A crucial early-season Super Conference showdown resulted in a pair of thrilling games, as Winfield-Mount Union hosted WACO Tuesday night. The WMU girls led by a single point at the end of the first quarter before WACO traded places to lead by the same margin at halftime. But the Wolves’ defense came through in the second half, holding the Warriors to only 12 total points and coming back for a 46-39 victory.

Seniors Ellah Kissell and Katie Leichty did most of the heavy lifting for WACO, scoring 15 points each, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with WMU’S super senior tandem. Melina Oepping and Bradie Buffington both had double-doubles, with Oepping scoring a game-high 20 points and Buffington putting up 14. The Wolves remain a perfect 6-0 overall and 3-0 in conference play, while the Warriors drop their first league contest of the season and falls to 2-2 overall.

The boys’ game was a low-scoring classic, with both teams tied at nine after a quarter of play. Winfield-Mount Union would take a 22-19 lead into the half, but both defenses dominated in the third period, and WACO took advantage to jump in front by two before the offense came to life for their highest-scoring quarter of the night and a 42-38 win.

The story of the night was Warriors senior Odee Shtefanchuk, who came off the bench to hit four three-pointers and score a game-high 18 points. Junior Hunter Hughes finished with eight points, six rebounds and four assists, while senior Cody Graber dominated the paint with 10 boards and four blocked shots.

WMU’s top junior duo of Abram Edwards and Cam Buffington combined for 16 points and 16 rebounds, but neither player finished with double-figure scoring as the Wolves fall to 2-1. WACO stays perfect and moves to 3-0 ahead of both Warrior teams hosting Columbus Friday. Winfield-Mount Union will travel for a doubleheader Friday evening at Wapello.