison and then got a monster stuff on Anna Gladstone trying to get to the rim again, but Worth County kept right on coming. Kaylee McElvain connected from outside again and Kristin New aired one out to Anna Gladstone for a three point play to make it 23-20.

It seemed like the bleeding would stop as Gladstone went to the bench with three fouls, but then Jill Hardy, with Payton Craig draped all over her, somehow got a wraparound pass into Jessi Badell to make it 23-22. Payton Craig went coast to coast against the press to make it 25-22 and Brandy Rivet dove headfirst into the stands trying to save a ball from going out of bounds, but then Regan Allee got a putback to make it one again and the Tigers kept coming. Allee hit Kaylee McElvain from the wing and Kristin New hit from the wing off another pass from Allee. Olivia Babinski, who is taller than Regan, kept her from getting a 3-pointer all night, but Regan was still able to drive into the lane and set everyone else up.

But with Worth County’s conditioning kicking in and the Tigers threatening to run the Shamrocks out of the gym, Brandy Rivet came out of a prolonged shooting slump right when it was needed the most to tie it at 28 going into the fourth. Kaylee McElvain got loose outside again, Kristin New got a steal and a free throw as Payton Craig picked up her third foul, and Anna Gladstone hit two free throws to make it 33-28, but then Rivet carried the team on her shoulders to get the Shamrocks back into the game.

Emma Craig hit Addie Slaughter inside to make it 33-30 and then Brandy Rivet ran over Jessi Badell for her fourth foul, hitting both free throws to make it 33-32. Anna Gladstone scored off a drive, but then Rivet hit a triple to tie it up again at 35. Once again, Anna Gladstone drove in, leaned forward, and hit the deck similar to the South Nodaway game and made both free throws to make it 37-35, but once again, Brandy Rivet drove and hit two free throws to tie it up again. Payton Craig, not normally given to emotional displays even in the toughest games, gave Rivet a hug after that play.

Worth County went to the rim again to take the lead, but then Addie Slaughter blocked a shot and Payton Craig scooped up the carom and went coast to coast to put North Harrison up 39-37 with 1:49 left. But once again, the Tigers came through as Anna Gladstone drove and kicked it out to Kaylee McElvain to tie it up again at 39.

Worth County put on their 1-3-1 halfcourt trap and Regan Allee got a tieup to give the ball back to Worth County. They ran it down to 20 seconds and they called timeout to set up a play for the win. But then one of their players caught the ball in frontcourt and jumped into the backcourt during the inbounds play instead of catching it in midair and landing in backcourt, which would have been a legal play. That gave North Harrison a chance to win it in regulation.

The Shamrocks ran it down to 6.9 seconds and set up a drive for Payton Craig into the middle. But several black shirts clogged up the lane, the ball pinballed off several different players and rolled into the backcourt, and Anna Gladstone couldn’t get it corralled before time expired.

Worth County controlled the opening tap in overtime and couldn’t do anything, but then Anna Gladstone played perfect help defense and took her first-ever charge, drawing Payton Craig’s fourth foul in the process. With several of their players with three or four fouls, North Harrison had trouble guarding against Worth County getting to the rim. Regan Allee went to the rim with 2:57 left and drew what should have been Payton Craig’s fifth foul as she was the only player in the vicinity, but the referees assessed it to Addie Slaughter instead and Allee hit both free throws. After a Tiger stop, Allee went to the rim again and drew Emma Craig’s fifth foul and hit both free throws with 2:25 left to make it two possessions at 43-39.

Payton Craig drove and threw up a contested shot on the left wing, but missed short and this time, Kristin New hit both free throws to make it 45-39. But there was a heartstopping moment as Payton Craig drove in against three black shirts and got a three point play to make it 45-42 again with 1:20 left. Was a miracle comeback like the Shamrocks had against Mercer and NEN in the offing?

It didn’t matter as Worth County kept hitting their free throws. Jessi Badell hit two more to make it 47-42 and North Harrison had to use its last timeout as Worth County trapped Olivia Babinski just across halfcourt with 47.9 seconds left. Addie Slaughter converted an offensive board into two free throws to make it 47-44, but then Worth County ran it all the way down to 30 seconds before North Harrison could foul and Regan Allee hit both free throws to make it 49-44.

Payton Craig scored off a drive with 9 seconds left after Worth County played stubborn defense to make it 49-46, but then Worth County got it all the way down to 4.4 seconds before using their last timeout – in order to take extra time off before North Harrison could foul. Kristin New hit two more free throws to clinch it at the end with 3.4 seconds left.

For Worth County, Regan Allee had 14, Anna Gladstone 13, Kaylee McElvain 12, Kristin New 8, and Jessi Badell 4.

Kaylee McElvain and Kristin New each had 1 block.

Regan Allee had 6 rebounds, while Jessi Badell had 4, Anna Gladstone, Kaylee McElvain, and Kristin New had 2, and Merrideth Spiers had 1.

Kristin New had 7 assists. Regan Allee had 3, Jill Hardy 2, and Megan Cassavaugh, Jill Hardy, and Anna Gladstone had 1.

Kristin New had 8 tips for the Tigers, who were constantly in the passing lanes all night even when things looked to be heading south. Regan Allee had 5, Jessi Badell and Kaylee McElvain 4, Anna Gladstone 3, and Jill Hardy had 1.

Regan Allee had 5 steals for the Tigers. Kristin New had 4, Kaylee McElvain 3, Anna Gladstone 2, and Jessi Badell 1.

For North Harrison, Payton Craig had 19 points. Brandy Rivet had 15, Addie Slaughter 8, and Emma Craig 4.

Payton Craig and Addie Slaughter had 1 block each.

Emma Craig had 11 boards. Payton Craig, Olivia Babinski, Addie Slaughter, and Mason Cracraft had 3 each.

Payton Craig had 6 assists. Brandy Rivet and Olivia Babinski had 2 each, while Mason Cracraft and Emma Craig had 1.

Payton Craig had 5 tips while Mason Cracraft had 2.

Payton Craig had 4 steals, while Emma Craig and Addie Slaughter had 1.

Dylan Mildfeldt Scores 1,000th Career Point

Last week, Dylan Mildfeldt scored his 1,000th career point for the Northeast Nodaway boys. He is a senior this year. A sparkplug for the Bluejays, he has started since he was a freshman and his teams have been improving every year on his watch. During his freshman year, NEN only won two games and three his sophomore year. But last year saw a big turnaround, with NEN winning 11 games.
This year saw the boys finally clinch their first winning season since the 2010-2011 year. They were in a tailspin following a 68-56 loss to Princeton at Gilman City; they had lost five out of their last six after a promising start to the season. But they have turned that around in the last few weeks, winning seven out of their last eight and getting their 17th win of the season Wednesday night against South Nodaway.

