Lady Wildcats Walk Away with Win Against Wagoner, Play for Consolation Title; Wildcats Stung by Hornets

The Lady Wildcats controlled the pace in a low-scoring affair to beat Wagoner 36-31 Friday afternoon and advance to the consolation final at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday (Jan. 25) in the Checotah Invitational Basketball Tournament. Madill marched out fast, but Wagoner went out to the 8-5 lead after the first period. The Lady 'Cats held the 17-16 halftime lead following two consecutive three-pointers from senior Brenna Green. It remained a close contest throughout the third frame. However, Madill applied a full-court press in the latter stages of the quarter that yielded the 'Cats a 4-0 run to close out the third period. The Lady Bulldogs just couldn't deal effectively with the press. Eventually, Madill deliberately worked the clock on offense while maintaining the advantage on the scoreboard. Madill got good looks at the basket and converted. They got baskets late in the fourth frame from Elizabeth Schulke, Kaylen Sweat, and Mikah Hartsfield rolling off screens in the paint.  The Wildcats found themselves trailing by as much as 21 points in their contest against Hilldale Friday, but fought back to only lose 61-55 to the Hornets. Hilldale's Hornets buzzed out to an 11-2 lead before the 'Cats began to climb back in the contest. Madill trailed 26-21 at the break. Joe Avery hit a couple of big baskets in the fourth period to keep the 'Cats within striking distance down the stretch. His points with 1:35 left in the contest pulled Madill with 58-50 of the Hornets. Senior Samuel Bond completed the afternoon with a team-best 20 points, including eight free pitches. Colton Clement netted some key points. Box Score-Girls Madill               5        12        9        10        36 Wagoner            8        8        6         9          31 Madill(8-5): Furr 12, Green 9, Sweat 6, Hartsfield 5, Schulke 4 Box Score-Boys Madill            13        8        10        24            55 Hilldale            18      8        19        16            61 Madill (5-8): Bond 20, Avery 16, Clement 12, Martinez 5, Conway 2