FENNIMORE - The matchup between Darlington and Fennimore was a battle for second place in the SWAL for boys basketball, and the Redbirds came up short, 71-61. The game was moved up more than two hours due to the incoming snowstorm.
Darlington (11-7, 7-4) led 12-10 with 12:50 left to play in the first half when Fennimore (16-3, 8-3) went on a 15-0 run to take a commanding lead. At halftime, the Eagles led 38-22.
Fennimore's lead reached as much as 18 points.
But Darlington would not go quietly. The Redbirds trailed 55-39 in the second half before going on a 20-9 run to make it 63-59. Fennimore would make its free throws down the stretch, however, to seal the victory.
Reid Larson led all scorers with 25 points for Fennimore. Liam Kenney had 14 and Kellen Kenney finished with 12 points and 9 rebounds for the Eagles.
Stryker Fitzsimons led Darlington with 12 points and 5 rebounds. Tony Ruesga scored all 11 of his points in the second half for the Redbirds. Carter Lancaster and Matthew Douglas scored 10 each for Darlington, and teammate Tanner Evenstad chipped in 9 points and 6 rebounds.
Fennimore finished 21 of 42 from the field in the game, which included 9 of 16 (56.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Darlington was 23 of 54 from the field and 8 of 24 (33.3 percent) from the outside. Fennimore hit 20 free throws to Darlington's 7.
The Redbirds now sit in third place in the SWAL, three games behind leader Mineral Point (13-4, 9-1).
Pecatonica 62,
Monticello 52
BLANCHARDVILLE - Evan Prust scored 24 points to help lead the Six Rivers East-leading Vikings to a win over Monticello Thursday.
"Evan was just awesome tonight," Pecatonica coach Matt Fink said. "He was getting to the rim in the first half, he was able to hit some mid-range jumpers and had some nice put-backs at the rim. He's having a big year for us."
The Ponies hung right with Pecatonica in the first half and trailed just 24-23 at the break. The Vikings then got a spark off the bench from Colton Schraepfer, who has battled a nagging ankle injury all season.
"He added a spark for us," Fink said of his junior guard that scored 8 points in only a handful of minutes on the court. "We came out in the second half with more energy on defense and made some shots."
Carter Ruegsegger had 11 for the Vikings and teammate Jaden Hendrickson scored 9. Jon Errthum led Monticello with 12, followed by Jeffrey Ace (11), Reece Rufer (9) and Braden Gafner (9).
The Ponies (6-11, 3-5) host Argyle Saturday night. Pecatonica (13-5, 9-0) hosts Mineral Point on Saturday, and Argyle Tuesday.
Belleville 81, Waterloo 80
BELLEVILLE - Free throws win games is the old adage. Jaydon Winkers hit two shots from the charity stripe with three seconds left to give the Wildcats a wild comeback win over Waterloo (3-14, 1-6 Capitol South) Thursday.
"They built a substantial lead there in the beginning of the second half," Belleville coach Scott Noll said. "They were up by 10 with seven minutes left, and we tied it with about three minutes left."
Waterloo would still hold a lead going into the final minute, but the Wildcats never quit and tied the score at 79 with 20.2 seconds remaining. With nine seconds left in regulation, a Belleville player fouled, but Waterloo was only able to make one of the two free throws.
"(Winkers) got fouled driving to the hoop with three seconds left and knocked them both in," Noll said.
Winkers was one of four Wildcats in double figures. Austin Fahey and Royce Clark each had 16 for Belleville, Winkers had 15 and Dalton Fahey had 14.
Waterloo was led by Easton Ellis (20), while Earnest Jiles (18) and Peter Miller (16) also reached double figures.
Belleville (8-11, 2-5) takes on Cambridge (6-11, 3-4) Saturday.
New Glarus 100, Marshall 73
NEW GLARUS - Junior Zach Feller scored a game-high 27 points to lead the New Glarus boys basketball team to a 100-73 win over Marshall Thursday that clinches a Capitol South Conference championship outright for the second straight year.
"Winning a conference title is one of the goals we had for this group," New Glarus coach Travis Sysko said. "To be able to check that one off the list is a big deal. It's a nice accomplishment as we wind down the season."
New Glarus (19-0, 8-0 Capitol South), ranked No. 1 in the Division 4 Associated Press state poll, raced out to a 65-33 lead at the half. New Glarus junior Jaden Kreklow scored 16 of his 22 points in the first half to power the Knights. Feller hit five 3-pointers and Kreklow knocked down four 3s.
"We got hot in the first half," Sysko said.
It marked the first time New Glarus has scored 100 points this season.
"The crowd was really excited," Sysko said of reaching 100 points. "Our transition was the key. We had a lot of opportunities on the break."
New Glarus junior Trevor Gassman added 10 points. Senior teammates Cullen Brooks, Dishawn Gale and sophomore Connor Siegenthaler each chipped in 8 points.
Argyle 51,
Highland 42
ARGYLE - Senior Brent Ritschard and sophomore Gavin Johnson combined to score 29 points to propel Argyle to a nonconference win over Highland Thursday.
Ritschard scored a game-high 16 points and Johnson added 13. Argyle sophomore Payton Flannery pitched in 7 points. The Orioles (6-12, 0-8 Six Rivers East) made four 3-pointers and shot 54 percent from the free-throw line (7 of 13).