NEN has beaten some quality opponents this year. After getting an overtime win on the Northwest Missouri State floor over South Nodaway, reversing previous struggles there, they beat Stanberry and East Atchison at home. They lost their last two games of the year and struggled at South Harrison before reversing their fortunes recently.

NEN Boys Put Away Longhorns to Stay Alive

Northeast Nodaway’s boys had every reason to expect a close game the third time against South Nodaway. The first meeting had gone into overtime, and the second had NEN holding off several charges by the Longhorns before winning 55-42. But the third time turned into their best game of the year as they won handily 65-46.

Cameron Staples put up a near-triple double, getting 13 points, 11 boards, and 9 assists. Spencer Weir had 15, Eli Scroggie had 12, and nine Bluejays got into the scoring column.

Both sides spent the first quarter trying to solve each other’s defenses. South Nodaway came out in a tandem and three, which had them faceguarding Spencer Weir, Dylan Mildfeldt, and Eli Scroggie and keeping two in the paint for help. Northeast came out in a man press which they hadn’t used until the latter part of the season. But NEN shot the Longhorns out of their defense as Cameron Staples hit two shots from behind the arc and Chet Spire hit one as NEN took a 15-11 lead after one.

South Nodaway got two gift free throws from a foul on the other end and C.J. Spies knocked them both down to make it 17-15 at the 5:16 mark, but then Dylan Mildfeldt hit from the left wing off a handoff from Spencer Weir and Dylan Vore hit back to back shots to make it 23-15. By that point, South Nodaway was already in trouble as they burned their third timeout of the half trying to solve NEN’s pressing defense and their own transition defense woes.

Taylar Freemyer, who had 7 of South Nodaway’s 19 points, got loose in transition to make it 25-19 with 1:10 left, but then Northeast finished strongly as Mitchell Sherry scored his fourth point of the quarter after Cameron Staples kept a possession alive with an offensive board and Spencer Weir went coast to coast following an errant Longhorn free throw to make it 29-19 at half, a swing of four points in NEN’s favor.

Despite the strong defensive play, coach Vance Proffitt was still not completely satisfied with NEN’s play, but then Northeast figured out in the second half that they could run on South Nodaway. Despite clanking some free throws early in the third, Northeast had forced South Nodaway into their fourth timeout and then came out strongly out of their timeout as Cameron Staples cut inside for a pass from Mildfeldt, Spencer Weir aired one out to Mildfeldt, and Staples turned a steal into free throws to make it 38-22.

A freshman for South Nodaway, Tanner Davis, tried to rally the Longhorns late in the third quarter, but NEN was strong from the line after the early third, making their last seven after missing three of four to start the second half. They were 13 for 17 from the line for the game. Vore’s free throws put NEN up 47-30 after three.

The worry was that South Nodaway would make a big run on Northeast like they had in the previous game, but after a pair of gift free throws brought the Longhorns to within 49-34, Spencer Weir took over the fourth, getting the first nine points of the period for the Bluejays. Cameron Staples was feeding him at will, and an Eli Scroggie block set up another tally. Scroggie’s free throws and a drive made it 61-39 before both coaches emptied their benches.

Nine Bluejays got into the scoring column. Spencer Weir had 15, Cameron Staples 13, Eli Scroggie 12, Mitchell Sherry, Dylan Vore, and Dylan Mildfeldt each had 6, Chet Spire had 3, and Ethan Adwell and Nathan Schieber each had 2.

Eli Scroggie had 2 blocks, while Dylan Vore and Spencer Weir had 1.

Cameron Staples had 11 boards; Spencer Weir had 7, which fueled Northeast as he always looks to push after getting a defensive board. Eli Scroggie had 6, Brayden Welch 4, Chet Spire and Dylan Mildfeldt 2, and Ethan Adwell and Nathan Schieber had 1 each.

Cameron Staples had 9 assists. Spencer Weir had 6, Dylan Mildfeldt 3, and Brayden Welch and Eli Scroggie had 1.

Dylan Mildfeldt had 4 tips for Northeast. Brayden Welch and Chet Spire had 2, while Cameron Staples, Eli Scroggie, and Spencer Weir had 1 each.

Brayden Welch and Mitchell Sherry had 2 steals, while Dylan Mildfeldt, Cameron Staples, and Chet Spire all had 1.

Courthouse News for February 21st, 2018

The Missouri State Highway Patrol conducted multiple drug busts in Harrison County.

On Tuesday, the Patrol arrested Dayna Prather (58) of Newton (IA) on charges of possession of a controlled substance (meth), possession of marijuana, unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, and no seat belt.

On Tuesday, the Patrol arrested Rusty Conrad (31) of Kansas City on charges of possession of a controlled substance (meth), possession of marijuana, driving while suspended, failure to display valid plates, speeding, and no seat belt.

On Wednesday, the Patrol arrested Slade Hahn (19) of Cameron on charges of felony possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, and speeding.

On Wednesday, the Patrol arrested Taylor Cook (20) of Cameron on charges of felony possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

On Saturday morning at 12:12 am, the Patrol arrested Jessie Cunningham (21) of Waterloo (IA) in Worth County on charges of driving without a valid license, speeding, and no insurance. He was released from the Worth County Sheriff’s Department.

On Saturday afternoon at 12:15 pm, the Patrol arrested Colton Files (17) of Conception Junction on charges of possession of 10 grams or less of marijuana and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. He was taken to the Nodaway County Jail and released.

On Sunday morning at 12:12 am, the Patrol arrested Timothy Barmann (53) of Maryville on charges of DWI and failure to have a two-lighted headlamp. He was taken to the Nodaway County Sheriff’s Office and held for 12 hours.

The above charges are mere accusations and not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty it is to determine guilt or innocence.

On February 14th, Worth County Prosecuting Attorney Brett Hurst filed charges against James Kerwin (75) of Grant City of animal neglect or abandonment. Judge Joel Miller has recused himself from the case.

Mustangs Celebrate Senior Night; Sweep Rockets

North Nodaway’s teams swept West Nodaway Thursday night and gave their seniors a successful sendoff.

