MCPHERSON MIDDLE SCHOOL SPORTS – FEB 17
Giving a voice to the smaller area schools of McPherson County and the Athletes they have….Our goal is to give them all some media love!!
Today we cover the McPherson Middle School girls Wrestlers final meet of the season as well as the final regular season games before league playoffs for both the 7th and 8th grade boys basketball teams.
MMS JUNIOR LADY PUP GRAPPLERS
TAKE 1st In
SEASON FINALE TOURNAMENT
By Staff
MCPHERSON – On Thursday, the McPherson Middle School Junior Lady Pups wrestling team closed out their 2023 season with a team championship hosting the McPherson Round Robin Tournament while eight Junior Lady Pups either won or placed second in their division.
“Above all else, this group of fierce young women is one of the most fun groups of kids that I have had the privilege of coaching,” explained Junior Lady Pup head coach Matt McCasland. “These girls have a level of energy and personality that is unmatched.”
Though no points are listed, the team standings found the Junior Lady Pups in first place while Haysville West finished second and Clearwater was third. Newton and Haysville rounded out the five-team field.
Coach McCasland continued his reflections on the meet by adding, “Wrestling is one of the most physically demanding sports there is. These girls battled through injuries, emotional defeats, tough practices, and the challenge of learning a brand new sport like true champions. They showed tremendous commitment to their own success, but more importantly to the success of their teammates. Every match had a line of girls sitting by the mats screaming their hearts out. They celebrated each other’s success, and they picked each other up after every loss.”
Individually, four Junior Lady Pups took home first-place medals including Pera Bauer at 110, Amara Dossett at 116, Tempe Bruner at 140, and Riley Clemmons at 150. The four girls winning first also finished the day at 12-0 for the day with all their wins being by a fall.
Four other Junior Lady Pups finished their seasons out with second-place medals, these were Tylee Wison at 106, Amia Barrera-Prado at 126, Molly Owen at 136, and Addie French at 180.
One of the top Junior Lady Pups during the season, McKenna Paul was unable to finish due to an injury.
As a team the Junior Lady Pups closed out the season with a total combined record of 130 wins and 64 losses which is a winning percentage of almost 70%.
Concluding his reflections on the season, coach McCasland noted, “On top of their successes on the mat this season being untouched by anyone else, nine of our thirteen athletes were first-year wrestlers and the other four are only in their second year. As a team, they finished with a winning percentage of nearly 70% which blew away all expectations that our staff had coming into the season. As a coaching staff, we are so proud of what this group was able to accomplish this season. We love each and every one of these girls, and we are so excited to watch how they continue to grow as they continue their careers at the high school level!”
MCPHERSON JUNIOR LADY PUPS WRESTLING
McPherson Round Robin Tournament:
TEAM PLACING > 1. JUNIOR LADY PUPS, 2. Haysville West, 3. Clearwater, 4. Newton, 5. Haysville.
JUNIOR LADY PUPS INDIVIDUAL RESULTS:
99 lbs. > Eliza Jex placed 3rd, finishing 1-2.
106 lbs. > Tylee Wison placed 2nd, finishing 2-1.
110 lbs. > Pera Bauer placed 1st, finishing 3-0 – all by falls.
116 lbs. > Amara Dossett placed 1st, finishing 3-0 – all by falls.
126 lbs. > Amia Barrera-Prado placed 2nd, finishing 2-1.
130 lbs. > McKenna Paul placed 4th, finishing 0-2 – injured.
136 lbs. > Molly Owen placed 2nd, finishing 2-1.
140 lbs. > Tempe Bruner placed 1st, finishing 3-0 – all by falls.
145 lbs. > Maddie Snook placed 4th, finishing 0-3.
150 lbs. > Riley Clemmons placed 1st, finishing 3-0 – all by falls.
180 lbs. > Addie French placed 2nd, finishing 2-1.
(The Staff covering events for the MAC AREA SPORTS NEW can be reached by email at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)
8th GRADE JUNIOR PUPS
CLOSE SEASON WITH WINS
By Staff
HUTCHINSON – It was a good way to end the 2023 regular season for the McPherson Middle School eighth-grade boys as both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ teams went on the road to Hutchinson on Thursday and scored wins.
In the Junior Pups ‘A’ game, they turned a near disaster of being down by as many as 12 points, to a barn burner 2-point, 31-29 win.
“It was a good win tonight as Hutchinson, even though their record is not great this year just seems to match up with us really well,” pointed out 8th grade Junior Pup head coach Tyler Brown. “We were able to come back from down as much as 12 tonight to pull out a victory. Only scoring three points in the first quarter and two points in the fourth quarter is what put us in such a close game. The good thing is our defense at least matched Hutchinson in the fourth quarter by holding them to just two points as well.”
Cole Cooper led the Junior Pups ‘A’ team in scoring with 13 while Ashton Malm hit for eight.
