The WACO Warrior and Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk boys and girls basketball teams met up Friday in Wellman, for a tune-up for the regular season in a pair of Achieve Challenge Scrimmages, with each team getting a win in the doubleheader.
The boys contest went the Warriors way 57-39. Things were back and forth early, with WACO up 14-9 after the first quarter. The Warriors started to methodically pull away in the second, using an 8-0 run to build a lead they wouldn’t give up the rest of the night, enjoying a 33-20 cushion at the half. The Warriors would push the advantage to as large as 16 before Mid-Prairie rallied in the third to get back within nine. WACO didn’t wilt, closing strong in the final period.
The Warriors outrebounded the Hawks by nine and forced 21 Mid-Prairie turnovers. Individually, they were led by Colton Leichty’s 16 point 11 rebound double double. Hunter Hughes got to double figures with 13. WACO head coach Paul Kissell joined the KCII Postgame show to talk about his team’s work on defense, the glass, and Leichty’s big night. Kissell broke it down like this, “Defense is something we pride ourselves on. A lot of it is just effort and energy and our kids can do that. Our guys came out and played hard tonight. It’s what we expect. We set the tone inside. We had that inside presence. We don’t want to give up those second chance looks. (Colton Leichty) is a senior. He’s been through the system for three years, he knows the expectations. He’s a big body and has a high motor. We want him to play aggressively and he delivered tonight. He’s a nice inside/outside presence.”
The Golden Hawks got 12 points from Ace Peck. Mid-Prairie hit eight three pointers as a team in the loss. Both teams have one more scrimmage on Monday with the Warriors traveling to the Hillcrest Academy jamboree to take on Benton, Mid-Prairie is at their home jamboree to face Eddyville-Blakesburg.
The girls contest saw the Golden Hawks ride a big first half run using their defense to spark their offense in a 76-39 victory. Mid-Prairie was out of the gates in a hurry, leading 19-9 after the first eight minutes and 42-16 at half, thanks to a 27-5 run that spanned portions of both the first and second quarters. It was more of the same after intermission as the Hawks enacted the running clock early in the third frame. Mid-Prairie forced 25 WACO turnovers and outrebounded the Warriors by 16. Ten total Hawks scored and three got to double figures, led by a career high 23 points from sophomore Jovi Evans. Nora Pennington had 12 points and Callie Huber 10. After the game, Evans joined the KCII Postgame Show to give her perspective on the performance. “I think the biggest thing was getting our confidence over the summer, bringing that into practice and showing it in the scrimmage. Also, it’s great to have teammates to always pick you up. (Our defense) was very important. We were able to get a steal and have someone sprint down for a wide open layup. That was effective for us. Talking on defense was important as well.”
WACO got 14 points from Emma Wagler. Both teams open their seasons officially on Tuesday when the Warriors travel to Pekin and the Golden Hawks host the Fairfield Trojans.