The girls beat West Nodaway 62-30 after having barely beaten them in Burlington Junction earlier this year. With the win, the girls won their second straight after losing to Worth County and posted their 15th win of the year. With their win, they marked the most games they have won in the Sami Jackson era and the most they have won since the 2006-2007 season.

This year also marked the 50th career win for Coach Sami at North Nodaway. Worth County denied her bid on January 22nd at the Northwest Missouri Tournament with a 52-43 loss, but she accomplished the mark on the 23rd with North Nodaway’s 38-28 win over West Nodaway.

Recognized on Senior Night were Taylor Combs, Alisha Davison, Brittney Leach, and exchange student Veronica Ghedini from Italy.

The boys also saw success; playing in a lot of low-scoring games this year, they nonetheless won a wild game over West Nodaway 73-66 to get their seventh win of the year. Coach Jake Shipman also marked his 50th career win at North Nodaway. He also got his win against West Nodaway, with a 56-54 win over the Rockets in Burlington Junction. Seeing their final game were senior Cole Bird and exchange student Lucas Alvarez from Spain.

Eli Scroggie Hangs 25 on Union Star Boys

Eli Scroggie hung 25 on Union Star as Northeast Nodaway’s boys won six out of their last seven and won their 16th game Friday 57-30. Like the girls, Union Star’s boys have had a tough luck season, with their only two wins of the year being against Osborn. They started off strong, as they have most of their games this year. But then, like most of their games, they wore down about a quarter and a half into the game; what started off as a close contest turned into a rout by the half and a running clock by the end of three.

The place has so much potential, with a screaming crowd ready to back up any Trojan team that becomes competitive and that gets out of the cellar. They have nowhere to go but up, with nine out of the ten players listed on their roster coming back. Like they have all year, Union Star gave Northeast everything they could handle for a while. NEN jumped out to a 7-2 lead, only for Star to come back and tie it at 7 and 9 before moving in front 11-10 after Kagen Barnett sliced right through NEN’s press at the end of one.

The place was going nuts at the start of the second quarter as Barnett struck again, knocking one down from the right wing to make it 17-13 Union Star. But just like what has happened all year, the bottom dropped out for Union Star, as they had nobody who could match up with 6’4” Eli Scroggie, and Northeast started making use of their height advantage. Scroggie made full use of his size, scoring 13 in the second as Northeast quickly erased their deficit and took control, getting some second chance points, some drives, and some backdoor looks as they quickly moved in front 23-17 at the 3:26 mark.

Eli Sharp’s free throw cut it to 23-18, but then Mitchell Sherry scored off a drive, Spencer Weir scored off another, Eli Scroggie got loose inside and got a pass from Weir, Dylan Mildfeldt got a pair of steals, and Cameron Staples hit Scroggie inside at the buzzer to make it 35-18. That turned out to be the backbreaker for the Trojans.

Northeast’s press kicked in during the third, generating some turnovers, and Spencer Weir, who had been quiet in the first half, scored nine in the period. Eli Scroggie got a putback to start the scoring, then Weir got untracked with a 3-pointer from Dylan Mildfeldt to make it 40-18. Caiden Sharp cut it to 40-19, but then Cameron Staples hit Scroggie for a three point play, Spencer Weir scored off a steal, Staples drove and hit Scroggie inside, Dylan Mildfeldt hit a driving layup off a pass from Staples, Weir hit a free throw, and Mitchell Sherry hit a 3-pointer to make it 53-19 and give NEN its biggest lead of the night. Union Star did not get below the 30 point margin until 2:36 was left in the fourth.

Eli Scroggie had 25 points to pace Northeast. Dylan Mildfeldt had 13, Spencer Weir 12, Mitchell Sherry 5, and Brayden Welch 2.

Eli Scroggie had 3 blocks and Spencer Weir 1.

Eli Scroggie had 9 boards for Northeast. Brayden Welch had 4, Cameron Staples 3, Spencer Weir 2, and Dylan Mildfeldt, Chet Spire, Dylan Vore, Reed McIntyre, Levi Boulting, Nathan Schieber, and Rory Bredlow had 1 each.

Cameron Staples had 7 assists for Northeast. Dylan Mildfeldt had 5, Spencer Weir 3, Dylan Vore 2, and Brayden Welch 1.

Dylan Mildfeldt had 3 tips for NEN. Mitchell Sherry, Spencer Weir, Chet Spire, and Rory Bredlow had 2 each, while Brayden Welch, Cameron Staples, Eli Scroggie, and Ethan Adwell had 1 each.

Spencer Weir had 5 steals. Dylan Mildfeldt had 4, Eli Scroggie 2, and Mitchell Sherry, Brayden Welch, and Chet Spire had 1.

NEN Girls Win 15th Over Winless Trojans

Northeast Nodaway’s girls recovered from a two game losing streak and the loss of Makayla Adwell (knee) to beat Union Star 62-17 in a makeup game Friday. NEN had come off consecutive losses to Worth County (53-40) and a wild game in DeKalb, in which they fell behind 17-2 after one, lost Adwell in the second, still fought back to take a 30-28 lead in the third, but then fell behind again and lost 44-40.

The focus of the game was to figure out how to play without one of their main scorers and playmakers Friday. Luckily, they were able to get a breather against winless Union Star, which only broke the 20 point barrier three times this year and which scored three points in a game against Jefferson and four in games with East Atchison and North Harrison this year.

The Bluejays put this one away early as they got both of their post players going, stayed out of foul trouble, and kept the Trojans off the boards; they collected 40 boards and only allowed one offensive board. They were a little sloppy in the first quarter with the ball, throwing it away five times; however, they only threw it away four more times the rest of the game.

Madelynn Mattson scored 13 points in the first quarter and Gerry Runde 11 more as Union Star couldn’t get across the halfcourt line for the first 2+ minutes of the game and got three five seconds calls in the first five minutes. Paige West got 6 tips and 3 steals during the first period.

Runde got going, getting loose in transition after Blair Stoll got a steal and threw it to Paige West, who threw it to Runde. West struck again, tipping it twice, deflecting it to Cassy Redden, who threw it to Runde for another layup. Then, one of the Trojan players threw a strike to Runde, who put it in – a score that was missed by the Union Star scorekeeper. Paige West then got a steal and Cassy Redden threw it to Runde to make it 8-0.

Star finally crossed halfcourt and Mackenzie Wilcoxson’s bank shot broke the shutout, but then Runde threw backdoor to Mattson, went backdoor for a layup, and knocked one down from the high post off a pass from Blair Stoll to make it 14-2.

