The Columbus Wildcats maintained their grip on the top of the North division in Southeast Iowa Super Conference girls’ basketball by edging out Wapello 38-31 Tuesday night. After a 9-4 deficit in the first quarter and a seven-point gap at halftime, Columbus rallied by ripping off a 15-8 run to tie the game at 23 by the end of the third period and using another 15-8 spurt to close out a comeback conference victory.

Point guard Ariana Vergara led the Wildcats with 14 points scored, while fellow junior Lily Coil had a triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 steals. Junior Aracely Garza hit a pair of three-pointers on her way to eight points and four boards as Columbus is still a perfect 6-0 in the Super Conference North and improves to 6-1 overall.

The Wildcat boys were also a winner Tuesday, defeating Wapello 60-47 for their first victory of the season. After an early one-point deficit, Columbus took a 24-22 lead into halftime and stayed in front the rest of the game, including exploding for 21 points in the final quarter. The Wildcats are now 1-4 in conference play and 1-5 in total. Both Columbus teams return to the court tomorrow night when they host Winfield-Mount Union.