KALONA

After a strong first half the tables were flipped on the Ravens during Alumni Night as the visiting Warriors rallied in the third to come within one. The fourth came down to the wire but in the end the Warriors came out on top.

In a battle of conference unbeatens, it was WACO (4-1) who claimed a 48-46 comeback win over Hillcrest (4-1) to take control of the SEISC North on Dec. 17. 

“I thought WACO just played with a little more intensity that second half and knocked some shots down. Tough second half for us,” coach Dwight Gingerich said. “Credit WACO. I thought we played with a little more energy the first half, maybe than they did and in that second half they came back and played with more than maybe we did.”

With the win, WACO remains perfect against conference opponents this season with its record in conference play rising to 4-0. For Hillcrest this was its first loss of the season, and its conference record drops to 4-1.

It was a packed house for the Ravens, and they were able to pump up their home crowd even more at the start of the game by racing out to a 16-7 lead in the first quarter. The second frame saw Hillcrest raise its lead to as many as 12 but the Warriors did not let their deficit grow any larger.

Keeping themselves in the game, WACO matched Hillcrest in points in the second to go into the half only trailing by nine. The third quarter is where the Warriors made their move, out scoring the Ravens 12-4 to only trail by a single point.

WACO took its first lead of the game in the fourth and the lead expanded to as many as seven. Hillcrest battled back to make it a one score game but ultimately time expired, cementing the Warrior’s win and leaving them as the only team in the SEISC North with an unblemished conference record.

“We were still in it to the very end. Proud of our guys for not quitting. I thought we bounced back and played really hard,” coach Dwight said. “We just didn’t play with the kind of tenacity that we had to. [WACO] made it tough for us defensively and credit to them.”

WACO junior Christian Stacy led all scorers with a 24-point performance. The Ravens were led by senior Bryce Bailey who scored 11.

Hillcrest 71, Pekin 39

Rebounding a big way after suffering their first loss of the season, the Ravens (6-1) captured a 71-39 road conference win over Pekin (3-3) on Dec. 20.

Hillcrest scored over 20 in the first quarter while holding the Panthers to just five points to take a strong hold over the game which lasted for the remainder of the game.

After scoring 12 points in the first half, the Pekin offense found a bit of a rhythm with a 15-point third quarter and a 12-point fourth quarter, but Hillcrest kept up its consistent scoring to cruise to its fifth conference victory of the season.

This is the third time this season the Ravens scored 70 or more points in a win while Pekin scored its second lowest point total of the season. With the loss Pekin’s conference record drops to 3-2.

Hillcrest 54, Fairfield 48

In their final game of 2024, the Ravens (7-1) collected a 54-48 non-conference win over Fairfield (1-6) on Dec. 21    

Out of the eight games Hillcrest has played so far, six of them have been on the road and the Ravens are undefeated on the road this season, but their winning streak was in jeopardy early on against Fairfield as the Trojans went up 14-7 in the first quarter.

Hillcrest battled back in the next quarter to not only erase its deficit but to also take a six-point lead at the half. This Hillcrest lead held firm as both teams scored 30 in the second half.

With all the basketball teams taking a break for the holidays, up next for Hillcrest (7-1) is a home conference game against Louisa-Muscatine (2-4) on Jan. 4.

WACO 48, HILLCREST 46

WACO      7    11   12   18 -- 48

Hillcrest  16   11   4    15  -- 46

Hillcrest leading scorers: Bryce Bailey 11, Mason Bender 9, Rowan Miller 9

WACO leading scorers: Christian Stacy 24, Isaac Egli 10, Holden Hughes 7

Hillcrest leading rebounders: Kale Bailey 11, Bender 7, Miller 4

WACO leading rebounders: Clayton Miller 10, Stacy 8, Egli 5

HILLCREST 71, PEKIN 39

Hillcrest  21  13   16   21 -- 71

Pekin       5    7     15   12  -- 39

HILLCREST 54, Fairfield 48

Hillcrest  7   17   14   16 -- 54

Fairfield  14   4    13   17  -- 48