Mattson then got going for NEN, hitting a free throw, connecting from the left wing off a Runde drive, getting a putback and working the inside at will during the latter part of the period as NEN built up a 26-7 lead after one.

Madison Marriott did all she could for Union Star, getting 5 of her 10 points in the period, and trying to end her career for the Trojans on a more positive note. But NEN was able to substitute freely after Blair Stoll’s triple early in the second. Cassy Redden got on the board twice, Angela Standiford scored from inside, and Anne Schieber hit from the right wing and added a pullup at the buzzer to make it 39-9.

NEN continued to pull away in the third, getting balanced scoring as Mattson, Runde, and Stoll all had 5 points. Anna Schieber got to six points on the night with a shot from the wing, and West, Redden, and Runde were all getting open people the ball. Angela Standiford scored from inside and Tierney Privett got on the board for Northeast in the fourth.

Gerry Runde and Madelynn Mattson had 18 points each for Northeast. Blair Stoll had 8, Cassy Redden and Anne Schieber had 6 each, Angela Standiford had 4, and Tierney Privett had 2.
Blair Stoll and Madelynn Mattson each had a block.

Angela Standiford had 7 boards for NEN. Gerry Runde, Cassy Redden, and Madelynn Mattson had 6. Paige West had 5, Blair Stoll and Tierney Privett had 3 each, and Anne Schieber and Brittany Moran had 2 each.

Gerry Runde had 8 assists for Northeast. Cassy Redden had 6, Angela Standiford 4, Paige West 3, Madelynn Mattson and Blair Stoll 2 each, and Brittany Moran and Tierney Privett 1 each.

Paige West had 9 tips for Northeast. Cassy Redden had 6, Blair Stoll 4, Anne Schieber had 2, and Madelynn Mattson, Gerry Runde, Tierney Privett, Brittany Moran, and Angela Standiford each had 1.

Paige West and Gerry Runde had 5 steals. Blair Stoll had 4, Angela Standiford and Anne Schieber had 2, and Cassy Redden, Tierney Privett, and Madelynn Mattson had 1.

Tiger Boys Down Snakebit Shamrocks 49-16

The task at hand for North Harrison already seemed daunting – somehow hold down Worth County. It became well-nigh impossible as Logan Craig took a scary tumble in the closing minutes of the Gilman City loss a few days before and was out of action for Worth County.

Nonetheless, Shamrock skipper Mike Schmidli pulled out all the stops for this one. Normally a zone team, North Harrison came out in man to man the whole game, which forced Worth County to throw out its game preparation. They froze the ball offensively, swinging it back and forth, taking long possessions, and trying in vain to break down Worth County, which suited the Tigers fine. The result was death by asphyxiation as Worth County slowly smothered North Harrison by virtue of their height and speed and ground them down to defeat, holding them to their lowest point total of the year.

It was still only 2-0 four minutes into the game – Worth County had trouble all night finishing off shots, and North Harrison contented themselves with swinging it around the perimeter. But then Worth County slowly took control, getting an inside shot from Mason Hawk, a triple from Tevin Cameron, an inside shot from Ryan McClellan to Drake Kinsella on a second chance possession, and a Hawk free throw to make it 10-0 with 1:43 left. Steven Willhite’s free throws broke the shutout and sent Ryan to the bench with two fouls, but that was about all that went right in the first quarter for North Harrison. Cade Allee scored off a drive to make it 12-2.

The two teams traded blows for a while in the second quarter. Willhite’s triple from the tip of the key kept it at 19-8, but then Worth County made use of their 31-15 rebounding advantage, converting a third chance possession and two second chance possessions to make it 28-10 at the half.

The third quarter was characterized by North Harrison continuing to spin its wheels on offense like a truck stuck in the mud, trying in vain to find any kind of opening. Finally, Cade Allee got the hot hand, converting off a Drake Kinsella steal after a scoreless 4½ minutes of the third. Caleb Parman went backdoor, Ryan McClellan scored off a drive, and Drake Kinsella aired one out to Cade Allee to make it 36-10.

Worth County finally got into running clock territory midway through the fourth as Caleb Parman struck for three to make it 44-14.

Cade Allee had 16 points for Worth County. Mason Hawk had 9, Drake Kinsella 6, Caleb Parman 5, Jacob New and Tevin Cameron 3, and Wayde Parman, Ryan McClellan, and Bryant McCord 2.

Mason Hawk, Ryan McClellan, and Tevin Cameron all had 1 block.

Mason Hawk and Caleb Parman had 8 boards each for Worth County. Cade Allee had 6, Ryan McClellan and Drake Kinsella had 2, and Jacob New, Tevin Cameron, Wayde Parman, Bryant McCord, and Jaxon Anderson all had 1.

Ryan McClellan and Caleb Parman had 4 assists for Worth County. Wayde Parman and Drake Kinsella had 3 each, while Cade Allee and Jacob New had 1.

Tevin Cameron had 5 tips for the Tigers. Cade Allee had 3, Mason Hawk and Ryan McClellan had 2, and Drake Kinsella, Jacob New, and Wayde Parman had 1.

Drake Kinsella had 2 steals, while Tevin Cameron, Ryan McClellan, Jacob New, and Mason Hawk had 1.

For North Harrison, Steven Willhite had 7. Collin Castleberry had 5, and Brett Emig and Collin Briggs had 2 each.

Brett Emig had North Harrison’s lone block.

Brett Emig and Steven Willhite had 5 boards. Collin Castleberry had 3, while Gavin Garrett and Collin Briggs had 1.

Logan Huitt had 2 assists, while Collin Castleberry and Gavin Garrett had 1.

Grant Claycomb and Logan Huitt had 3 tips each, while Castleberry had 1. Grant Claycomb had 1 steal.

Shamrock Girls Outlast Shorthanded Tigers 40-32

The game between Worth County and North Harrison’s girls was marred by the loss of Anna Gladstone, who rolled her ankle against Northeast Nodaway the night before and sat out for the week. But the game still lived up to its billing between the top two seeds of District 14. They could play another one just like it, although Albany, Mercer, and East Harrison will have something to say about it.

After dropping the HDC semifinal game to Mercer, North Harrison’s girls figured out they could pick it up defensively whenever the shots didn’t fall and totally dismantled a potent Grundy County squad to take third place. That carried over into the Worth County game, but Worth County was up to the challenge as well. The result was a game that started off in a scoreless standoff for the first four minutes as neither team could do anything against each other’s defenses.

