By NICHOLAS KIMBALL and DELBERT PETERS

Staff writers

Hillsboro

Fourth-ranked Class 2A Hillsboro toppled fifth-ranked Class 3A Hesston, 34,27, on the road Friday in Hesston.

Zaylee Werth dominated on offense with 23 points, nine of which were from beyond the arch.

On defense, Werth pulled down five of the team’s 11 rebounds.

“Our girls showed up and battled for four quarters,” coach Micah Ratzlaff said. “It wasn’t all pretty, but we found a way to get the win.

“I thought our girls defended extremely well without any letup the entire game and that was the difference. It was a team effort and fun night for the girls,” Ratzlaff said.

The Trojans (13-1) will play host to Halstead (13-1) this Friday.

Marion

The Warriors fall short of a victory, losing 44-36 Friday at Sterling.

Grace Hett led the team in scoring with 12, Erin Regnier had 10, and Kenna Wesner, seven.

Hett had eight steals, and both Regnier and Wesner captured four rebounds each.

“We have played well over the past five games, and tonight we struggled to get going,” coach Jason Hett said. “We did not defend very well tonight and we played lazy on the offensive side of the ball.

“We will regroup. Part of building the culture we want to build is not settling for less than our expectations, and we know we can play better.”

Marion (6-8) will hit the road Friday to play against Ell-Saline (6-7).

Goessel

In basketball games on back-to-back nights, the Bluebirds picked up another victory and another loss.

On Friday, Goessel traveled to Wakefield and dominated the game from the beginning. The Bluebirds led 19-6 at the end of one quarter, with balanced scoring from four players.

Defensive steals led to high-percentage shots along with a mixture of long-range goals as Goessel led 31-15 at half.

The Bombers connected for only two points in the third period, and Goessel’s lead ballooned to 45-17. Goessel won the Wheat State League game by a final score of 56-27.

Exchange student Greta Scholle connected for 25 points with Aimee Funk hitting 12, Abbigail Funk, 11, and Braylyn Hoopes, 8.

Saturday, the Goessel girls had no answer for highly ranked Little River and trailed 45-9 at half, ending with a loss 68-17.

Twins Abbigail and Aimee Funk each scored five points, and Greta Scholle adding 4.

Goessel (10-4) will celebrate homecoming Friday versus Herington (6-7) after tangling Thursday with Canton-Galva (10-4). Both games this week at home.

Centre

Centre was unable to keep it competitive against the No. 1 ranked team in its 1A division, Little River, losing 58-7.

Olivia Carlson led the team with three points, and Jenaya Plett and Jenna Bittle scored two of their own.

“I was pleased that the girls played hard to the very end,” coach Alan Stahlecker said. “Little Rivers girls are very, very good, they have plenty of length, and they are very athletic. There is a reason they are ranked 1 in their division.”

Centre (1-14) will attempt to sweep Peabody-Burns (0-11) at home this season in the teams’ second head-to-head match this Friday.

Peabody-Burns

Losing their point guard due to injury in the first quarter of the game, Peabody was unable to be competitive against Canton Galva on Friday, losing 57-7.

“She would not return for the rest of the game,” Coach Tom Spencer said.

“It made running our offense very difficult with Cantons pressure defense. Yet the girls never quit and tried their best,” Spencer said.

Peabody-Burns (0-11) will be on the road to try and get their revenge against county rival Centre (1-14) this Friday.