Wallace ends season at second round of sub-districts
An entire season of basketball all builds up to the games played in the district tournament; winners move on and the teams that lose see their season come to an end.
Brady
The D2-9 subdistrict had Wallace as the No. 2 seed set to play Brady, the No. 3 seed. Late in January, the Wildcats had defeated the Eagles but they had to come from behind to get the win. The stage was set for a competitive rematch.
Wallace did not get off to a very good start as Brady started the game with eight unanswered points. The Wildcats responded however, and came back to put up nine straight points of their own. Before the quarter ended, the Eagles came back to score seven additional points to take a 15-9 lead.
Things didn’t improve much for the Cats in the second quarter, they continued to struggle on both sides of the ball. Brady was able to put up 11 more points while holding Wallace to just eight which allowed them to take a 26-17 lead into halftime.
The third quarter was a new game for the Wildcats. They scored seven points before Brady got their first basket and then they went on a nine-point run.
Late in the quarter, the Eagles got a couple of quick baskets and then they added two free throws at the end of the quarter to make it a tight game going in to the final period. Wallace was clinging to a 35-34 lead.
Brady started the quarter by knocking down a trey and taking the lead. Jared Sullivan responded by getting his second 3-pointer of the game. The Eagles later scored off a steal and then added a free throw to regain the lead.
A determined bunch of Wildcats kept battling. Sullivan came up with a couple of inside buckets and Blake Pelster added one as well while the defense kept the Eagles from scoring.
The only points that went on the board the last few minutes of the game came from free throws; Brady scored two and Wallace put up four.
With a strong second half, the Wildcats were able to get a 48-42 win and advance to the next round of the tournament.
In the come from behind win, Micah Swedberg scored 18 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, had seven assists, three steals and two blocks. Sullivan had 14 points, two rebounds, one assist and two steals. Blake Pelster put up eight points, pulled in eight rebounds and had two steals. Logan Rosentrater had four points, seven rebounds and one steal. Kaden Hager had three points and one rebound and Ty Maline had one point, five rebounds three assists and two steals.
Wauneta-Palisade
The subdistrict final was set; the No. 1 seed, Wauneta-Palisade, had defeated Maywood-Hayes Center to face Wallace for the third time this season.
In the previous meetings, each team had a win but at this point, a win in subdistricts was all that mattered.
Wa-Pa started the game on fire, they came out to knock down four 3-pointers and an easy bucket off the glass to take an early 14-1 lead. Wallace eventually settled down and hit a couple of jump shots, but by the end of the opening quarter, they were down 10-21.
The second quarter wasn’t much better for the Wildcats. The Broncos scoring did not slow down at all, but it did for the Cats. Wallace was only able to get two free throws and two baskets in the quarter so by halftime, they were down 17-38.
Wallace had proved in previous games that they were a better team in the second half so the Wildcat faithful were hoping for a big comeback. The Broncos had other ideas however, they came out and put up the first two baskets in the third quarter.
Jared Sullivan responded with a couple 3-pointers but Wa-Pa answered, they continued to shoot lights out. By the end of the third quarter, they had extended their lead with a 56-32 score.
In the final period, Wa-Pa was still hitting the 3-ball and Wallace was getting their points in the paint.
The Broncos got the 74-44 win and the subdistrict title.
Leading the way for the Wildcats in their final game, was Swedberg.
He ended the game with 19 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and five steals. Sullivan scored 12 points and had one rebound and one steal. Pelster had six points and six rebounds and Maline had five points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Nate Manary scored two points and had two assists while Rosentrater grabbed three rebounds and one steal and Hager pulled in four rebounds.
The Wildcats finished the season with a 12-8 record. They played with heart and determination all season long, losing a few close ones and coming from behind to win some big games.
“The team worked hard all year long and continued to improve throughout the season,” Coach Miller said. “I thank all of the kids on the team this year for their positive attitudes, I especially want to thank the seniors for their dedication and leadership.”
Coach Miller was also grateful to the Wallace community for the support they showed throughout the season and for the assistance the received from Coach Fowler.