Finally, Jill Hardy broke the ice with 3:48 left with a 3-pointer, but that opened the floodgates for North Harrison after Emma Craig got loose on the boards. As Worth County couldn’t get anything going offensively, the Shamrocks continued to score as Brandy Rivet hit Payton Craig for a drive, Craig went backdoor and got a pass from Addie Slaughter, and Olivia Babinski hit from the right wing off a pass from Slaughter to make it 8-3 with 24 seconds.

That would have been a manageable deficit going into the second, but then a critical sequence left Worth County playing catchup the rest of the game. Addie Slaughter tipped an errant pass, Mason Cracraft got a steal and got it to Payton Craig, and Payton went coast to coast, where she drew a foul. She made one free throw, missed the second with 3.9 seconds left, but then Addie Slaughter scooped up a loose carom after a scramble and dropped it in as time expired to make it 11-3.

That play threatened to put Worth County on the ropes. After another two scoreless minutes to start the second, Payton Craig got it into Emma Craig with 5:55 left. Regan Allee countered with a drive for Worth County, but Payton Craig wove her way through four different gold shirts to make it 15-5. She was the best player on the court that night, getting 19 points; she was always a step faster than even a strong defensive team like Worth County, at least on Tuesday night.

But then Jessi Badell, who broke North Harrison’s hearts last year with her putback that gave Worth County a winning season and sent them into the finals against Mercer in districts, got going for the Tigers, getting an inside shot off a pass from Kristin New. Payton Craig countered with a free throw, but then Jenna Smith got a steal and Kristin New missed a layup try. But Badell was there for the putback and the Tigers were breathing again.

Payton Craig hit Emma backdoor, but soon afterwards picked up her second foul as Worth County continued to gain steam and started to realize they could still play basketball with Anna Gladstone sidelined. Kristin New scored off a drive, Jenna Smith hit Kaylee McElvain inside, Regan Allee scored off a drive off a pass from Jill Hardy, and Regan Allee hit Jessi Badell inside for her sixth point of the quarter to make it 18-17 at the half.

Worth County was picking up the pressure against North Harrison, swarming the ball and forcing them to turn it over as well as anyone this year. North Harrison turned it over 22 times for the game, one of their highest totals of the year.

Like the first two quarters, the third was a battle of wills for almost three minutes. Worth County could not take the lead, and North Harrison could not pull away. Finally, Payton Craig got loose on a drive, cleaned up her own miss, and got a three point play to open the floodgates at the 5:19 mark of the third. Regan Allee scored off a drive to make it 21-19, but that would prove to be Worth County’s only tally of the third quarter. Payton Craig pushed one ahead and missed, but Emma was there for a putback. Payton got her first steal of the game and then cut inside and got a pass from Addie Slaughter to make it 27-19 after three quarters.

With the latter score, Payton Craig crossed the 1,700 point mark and finished the night with 1,704. In North Harrison’s subsequent 44-28 victory over Milan, she got 18 more, leaving her with 1,722 career points, 37 away from sister Haley and the second spot on the all-time career point list behind Jill Wilcoxson, with 1,963 career points.

Brandy Rivet had been held scoreless for the whole night as Worth County had been covering her well, closing out hard on her all night long. But then a drive from Payton Craig set her up for her first triple of the night and Craig hit two free throws to make it 32-19 early in the fourth.

Worth County put on the press, but at first, nothing worked as Mason Cracraft got on the scoreboard with two free throws and Payton Craig got a tip and steal and put on a hesitation move on a defender to make it 36-22 with 4:22 left.

But then the Tigers finally started attacking the basket and Jessi Badell, the Shamrock killer, once again got them going with a backdoor look set up by Regan Allee’s drive, hitting two free throws. Kaylee McElvain took on three green shirts after being set up by Regan Allee’s offensive rebound with 1:51 left. Worth County was heavily outrebounded in the first half, but their strong offensive rebounding nearly got them back in the game in the fourth and they nearly wiped out their rebounding deficit by the end of the game.

Regan Allee hit a free throw with 1:36 left and rebounding stalwart Addie Slaughter fouled out, giving Worth County a glimmer of hope. Brandy Rivet hit one of two to make it ten again at 37-27, and Jill Hardy missed a three that would have made it seven, but Worth County got the ball back after an offensive board and Kristin New drove and got a three point play to make it 37-30 with 49.5 seconds left.

North Harrison ran down the clock all the way to 27 seconds, but Brandy Rivet missed two free throws. The Tigers had a chance to cut it to four or five, but traveled with the basketball and gave it back. They tried to put Olivia Babinski on the line with 14 seconds left, which made sense as she came into the game averaging 1.7 points per game. But Babinski stepped to the line like she had done it all her life and knocked down both free throws to put the dagger in Worth County’s hearts at 39-30. It was a 4-5 point swing that came at the wrong time.

Regan Allee scored off a drive to make it seven before Rivet hit a free throw for the final score with 4.8 seconds.

For Worth County, Regan Allee had 9 points. Jessi Badell had 8, Kristin New had 7, Kaylee McElvain 5, and Jill Hardy 3.

Kristin New and Jessi Badell each had one block for the Tigers.

Jill Hardy had 8 boards for Worth County. Kristin New had 7, Kaylee McElvain and Regan Allee 4 each, Jill Hardy 3, and Merrideth Spiers and Megan Cassavaugh 2 each.

Regan Allee had 3 assists for the Tigers. Kristin New and Jill Hardy had 2 each, while Jenna Smith had 1.

Jessi Badell had 9 tips for Worth County. Regan Allee had 5, Kaylee McElvain 4, and Kristin New had 2.

Regan Allee had 7 steals for the Tigers. Kristin New had 3, and Megan Cassavaugh, Jenna Smith, Jill Hardy, and Jessi Badell had 1 each.

For North Harrison, Payton Craig had 19, Emma Craig 8, Brandy Rivet 5, Olivia Babinski 4, and Addie Slaughter and Mason Cracraft 2 each.

Olivia Babinski and Addie Slaughter had 1 block each.

Payton Craig had a double double as she had 11 boards. Emma Craig had 8, Kami Gibson 5, Addie Slaughter 4, Brandy Rivet and Mason Cracraft 2, and Olivia Babinski 1.

Payton Craig had 4 assists for North Harrison. Addie Slaughter had 3, Brandy Rivet 2, and Mason Cracraft 1.

