Tiger Girls Win Two More, but Bubble Bursts Against King City

Worth County’s girls won two more games last week, but the bubble finally burst against King City Friday, with the Tigers falling at home.

Against North Nodaway, Rylee Ruckman hit a 3-pointer to start the game, but the Tigers fell behind when Lacy Riley hit two free throws and Lily Blane hit from the right wing to put the Mustangs up 4-3. Ruckman dropped another 3-pointer, and then Kristen Tracy got a steal and Briner aired it out to Audrey Runde. Keira Hardy hit Kambree Briner inside to make it 10-4 before Lacy Riley cut it to 10-6 after one.

Rylee Ruckman hit her third triple of the night and Kristen Tracy hit two free throws to make it 15-6 before North Nodaway rallied, getting five points from Riley to cut it to 16-11. Kristen Tracy scored four straight and Audrey Runde hit a 3-pointer before Lily Blane raced up the floor and hit a logo three right before the halftime buzzer to keep North Nodaway in the game at 23-14.

Megan Tracy had the hot hand to start the third quarter after Blane cut it to 23-16, getting four straight to make it 27-16. Audrey Runde hit one and Kambree Briner got one over the taller Jackie Wray and converted a three point play to make it 33-18. North Nodaway hung around, with Lily Blane driving and scoring and then cashing in off a steal from Trynzlee Ebrecht to close her team to within 34-22. But Kristen Tracy hit four and a block from Tracy set up a Briner score as the Tigers led 40-22 at the 37 second mark. Kennedy Murphy got on the board to make it 42-23 after three before Worth County subbed freely in the fourth to come away with the 47-33 win.

Kristen Tracy had 12 for the Tigers. Rylee Ruckman had 9, Kambree Briner 8, Audrey Runde 7, Kynlee Steele 5, Megan Tracy 4, and Kennedy Murphy 2.

Kambree Briner had 2 blocks and Kristen Tracy 1.

Kristen Tracy had 5 rebounds. Kambree Briner, Rylee Ruckman, and Kennedy Murphy had 4 each, Megan Tracy 3, Kynlee Steele 2, and Audrey Runde and Keira Hardy 1.

Kambree Briner had 7 assists. Keira Hardy and Rylee Ruckman had 4 and Kristen Tracy and Megan Tracy had 2.

Megan Tracy had 6 tips. Audrey Runde and Keira Hardy had 4 each, Rylee Ruckman 3, Kambree Briner 2, and Kristen Tracy 1.

Kristen Tracy had 7 steals. Rylee Ruckman, Kambree Briner, Kynlee Steele, and Megan Tracy had 2 and Keira Hardy had 1.

For North Nodaway, Lily Blane had 13, Lacy Riley 12, Zoey Phillips 4, and Jackie Wray and Pyper Smith 2.

Lacy Riley had 1 block.

Jackie Wray, Eliza Clements, and Lacy Riley had 4 boards. Zoey Phillips had 3, Lily Blane and Pyper Smith 2, and Trynzlee Ebrecht 1.

Lily Blane had 5 assists. Eliza Clements had 3, Zoey Phillips 2, and Taccoa Moyer, Trynzlee Ebrecht, and Lacy Riley 1.

Zoey Phillips had 4 tips. Lacy Riley had 3, Lily Blane and Eliza Clements 2, and Jackie Wray and Trynzlee Ebrecht 1.

Jackie Wray, Lily Blane, Trynzlee Ebrecht, Eliza Clements, and Zoey Phillips had 2 steals. Lacy Riley and Pyper Smith had 1.

In their 51-30 win against Northeast Nodaway, Worth County jumped out to a 5-0 lead as Rylee Ruckman got to the rim after Worth County got the opening tip and Megan Tracy hit a 3-pointer. But Northeast got it right back when Blair Nelson cut inside and scored and Mylee Wilmes inbounded one to Brianna Meyer for three to tie it at 5. Worth County built it back up after Nelson picked up her second foul, getting another triple from Megan Tracy, a putback from Kristen Tracy, and a shot from the right wing by Megan Tracy to make it 12-5.

Kristen Tracy got the hot hand for Worth County as she knocked one down from the high post, got loose on an inbounds play, and got loose in transition while Audrey Runde added a triple as Worth County led 21-8 early in the second. Rylee Scadden cut it to 21-10, but Runde scored off a Rylee Ruckman steal, Kristen Tracy scored off a Kambree Briner steal, and Keira Hardy added another steal to make it 27-10.

Northeast, still searching for its first win and playing the numbers game with just seven, has had games where they started off strong, only to fade in the latter stages. But they found their second wind this time as Blair Nelson came back and scored six in the last 2:48 of the period as the Bluejays cut their deficit to 29-16 at the half.

Worth County regained control in the third quarter as Rylee Ruckman aired one out to Audrey Runde, Ruckman added a 3-pointer, Kristen Tracy got a perfect high-low pass from Kambree Briner, and Kristen Tracy cleaned up on a transition look to make it 38-16. Northeast fought back once again as Mylee Wilmes broke the run and then Blair Nelson got a putback at the third quarter buzzer and drove the high post and scored to cut it to 38-22.

The Tigers answered as Rylee Ruckman scored off a drive and Megan Tracy hit a 3-pointer to make it 44-23. Nelson converted a three-point play to make it 44-26, but after Brianna Meyer picked up her fourth foul, Worth County took advantage as Tracy got a backdoor look, Audrey Runde got a steal and a three point play, and Kennedy Murphy came off the bench to take a high-low pass from Kynlee Steele to make it 51-26. Hayley Yost, back from an ankle injury, scored for NEN, as did Nelson at the end.

For Worth County, Kristen Tracy had 18, Megan Tracy 11, Audrey Runde 10, Rylee Ruckman 7, Kambree Briner and Kennedy Murphy 2, and Kynlee Steele 1. For Northeast Nodaway, Blair Nelson had a career-high 17. Brianna Meyer had 5, Hayley Yost 4, Rylee Scadden 2, and Mylee Wilmes 2.

But the bubble finally burst against King City as the Tigers fell 45-35 Friday. They got off to a good start, with Rylee Ruckman hitting a 3-pointer and Kristen Tracy getting loose inside to make it 5-2. But then King City started beating Worth County up and down the floor, limiting them to one shot and then getting out and running. Brylin Armfield ran wild in the game, getting 22 points for the night as Worth County kept losing track of her on defense. By the five minute mark of the first quarter, the Tiger lead was gone, and by the four minute mark of the second quarter, the deficit was 25-15 before Worth County finally picked it up defensively and stopped the bleeding, cutting it to 25-17 at the break.

The second half started off much more promising for the Tigers as Rylee Ruckman hit a 3-pointer and then hit Kambree Briner for a drive to make it 25-22. But then, the Tigers went through a long scoreless stretch and they lost Armfield one too many times on defense as she beat the third quarter buzzer to make it 30-22.

After falling behind by as much as nine in the fourth, Worth County fought back to within 35-31 after Audrey Runde hit a 3-pointer and Kambree Briner went coast to coast. But then Rylee Ruckman fouled out, and Worth County lost their best ball-handler. They fought back twice to make it a five point game, but then overextended themselves in the closing minutes trying to get the ball back and King City pulled away again for a 45-35 win.

Kambree Briner had 12 points. Audrey Runde had 10, Rylee Ruckman 6, Kristen Tracy 3, and Megan Tracy 3.