Thursday evening the RPAC Tournament rolled on for the girls' side with the West playing in Trenton at Hitchcock County and the East at Arapahoe. We had four consolation games and two semifinal matchups and we have a rematch from last year's title game coming up this Saturday
WEST CONSOLATION GAMES
Wallace. Wallace was able to win the game, 41-34. The majority of the offense came in the first half, as Wallace led 31-20. In the second half, both teams were stagnant and it became a defensive battle.
Kendyl Flaming had a huge game, with 18 points, all of which came in the first half. For Maxwell, they leaned on Jenna Miller with 11 points. Both of these teams are now done in the tournament.
The following game was #6 seeded Hitchcock County facing #4 seed Dundy County Stratton. DCS won 46-33. It was a very physical battle and you could see the determination from both teams, wanting to come away with a win. DCS was able to get a few extra rebounds and second-chance points and that was a big difference.
Raegan Hagan had 15 points to lead Hitchcock County. Clara Spargo had 14 points to lead DCS and Alyssa Schneider had 13. Both teams are done in the tournament.
EAST CONSOLATION GAMES
On the East side, there were a pair of good games in the consolation bracket. First, #7 seeded Bertrand played #5 seeded Arapahoe. The Warriors came away with the win, 47-37. Bertrand has shown steady improvement throughout the season. And for Arapahoe, this was a nice bounce-back win after a first-round loss to Cambridge.
Cadence Carpenter scored 17 points and Berkley Warner added 13. Shelby Schoene had 12 points for the Vikings. These squads are now done in Tournament play.
The other consolation game was #3 Southwest versus #4 Cambridge. Southwest won by a narrow margin, 37-33. The Trojans got within two points late in the game, but could not complete the comeback.
Kyra Nelms had 16 points to lead Southwest and Payton Truksa added 15. Brylyn Springer led the effort for Cambridge as she put up 14 points.
These two teams are done in the tournament.
WEST FINALS
The RPAC West finals pitted #1 seeded Maywood-Hayes Center versus #2 seeded Paxton, of course fighting for the right to play in the title game on Saturday in McCook. A few weeks back, MHC won 40-37, so we were expecting a good one. And we did get a great game, MHC won by a final score of 52-45.
Paxton had the upper hand for much of the first half, leading 15-11 in the second quarter. But the Wolves got rolling. They went on an 18-6 run from about the halfway point of the second quarter to about the 6:30 mark in the third. It was 29-21 in favor of MHC. Paxton countered with a 7-0 run forcing a timeout from MHC with 5:35 to go in the third.
MHC then began to grow the lead little by little to secure the win.
Abigail Nicholson had 11 points and Emmalee Nicholson scored 10. For MHC, Kesli Cox scored 15 points and Karissa Stengel had 15 also in the game.
EAST FINALS
On the East side, it was also a #1 seed versus #2 seed matchup. In this one, the #2 seeded Southern Valley Eagles beat top-seed Alma, 54-40. One of the major differences in this game was how it started. Southern Valley went up early, 10-0 forcing a timeout for the Cardinals.
Alma clawed back a little, down 30-22 at halftime. But, Alma could never fully recover. It was a classic Southern Valley game, they were tough on defense and made some big plays to create and keep a big lead. It was impressive to see Alma not fold under the 10-0 deficit they found themselves in. They fought until the end despite that rough start.
Riley Scott led Alma with 16 points and Tierston Moore added 11. Ann Bose and Adi Hunt had 15. Tori Bose kicked in 14 for the Eagles.
So it has all come down to this. The consolation matchup on Saturday will be at 2:30 P.M. with #2 seed Paxton versus #1 seeded Alma.
Then at 6:00 P.M. it is a rematch from last year's conference title game, #2 seeded Southern Valley versus #1 seeded Maywood-Hayes Center. The Eagles won the RPAC Title game last year, 54-39.
This is the fourth straight appearance for the Wolves, winning the title in 2021 and 2022. It is back-to-back appearances for Southern Valley, and their seventh appearance in the championship game, winning four RPAC titles in the past; 2011, 2010, 2018, and 2023.
These games will be played at the Graff Events Center from McCook Community College. Following along with the RPAC Rundown on social media for updates during the games. After the games, watch for postgame interviews, and our blog recap.