Brandy Rivet, Addie Slaughter, and Payton Craig had 3 tips. Emma Craig had 2 and Mason Cracraft 1.

Payton Craig had 4 steals, while Mason Cracraft had 2 and Emma Craig 1.

The Shamrocks continued to capitalize on their newfound emphasis on defense Thursday as they held off Milan 44-28. They contested every shot, holding the Wildcats to 19% shooting, while keeping them off the boards and holding them to 20. Payton Craig had 18 to lead the Shamrocks. Emma Craig and Addie Slaughter had 10 each, while Brandy Rivet had 6.

North Harrison Junior High Students Get Dozens of High Marks at Music Fest

On Saturday, North Harrison’s junior high students participated in the Northwest Missouri State Middle School/Junior High Music Festival. Each student was given seven minutes in which they performed a piece and given feedback from a judge. Each participant received a rating and a certificate of participation.

North Harrison will continue its excellence in music events for a good long time to come given Saturday’s results. North Harrison students walked away with 26 one ratings and 16 two ratings, with one being the highest and two being the second highest.

Man Injured After Car Strikes Farm Animal Near Eagleville

A Ridgeway man received moderate injuries after the car he was driving struck a farm animal near Eagleville Friday at around 5:13 pm. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports that a 1999 Chevy Tahoe driven by George Craig (81) of Ridgeway was southbound on 69 ¼ of a mile south of Eagleville when he struck a farm animal that was in the roadway. After impact, the vehicle traveled off the west side of the roadway and through a fence. It came to rest on its wheels facing west. Craig received moderate injuries and was taken to Cameron Regional Hospital. He was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident.

Daisy and Violet Hilton, Siamese Twins, Once Performed in Grant City in 1930

Daisy and Violet Hilton, a pair of Siamese Twins who performed vaudeville acts around the country, once performed at Rainbow Park in Grant City on October 26th in 1930. They were in the process of touring the Midwest. They performed in Bedford on October 25th, and Osceola on the 28th.

Worth County librarian Mary Seat made the discovery while responding to a query from Stephen Shutton of Astoria (NY), whose grandfather had been traveling with the tour. The event was advertised in the previous week’s Times-Tribune.

They performed twice in Grant City that day at Rainbow Park, once at 2:30 in the afternoon and once that evening. Tickets to the afternoon performance were 15 cents and 35 cents, while tickets to the night show were 25 cents and 50 cents. They sang, danced, and played a number of musical instruments with accompanying singers and musicians. They were billed as “San Antonio’s Siamese Twins.” They also performed a radio show on Worth County’s local radio station.

Mason the Hawk Hits Three to Bail Out Tigers Again

Worth County threatened to revert to form against South Harrison, against whom they had erased four decades of futility against last year. But then Mason the Hawk came through for them again, hitting a guarded three at the halftime buzzer to tie up a game in which they had been completely outplayed up to that point. Worth County fell behind again in the second, only to gain the lead after three quarters. Then, in an astonishing collapse, South Harrison went scoreless in the fourth quarter, missing everything even from close range as Worth County was able to pull away for the 59-45 victory Friday.

The Tigers were able to cap off a celebration of the most successful combined season that the boys and girls have had together. With the win, they were able to get their 20th win of the year. The boys and the girls have combined for the most wins in school history with 37 and counting, eclipsing the mark of 36 set last year and in 1982-83. They have won their 12th straight, the most since the 1982-83 season when they won 19. The school record is still 21, set by the 1965-66 team that was the GRC Tri-Champs. The current group of seniors has set another school mark; with 68 wins, this is the most games a group of seniors has won together over a four year span. The teams of the late 60’s won around 60 games, while the teams from 1982-83 to 1985-86 won 60.

Back to back threes from Cade Allee and Ryan McClellan put Worth County up 6-0, but then nothing else went right for Worth County in the first half. Torrid shooting from Dylan Ward, who had four three-pointers in the half, got going for South Harrison. The game was tied at 10 and 12 before Worth County led 16-15 after one. Ryan McClellan had 9 points in the period.

It didn’t matter how Worth County tried to guard South Harrison, they always seemed to have an answer. They tried their trapping zone, only for Ward to get loose from downtown again. They tried man to man, only for Treyton Campbell and Kinser Corbett to drive at will. Drake Kinsella picked up his third foul and South Harrison jumped out to a 32-27 lead late.

But then Caleb Parman drove the lane to make it 32-29 and then Mason the Hawk got a steal on defense. He threw to Cade Allee, who threw back to Hawk, who hit a guarded three at the buzzer, his first ever in a varsity uniform, to tie it at 32. All the time he spent before games, in PE classes at school, and in pickup games at the Sheridan park throwing up threes paid off in that moment. It was the second time he had bailed out the Tigers, going bezerk against North Nodaway in the fourth earlier in the year during Worth County’s 56-53 victory.

Ward got going again for South Harrison to put them up 39-34, but then Worth County went to a normal 2-3 zone, which finally seemed to slow them down. Mason Hawk got loose inside and Cade Allee got a putback to make it 39-38. Finally, Cade hit a triple from the top of the key to put Worth County in front again at 43-41. Campbell’s steal tied it up again at 43, but then Ryan McClellan took a charge on defense, his second of the game, and then Cade Allee followed with another three pointer to make it 46-43. Ward got loose again in transition for South Harrison to make it 46-45 after three, but little did they know that would be their last points of the game.

What happened next defied all expectations as everything South Harrison threw up clanked off the rim, even their shots at point blank range. In the meantime, Worth County slowly started to pull away despite stingy defense from the Bulldogs; Mason Hawk got loose inside and Caleb Parman hit a free throw to make it 49-45. Ryan McClellan went backdoor to make it six at the 4:13 mark.

As everything continued to clank off the mark for South Harrison, Worth County continued to pull away as Drake Kinsella got a pass from Caleb Parman as Worth County crossed the three possession threshold to make it 53-45. Mason Hawk got loose behind South Harrison’s press, Ryan McClellan, who had torched South Harrison in both games this year, did so again, going coast to coast after a quick outlet from Drake Kinsella. South Harrison was forced to foul Cade Allee, and he knocked down both free throws with 39 seconds left for the icing on the cake.

Cade Allee had 16 points to lead the Tigers. Ryan McClellan had 15, Mason Hawk 11, Caleb Parman 9, and Drake Kinsella 8.

Cade Allee had 2 blocks and Mason Hawk 1 for Worth County.

