The Sigourney boys’ basketball team played their first-round playoff game on neutral territory, losing to Baxter in the most heartbreaking way possible.

The Savages were playing from behind for a lot of the game, but came storming back in the fourth and tied it up with ten seconds to go in regulation.  Neither team scored in that amount of time, sending the game to overtime.  The Savages came out hot as Dustin Haines and Spencer Magill nailed shot after shot, trying to keep their final season alive.

Sigourney was up by three with about 15 seconds to go when a Baxter player put up a shot and making it, getting fouled in the process.  They missed the free throw, but Baxter recovered it on a long offensive rebound and heaved up a desperation circus shot as time expired.  It went right through the net, giving Baxter a one-point advantage with zeros on the clock.

Haines and Magill shined in their final game in Sigourney uniforms, putting up 22 and 20 points, respectively.  Head coach Mitch Eslick says the loss was devastating, but he’s proud of the fight his guys put up.

“It was definitely a difficult loss and a tough one to swallow,” Eslick said.  “But overall, our kids really competed and fought all night.  We didn’t lose that one, they won it from us at the end.  We did a ton of good things [Thursday] night.  I’m really proud of them.”

The Savages end their season with a 12-10 record, the program’s first winning season since the 2014-15 school year.  They say goodbye to seniors Tristin Bell, Dustin Haines, Spencer Magill, Trey Shafranek, Brett Streigel, and Cole and Kyle Weber.