To say the West Central Trojan girls had a tough seven days from January 8th to 15th would be an understatement.  The Trojans played five games in those seven days all against ranked opponents.  After getting a wins over #4 White River on January 8th and #5 Dakota Valley on January 11th, West Central had three straight days of games.

West Central 61, Crofton, NE 59

The Trojans hosted Crofton, NE on Thursday, January 13th.  Crofton was ranked #4 Class C-2 in the latest Nebraska polls.  Most of the game was back and forth.  The Trojans held a 21-19 lead at the end of the first quarter, but Crofton took a one point lead into the locker room at halftime, 39-38.  Crofton built one of the bigger leads of the night, seven points, by the end of the third quarter.  Crofton led 51-44 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Trojans tied the game 53-53 after an Addy Kramer three pointer with 5:40 to play.  The Trojans held a 59-56 lead after Rylee Haldeman made shot in the lane with 1:30 to go.  Crofton tied the game with a three-pointer twenty seconds later.  Kramer made a driving layup with :51 to play to give the Trojans a 61-59 lead.  Each team had a possession that failed to score.  Crofton had the ball with :6.5 on the clock.  As they dribbled up the court, Haldeman made steal to seal the victory.

Tabor Teel had 22 points, four rebounds, and three steals.  Kramer finished with 19 points and six rebounds.  Haldeman added 10 points, seven assists, and three steals. 

West Central 64, St Thomas More 42

The Trojans then hosted the #2 ranked St Thomas More Cavaliers on Friday, January 14th.  West Central shot the lights out of the gym.  They finished 51% (19-37) from the field, 58% (14-24) from three-point area, and 75% (12-16) from the free-throw line.

West Central started the game on fire building an 18-10 lead after the first quarter.  They continued to build on that lead all game long.  The Trojans led 39-19 at halftime and 62-31 at the end of the third quarter.

Haldeman had 24 points, six assists, three steals, and two rebounds.  Kramer had 14 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.  Josslin Jarding finished with nine points.  Cambell Fischer added six points, three rebounds, and two steals.

Wagner 75,  West Central 47

The long week ended at the Hanson Classic against the Wagner Red Raiders on Saturday, January 15th.  The Trojans had a four-point lead with 4:42 in the first quarter, but the lead wouldn’t last long for West Central.  Wagner finished the quarter with a 16-14 lead and then almost put the game away in the second quarter.  The Red Raiders outscored the Trojans 23-7 for a 39-21 halftime lead. Both teams scored 15 points in the third quarter, and Wagner lead 54-36 heading into the final quarter.  The Red Raiders outscored West Central 21-11 in the final quarter.

The Trojans shot just 29% (17-59) in the game, 31% (8-26) from three-point area, and 46% (5-11) from the free-throw line.  Wagner was 62% (29-47) from the field, 46% (6-13) from three-point area, and 55% (11-20) from the free-throw line. 

Teel finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, and two steals.  Haldeman had eight points, six assists, three rebounds, and two steals.  Jarding added six points, three rebounds, and two steals.  Fischer also had six points.  Kramer and Tessa VanOverbeke both had five points each.

West Central (10-1) will host the Dell Rapids Quarriers on Tuesday, January 18th.

The third-ranked West Central Trojan girls took on the #3 team in class B, the White River Tigers, at the Sacred Hoops Classic in Mitchell on Saturday, January 8th.  In a highly anticipated game, the Trojans used a second have surge for a 59-34 win.

The Trojans enjoyed a 10-point lead at the end of the first quarter, 17-7.  The Tigers cut the lead down to seven points, 22-15, with 3:00 to play in the second quarter.  West Central ended the half on a 6-2 run for a 28-17 halftime lead.  West Central really took control of the game in the third quarter.  The Trojan defense held White River to just six points, while the offense scored 23 to build a 51-23 lead going into the fourth quarter.  The Trojan lead grew to 30 points early in the fourth quarter.

West Central shot 42% (22-52) from the field, 25% (5-20) on three pointers, and 59% (10-17) from the free-throw line.  White River was held to 24% (11-46) shooting, 23% (3-13) from three-point area, and 53% (9-17) from the free-throw line.  White River also turned the ball over 14 times, 11 of those on steals, while West Central only had four turnovers.

Rylee Haldeman, who was named the player of the game for the Trojans, had 23 points, four steals, two rebounds, and two assists.  Tabor Teel had 10 points, nine rebounds, one steal, and one assist.  Addy Kramer finished with seven points.  Jazelle Jarding and Cambell Fischer both had six points and three rebounds each.

West Central will travel to Dakota Valley on Tuesday, January 11th.

A 22-10 scoring advantage in the first quarter was enough to give the West Central Trojan girls basketball team a 68-58 road win against the Tea Area Titans on Thursday, January 6th.  The Trojans never lost the lead after taking it in the first quarter.

West Central’s largest lead of the game game with 1:09 to play in the first quarter when they lead by 14.  The Trojans finished the first leading 22-10.  The Titans were able to cut the lead down to five points by halftime, 35-30.  West Central was able to answer in the third quarter and get the lead back to double digits.  The Trojans extended the lead back to 12 points, 54-42, heading into the final quarter.  They were able to keep Tea at a safe enough distance in the fourth quarter for the win.

West Central shot 40% (21-52) in the game, 47% (17-36) on three pointers, and 60% (9-15) from the free-throw line.  The Trojans had a total of 32 team rebounds, 18 assists, eight steals, and only turned the ball over 10 times.

Addy Kramer had the hot hand with 30 points in the game, making nine three-point shots, and also had nine rebounds.  Rylee Haldeman had 18 points, seven assists, five steals, and three rebounds.  Tabor Teel added 12 points.  three rebounds, and two assists.

The West Central Trojan girls had no problems in a big win, 71-26, over the Elk Point-Jefferson Huskies on Tuesday, January 4th.

The Trojans made five three-pointers in the first quarter building a big 26-6 lead at the first quarter break.  West Central was able to cruise the rest of the game.  They extended the lead to 38-14 at halftime.  The Huskies did hold West Central to only eight third-quarter points, but Elk Point-Jefferson only scored two themselves and trailed 46-16 heading into the fourth quarter.  The Trojans then outscored the Huskies 25-10 in the final quarter.

West Central shot 41% (26-63) from the field, 37% (13-35) from three-point area, and 50% (6-12) from the free-throw line.  Elk Point-Jefferson finished the game shooting 23% (9-39), just 15% (2-13) on three-pointers, and a perfect 6-6 from the free-throw line.  The West Central defense forced 22 turnovers, 16 of those on steals.

Rylee Haldeman finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals.  Addy Kramer had 20 points, five rebounds, and three assists.  Cambell Fischer added nine points and three rebounds.  Tabor Teel had eight points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals.  Jazelle Jarding and Molli Thornton both had five points each.

The Trojans (5-0) will travel to Tea on Thursday, January 6th.