Drake Kinsella had 8 rebounds for the Tigers. Tevin Cameron had 6, Mason Hawk and Cade Allee 5 each, Ryan McClellan 3, and Caleb Parman and Wayde Parman 1 each.

Ryan McClellan and Mason Hawk had 5 assists. Cade Allee had 3, Caleb Parman 2, and Tevin Cameron and Drake Kinsella 1 each.

Mason Hawk had 3 tips, and Ryan McClellan, Cade Allee, Wayde Parman, Caleb Parman, and Tevin Cameron all had 1.

Mason Hawk had 2 steals. Cade Allee, Drake Kinsella, and Tevin Cameron all had 1.

Before the game, senior students in all winter sports and activities were recognized for Worth County. Recognized were Cade Allee, Tevin Cameron, Mason Hawk, Drake Kinsella, Ryan McClellan, and Wayde Parman for the boys basketball team. For girls basketball, Christina Clementoni was recognized. Two cheerleaders, Olivia Davidson and Elizabeth Owens were honored. For the pep band, Drew Martell, Riley Drury, and Quentin Miller were recognized. Wrestler Will Engel, who went to state this year and who won 37 matches, was also recognized.

Drake Kinsella Breaks 1,000 Point Mark

On Thursday, January 18th, Drake Kinsella passed the 1,000 point mark during Worth County’s 59-27 victory over Albany. He was honored during Worth County’s 50-43 Courtwarming victory over Pattonsburg. He is the second Tiger to cross the mark this year; Cade Allee scored his 1,000th point during Worth County’s win over Princeton during their first game of the year.

Kinsella has been a constant in the paint for the Tigers over the last four years. Last year, he and Cade were the third and fourth Tigers in program history to be named to All-State. Kent Thompson was the second, winning it in both 1984 and 1985. Bob Prather was Honorable Mention All-State in 1969 and 1970.

Worth County Celebrates Most Successful Season Ever as Tiger Girls Down Bulldogs

Worth County’s teams celebrated Senior Night Thursday as both teams downed South Harrison. The girls downed the Bulldogs 61-23 to beat them for the second time this year. In the nightcap, when the boys downed South Harrison 59-45, the Tigers celebrated their most successful combined season ever. The boys reached their 20th win, while the girls reached their 17th, for a combined total of 37 wins. That shattered the record held jointly by the 1982-83 teams and last year’s teams. In 1982-83, the boys won 23 games and won Regionals for the first time ever, while the girls won 13 games. Last year, the boys won Districts for the first time since that year and got 22 wins and a trip to the Quarterfinals, while the girls got their first winning season since the 2005-2006 campaign and won 14 games.

The question for the girls was how they would do against South Harrison, playing their second game without Anna Gladstone, who rolled her ankle in the closing seconds of the NEN game three nights before. They had generally had a tougher time against teams they had beaten but had to play again; they beat King City 52-36 in Stanberry only to lose to them in conference play. They also beat Albany 50-25 in Stanberry, only to have a tougher test before winning 52-33 when they pulled away late.

But the early going quelled all doubts as Worth County played one of their best games of the year and put up 27 points in the first quarter on their way to the one-sided victory. South Harrison had shown improvement in the South Harrison Tournament after lopsided losses to Worth County in Albany and to North Harrison at the start of the second half of the season. They gave Northeast Nodaway all they could handle before losing 61-45. But they showed little of the spark that they had during the latter tournament, with only Karsyn Bennett making any kind of concerted effort to attack the rim for the purple shirts, scoring 13 of her team’s 23 points.

South Harrison kept trying to lob it into their 6’3” skyscrapers Hailey Henry and Brooke Blanton, only for the shorter Tigers to knock a ton of passes away; Kaylee McElvain, who gave up eight inches to the South Harrison posts, had seven tips for the night. And Jessi Badell, who gave up six inches, led the rebounding with 10 boards and blocked three shots, while Regan Allee had 8 boards. Merrideth Spiers came off the bench and put up some quality minutes underneath as well.

Regan Allee put the game away in the first quarter, grabbing 15 of Worth County’s 27 points in the period. She hit one from the top of the key off a pass from Kristin New to start the scoring. Bennett countered with a backdoor look, but Jill Hardy hit a free throw, Kaylee McElvain hit Regan Allee, McElvain hit a free throw, Jill Hardy hit Kristin new cutting inside and Regan Allee at the top of the key for another three, Kristin New’s drive set up Jill Hardy on the baseline, and Kaylee McElvain hit a shot from the baseline to make it 17-2 at the 2:47 mark.

The referees let Bennett eurostep her way to the line for two free throws, but then Kristin New drove the left side for a basket, New hit Allee for three after a Megan Cassavaugh steal, and Allee drove for a three point play after Jessi Badell had kept a possession alive, and Merrideth Spiers hit a wing shot at the buzzer after Bennett had connected again to make it 27-6.

South Harrison went to a box and one on Regan Allee, which slowed up Worth County; they slowed themselves down with 10 missed free throws in the second quarter. The Tigers still continued to slowly pull away in the period, raising their lead to 40-12.

The Tigers started clicking again in the third as Kaylee McElvain had the hot hand, getting 9 points in the period. Bennett went backdoor for South Harrison to start the scoring, but then Kaylee McElvain got a steal off a Jill Hardy tip and Kristin New converted. Regan Allee hit Kaylee McElvain inside, Kaylee hit a free throw, Kristin New got a quick outlet to McElvain, who threw to Jill Hardy for a finish, and then Kaylee McElvain jumped a pass for a layup to make it 49-14.

Worth County finally got some free throws to go down as Jessi Badell earned a trip to the line and two free throws after a third chance possession. Kaylee McElvain got loose in transition for a pass from Megan Cassavaugh, who was fueling the Tiger attack with four assists in the period. Jill Hardy drove straight down the middle into the teeth of the tall South Harrison players for a score, then Regan Allee and Kaylee McElvain finally connected at the line to make it 60-21 after three.

Regan Allee had 21 points for Worth County. Kaylee McElvain had 12, Kristin New 11, Jill Hardy 7, Merrideth Spiers 4, Megan Cassavaugh 3, Jill Hardy 2, and Jenna Smith 1.

Jessi Badell had 10 boards for the Tigers. Regan Allee had 8, Merrideth Spiers 4, Kaylee McElvain, Kristin New, and Megan Cassavaugh 3, Jenna Smith and Maddie Taute 2, and Jill Hardy 1.

