It’s been a great start to 2024 for Sigourney basketball, which earned it’s second sweep of the week on Saturday over Pekin.
The Savage girls put their defense on display in game one, taking the contest 49-28. Holding the Panthers to two points in the first quarter and seven in the second, Sigourney held a 10-point lead at the break. The Savages expanded their advantage out of the locker room, not allowing a single Pekin point in the third quarter, while adding 16 themselves. On the offensive side of the floor, Sigourney saw production from McKinley Chittick, who had a game-high 13. Ava Fisch was held scoreless in the first half, but found her rhythm in the last two quarters and finished with 12. Pekin’s offense got it going in the final frame, but a 26-point lead was plenty for the Savages to keep separation. Anna Hadley, the lone Panther in double figures, had 11. Back-to-back wins for Sigourney out of winter break bumped their record to 8-4.
The boys contest contained plenty of excitement, with Sigourney prevailing 53-45. A first quarter Savage lead slipped away in the second and it appeared they would head into halftime down by three. That is until a buzzer-beating, half-court three from Cole McKay knotted things at 17. Whatever coach Mitch Eslick said at the break worked, as Sigourney opened up the second half with an offensive explosion. The Savages scored 29 in the third quarter, including seven three-pointers, while holding Pekin to just 10. What seemed to be a comfortable lead dwindled slightly in the fourth quarter as the Panthers continued to fight. Behind 17 from JaeDon Wolver, Pekin cut it to eight before running out of time. Solon Yates set the pace for Sigourney with 16 points, 13 of them in the second half. Ike Molyneux joined in on the fun, knocking down a trio of three’s to finish with 11. With the win, Sigourney improved to 6-5 while the Panthers dropped to 5-6. Savage basketball is back on the road Tuesday, where they meet Colfax-Mingo.
The action was heard on the KCII3 Stream as part of the Area Game of the Week. The one to count on for today’s local sports coverage is KCII.