Coach Brown noted some players by saying, “When things ere not going our way Cole (Cooper) stepped up and gave us a spark by hitting two timely three-pointers in the second quarter and hitting another three-pointer in the third quarter as well. We also were able to turn things around with Ashton (Malm) and Carter (Bengston) being able to get to the paint and put pressure on the Hutchinson defense.”
Concluding his reflections on the regular season finale, Brown talked about the upcoming league tournament by adding, “We have one day to make some adjustments because unless some other teams in our league upset people, we will most likely have to play Hutchinson again on Saturday in our first game of the Wichita Suburban League Division 2 Tournament. So, playing a team for a third time potentially is never fun especially when we only beat them by one point in the first game and two points in the second. Needless to say, come Saturday, our defense better have twice the energy than what we saw tonight. We will have a buy in the tournament waiting to see who wins between Hutchinson and Newton in the four/five match up. Winner of that game will play us in the semifinals at 11:30 on Saturday.”
JUNIOR PUPS 8th GRADE ‘A’ TEAM
SCORE > JUNIOR PUPS – 31, Hutchinson – 29.
Season Record > 9-1
‘A’ TEAM INDIVIDUAL SCORING > Cole Cooper – 13; Ashton Malm – 8; Carter Bengston – 5; Cru Buchman – 3; Matt Burger – 2.
After an early game stumble, the Junior Pups ‘B’ team bounced back and closed out their 2023 season with a decisive 32-21 win over Hutchinson.
“Our 8th grad ‘B’ team won its final game tonight against Hutchinson,” said coach David Goerzen. “What a great way to end the season as once again the boys played hard and found a way to win tonight.”
Eight Junior Pups scored in the game with Nolan Pearcy leading the way with eight.
Coach Goerzen finished his post-game and post-season reflections by stating, “We started off a little slow but we were able to compose ourselves in the second half. I am very proud of these boys as they had a great season ending 7-5. Hopefully they stick with it moving on to high school.”
JUNIOR PUPS 8th GRADE ‘B’ TEAM
SCORE > JUNIOR PUPS 32, Hutchinson 21
Season Record > 7-5
‘B’ TEAM INDIVIDUAL SCORING > Nolan Pearcy – 8; Jonas Emery – 5; Ben Bocox – 4; Finn Bauer – 4; Ashton Nuss – 3; Adrian Unruh – 3; Bo Barkley – 3; Will Domingo – 2.
(The Staff covering events for the MAC AREA SPORTS NEW can be reached by email at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)
7th GRADE JUNIOR PUPS
STUMBLE IN SEASON FINALE
By Staff
HUTCHINSON – Playing without two of their top players, the McPherson Middle School 7th grade boys closed out their 2023 season with a pair of losses on the road to Hutchinson.
In the ‘A’ team game, the Junior Pups had to play without both Jaxon Hoover and Tre Winburn, both of whom have been starters all season, and it showed as Hutchinson got the best of McPherson with a 19-point, 36-17 win.
“This was a very difficult game for us to play with two starters out as both Jaxon (Hoover) and Tre (Winburn) were out with injuries,” explained 7th grade head coach Jay Crawford. “We were not able to generate any offense after the first quarter and defensively, we did not get back on defense which allowed too many run outs that led to points.”
While no players made double digits in the scorebook, Drake Timson and Tripp Pelzel shared scoring honors with four points each.
The Junior Pups are scheduled to play Hutchinson again on Saturday to open up the league tournament.
Coach Crawford concluded his reflections on the ‘A’ game by adding, “We are hoping to get Jaxon (Hoover) back for practice on Friday but Tre (Winburn) will not be available for the tournament and is done for the season. We will start the league tournament on Saturday as the number two seed.”
JUNIOR PUPS 7th GRADE ‘A’ TEAM
SCORE: Hutchinson 36 JUNIOR PUPS 17
Season Record > 8-2
Individual Scoring > Drake Timson – 4; Tripp Pelzel – 4; Jensen Razak – 3; Colt Chapman – 3; Carter Melton – 3.
The 7th grade Junior Pups ‘B’ team closed out their season with a heartbreaking two-point, 21-19, loss to Hutchinson which means the ‘B’ team finished the season at 6-6.
Only three Junior Pups scored with Brody Milleson leading the team with eight points.
Coach Crawford offered praises for the ‘B’ team when he said, “This group improved game after game. They played together and with toughness and passion. There was no quit in them, I enjoyed watching them compete and play for one another. There was never a game that they did not give it their all which is something as a coach you enjoy and want to see.”
JUNIOR PUPS 7th GRADE ‘B’ TEAM
SCORE: Hutchinson 21 JUNIOR PUPS 19
Season Record > 6-6
Individual Scoring: Brody Milleson – 8; Logan Starks – 7; Colt Chapman – 4.
(The Staff covering events for the MAC AREA SPORTS NEW can be reached by email at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)