Jill Hardy had 5 assists. Kristin New, Kaylee McElvain, Regan Allee, and Megan Cassavaugh all had 4, while Jessi Badell and Jenna Smith had 1.

Nine different Tigers had tips. Kaylee McElvain had 7, Jill Hardy 5, Kristin New, Jessi Badell, and Megan Cassavaugh had 4, Regan Allee had 3, and Merrideth Spiers, Anna Spainhower, and Christina Clementoni had 1.

Jill Hardy had 6 steals for the Tigers. Kristin New had 4, Kaylee McElvain, Megan Cassavaugh, and Regan Allee had 3, while Jenna Smith and Anna Spainhower had 1.

Worth County Accepts Food Service Resignation, Hires Cook & Music Teacher

The Worth County R3 Board of Education met on February 15, 2018 at 7:30 pm in the Superintendent’s Office.  Amanda Lumpkins, school district health aide, gave a presentation on the recent Jump Rope for Heart event held in the elementary school. Currently students have raised over $2,000 for the American Heart Association. She also reported on her additional work with students through classroom education, health screenings, and first aid treatment.

In board action, the approved the second reading of board policy review and gave approval for the 2018-2019 Vocational Enhancement Grant to submitted to DESE.

In the area of personnel, the board accepted the resignation of Delani Constant, food service worker. They also approved the updated substitute list, and Ron Peterson for substitute food service worker. The board extended a probationary contract to Caleb Smith, K-12 music teacher, an elementary principal contract to Chuck Borey, and a high school principal contract to Jon Adwell.

There will be a public hearing on the 2018-2019 school calendar prior to next month’s board meeting on March 15 at 7:30 pm.

NEN Boys Lose Home Finale to Worth County, But the Band Plays On

Northeast Nodaway’s boys lost their home finale to Worth County 52-40, but you could never tell it by the way the band played on for about 20-30 minutes after everyone else had left. They went through their whole repertoire and even broke out a drum line rhythm at one point.

The teams had plenty to celebrate over the year. The girls won their first tournament since 2011, the boys got their first winning season since that year, and the girls doubled their win total from last year.
The game itself saw Worth County jump out to a 26-10 lead early in the second quarter and then fend off Northeast’s attempts to come back, posting a score nearly identical to the girls game.

Boys coach Vance Proffitt had plenty to be agitated about in the first quarter as Cade Allee dropped nine points on three triples for Worth County. Mason Hawk got a putback, Drake Kinsella scored off a drive, Caleb Parman got another triple and cherry picked a basket that he turned into a three point play to make it 21-10 after one. Dylan Mildfeldt got five in the period and Spencer Weir added a three, but Northeast could do little else right in that period.

Caleb Parman’s putback and Drake Kinsella’s skip to Tevin Cameron made it 26-10, but then Mason Hawk’s third foul opened the barn door for Northeast to stop the bleeding in the second and to make a comeback bid in the third. Spencer Weir hit a guarded three late in the second to cut Worth County’s lead to 30-18.

In the third, after Hawk picked up his fourth foul, NEN made a huge run. Mitchell Sherry hit a free throw and added a fast break after Spencer Weir aired one out and then Dylan Mildfeldt hit back to back jacks to make it 32-27. It was Worth County coach Bryce Schafer’s turn to get agitated as he pounded the bench three times in frustration.

NEN had made a similar run in the third quarter to wipe out a huge Stanberry lead and win 49-45. But unlike Stanberry, Worth County kept its composure and stopped the bleeding, getting an inside shoe from Drake Kinsella, a backdoor look from Kinsella to Caleb Parman, and a drive by Cade Allee after a pass from Tevin Cameron to restore order at 38-27.

Brayden Welch, who did all he could to mix it up with his former football mates, scored inside off a pass at the buzzer from Dylan Vore to get it under double digits at 38-29 after three, but then Caleb Parman hit two free throws off a steal, Ryan McClellan hit Cade Allee for three, and then a highlight film play put Worth County up 16. Wayde Parman tipped a board to Caleb Parman after Mason Hawk got a block; Caleb then aired it out to Ryan McClellan to make it 45-29.

Dylan Mildfeldt hit an NBA three, but his efforts were futile as Wayde Parman took on three blue shirts and got a free throw, Drake Kinsella posted up and got a pass from Cameron in transition, and Tevin Cameron hit a cutting Jacob New to give Worth County its biggest lead of 50-32 with 2:45 left.

For Worth County, Cade Allee had 16, Caleb Parman 12, Drake Kinsella 10, Mason the Hawk and Ryan McClellan 4, Tevin Cameron 3, Jacob New 2, and Wayde Parman 1.

Ryan McClellan had 3 blocks for Worth County. Mason Hawk had 2, and Drake Kinsella and Cade Allee had 1.

The tale of the tape was decided in the rebounding category, where Worth County outrebounded NEN 43-19. Drake Kinsella had 11 to get a double double. Mason Hawk and Cade Allee had 9, Tevin Cameron and Caleb Parman 4, Ryan McClellan 2, and Jacob New and Ethan Thomas 1.

Tevin Cameron had 6 assists for the Tigers. Drake Kinsella had 4, Ryan McClellan 3, Mason Hawk and Caleb Parman 2, and Cade Allee 1.

Tevin Cameron had 5 tips for the Tigers. Drake Kinsella had 4 along with Cade Allee. Ryan McClellan, Caleb Parman, Wayde Parman, and Mason Hawk had 1.

Mason Hawk and Wayde Parman had 2 steals. Cade Allee, Tevin Cameron, Ryan McClellan, and Caleb Parman had 1.

For NEN, Dylan Mildfeldt matched Cade Allee with 16 points. Spencer Weir had 9, Eli Scroggie and Brayden Welch had 4, Mitchell Sherry had 3, and Dylan Vore and Cameron Staples had 2.

Eli Scroggie had 5 boards for NEN. Spencer Weir had 4, Cameron Staples 3, Chet Spire, Dylan Mildfeldt, and Brayden Welch had 2, while Mitchell Sherry had 1.

Spencer Weir had 5 assists for Northeast. Mitchell Sherry had 2, while Eli Scroggie, Dylan Mildfeldt, Chet Spire, Dylan Vore, and Brayden Welch had 1.

Spencer Weir, Brayden Welch, Cameron Staples, Mitchell Sherry, and Dylan Mildfeldt each had 1 tip.

Spencer Weir had 2 steals for NEN. Eli Scroggie, Brayden Welch, Mitchell Sherry, and Dylan Mildfeldt had 1 each.