Highland's Mitchell Welsh scored a team-high 12 points and knocked down two 3-pointers.
Darlington (11-7, 7-4) led 12-10 with 12:50 left to play in the first half when Fennimore (16-3, 8-3) went on a 15-0 run to take a commanding lead. At halftime, the Eagles led 38-22.
Fennimore's lead reached as much as 18 points.
But Darlington would not go quietly. The Redbirds trailed 55-39 in the second half before going on a 20-9 run to make it 63-59. Fennimore would make its free throws down the stretch, however, to seal the victory.
Reid Larson led all scorers with 25 points for Fennimore. Liam Kenney had 14 and Kellen Kenney finished with 12 points and 9 rebounds for the Eagles.
Stryker Fitzsimons led Darlington with 12 points and 5 rebounds. Tony Ruesga scored all 11 of his points in the second half for the Redbirds. Carter Lancaster and Matthew Douglas scored 10 each for Darlington, and teammate Tanner Evenstad chipped in 9 points and 6 rebounds.
Fennimore finished 21 of 42 from the field in the game, which included 9 of 16 (56.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Darlington was 23 of 54 from the field and 8 of 24 (33.3 percent) from the outside. Fennimore hit 20 free throws to Darlington's 7.
The Redbirds now sit in third place in the SWAL, three games behind leader Mineral Point (13-4, 9-1).
Pecatonica 62,
Monticello 52
BLANCHARDVILLE - Evan Prust scored 24 points to help lead the Six Rivers East-leading Vikings to a win over Monticello Thursday.
"Evan was just awesome tonight," Pecatonica coach Matt Fink said. "He was getting to the rim in the first half, he was able to hit some mid-range jumpers and had some nice put-backs at the rim. He's having a big year for us."
The Ponies hung right with Pecatonica in the first half and trailed just 24-23 at the break. The Vikings then got a spark off the bench from Colton Schraepfer, who has battled a nagging ankle injury all season.
"He added a spark for us," Fink said of his junior guard that scored 8 points in only a handful of minutes on the court. "We came out in the second half with more energy on defense and made some shots."
Carter Ruegsegger had 11 for the Vikings and teammate Jaden Hendrickson scored 9. Jon Errthum led Monticello with 12, followed by Jeffrey Ace (11), Reece Rufer (9) and Braden Gafner (9).
The Ponies (6-11, 3-5) host Argyle Saturday night. Pecatonica (13-5, 9-0) hosts Mineral Point on Saturday, and Argyle Tuesday.
Belleville 81, Waterloo 80
BELLEVILLE - Free throws win games is the old adage. Jaydon Winkers hit two shots from the charity stripe with three seconds left to give the Wildcats a wild comeback win over Waterloo (3-14, 1-6 Capitol South) Thursday.
"They built a substantial lead there in the beginning of the second half," Belleville coach Scott Noll said. "They were up by 10 with seven minutes left, and we tied it with about three minutes left."
Waterloo would still hold a lead going into the final minute, but the Wildcats never quit and tied the score at 79 with 20.2 seconds remaining. With nine seconds left in regulation, a Belleville player fouled, but Waterloo was only able to make one of the two free throws.
"(Winkers) got fouled driving to the hoop with three seconds left and knocked them both in," Noll said.
Winkers was one of four Wildcats in double figures. Austin Fahey and Royce Clark each had 16 for Belleville, Winkers had 15 and Dalton Fahey had 14.
Waterloo was led by Easton Ellis (20), while Earnest Jiles (18) and Peter Miller (16) also reached double figures.
Belleville (8-11, 2-5) takes on Cambridge (6-11, 3-4) Saturday.
New Glarus 100, Marshall 73
NEW GLARUS - Junior Zach Feller scored a game-high 27 points to lead the New Glarus boys basketball team to a 100-73 win over Marshall Thursday that clinches a Capitol South Conference championship outright for the second straight year.
"Winning a conference title is one of the goals we had for this group," New Glarus coach Travis Sysko said. "To be able to check that one off the list is a big deal. It's a nice accomplishment as we wind down the season."
New Glarus (19-0, 8-0 Capitol South), ranked No. 1 in the Division 4 Associated Press state poll, raced out to a 65-33 lead at the half. New Glarus junior Jaden Kreklow scored 16 of his 22 points in the first half to power the Knights. Feller hit five 3-pointers and Kreklow knocked down four 3s.
"We got hot in the first half," Sysko said.
It marked the first time New Glarus has scored 100 points this season.
"The crowd was really excited," Sysko said of reaching 100 points. "Our transition was the key. We had a lot of opportunities on the break."
New Glarus junior Trevor Gassman added 10 points. Senior teammates Cullen Brooks, Dishawn Gale and sophomore Connor Siegenthaler each chipped in 8 points.
Argyle 51,
Highland 42
ARGYLE - Senior Brent Ritschard and sophomore Gavin Johnson combined to score 29 points to propel Argyle to a nonconference win over Highland Thursday.
Ritschard scored a game-high 16 points and Johnson added 13. Argyle sophomore Payton Flannery pitched in 7 points. The Orioles (6-12, 0-8 Six Rivers East) made four 3-pointers and shot 54 percent from the free-throw line (7 of 13).
Highland's Mitchell Welsh scored a team-high 12 points and knocked down two 3-pointers.
