By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
The Salina South basketball teams accomplished their mission on Friday night, sweeping their cross-town rivals in a two-game set on the campus of Kansas Wesleyan.
Girls: Salina South 51, Salina Central 32
The Lady Cougars rode a pair of hot performances to victory as Brooklyn Jordan and Paityn Fritz led the way for a majority of this game.
In the first half, Jordan and Fritz accounted for all 25 of South’s points, and gave the Lady Cougars a 25-20 lead at the intermission.
Third quarter shooting struggles undid the Mustang comeback effort, as Central mustered just one field goal make in the frame, falling behind 38-25 at the end of three.
In the fourth, Kyla Hamel knocked down two huge triples to put the game out of reach as South ran away with a 51-32 victory.
Lexie Guerrero led the charge for Central scoring 13 points in a losing effort.
Fritz finished the night with 21 points, including five free throws, while Jordan closed the evening with 17 on the strength of five made threes.
With this win, South improves to 4-1 on the season while Central slides to 1-4.
Boys: Salina South 59, Salina Central 55
Despite their disparity in record coming into this contest, the boys’ game was an instant classic, played within ten points for a majority of the contest.
South set the tone early, rattling off a 10-0 run to take a ten-point lead in the first quarter, but little by little Central chipped away at the advantage and tied the game midway through the second.
A three-point play by Gavin Devoe and big threes from Sawyer Walker and Kyler Webb pushed the lead back to nine, but Kaeden Nienke answered for the Mustangs, scoring 13 points in the second to cut the lead to three at the half.
The second half saw more back-and-forth action, with neither team gaining a true advantage until the closing minute.
With 22 seconds to go and a two-point Cougar lead, Easton Wilcox toed the line for a second free throw.
He missed it short, but a scramble for the rebound found its way to Gavin Devoe, who stuck it back to deliver South a four-point lead.
As Nienke drove for Central, Devoe transferred his heroics to the defensive side of the floor, poking the ball out and eventually coming up with a game-sealing turnover to deliver the Cougars the 59-55 victory.
Seven different Cougars scored in this game, with Easton Wilcox (13) and Sawyer Walker (13) leading the charge.
Nienke scored 26 points in a valiant effort for the Mustangs.
With this win, South remains undefeated at 5-0 while Central falls to 1-4.
You can watch both of these games on-demand any time below.