Concordia Lady Panthers 39 Abilene Cowgirls 36
Concordia – The Abilene Cowgirls got off to a fast start Friday night, something they are not accustomed to. Abilene fell behind 2-0 but then scored 13 straight points to grab their biggest lead of the game at 13-2 at the 7:40 mark of the 2nd quarter. Concordia would slowly come back the rest of the night. The Cowgirls led 11-2 at the end of the first quarter, 22-17 at halftime and 28-24 as they entered the 4th quarter.
It came down to free throws in the final quarter. Abilene connected on 3-12 free throws in the 4th while Concordia knocked down 9-12. The Lady Panthers grabbed back the lead at 37-36 with 17 seconds left after a pair of free throws by Junior, Hanna Acree. Acree finished with a game-high 12 points for Concordia. The Lady Panthers improved to 2-3, 1-1 with the victory.
Abilene was led by Junior, Lexi Barnes and Senior, Joy Clemence, who both finished with 9 points. Barnes was named the Nex-Tech Wireless Player of the Game for the second straight time. The Cowgirls fell to 1-4, 0-1 with the loss and will travel to Chapman on Tuesday. The Lady Irish are also 1-4, 0-1 on the season and lost 45-30 at home to Marysville Friday night.
Concordia Panthers 53 Abilene Cowboys 50
Concordia – It was an extremely tough week for the Abilene Cowboys. They entered the week as the #3 ranked team in Class 4A but suffered two difficult losses. Tuesday, Abilene gave up a 6 point lead in the final 1:21 in their 53-51 loss to Southeast of Saline. Friday night was just as agonizing. The Cowboys fell behind 20-7 at the end of the first quarter but continued to chip away at the lead. Abilene trailed 33-21 at halftime and 40-33 at the end of the 3rd quarter.
In the 4th quarter, the Cowboys put together a 7-0 run to tie the game at 47 on a Thomas McClendon basket with 1:47 left in the game. Abilene got their first lead on a three-pointer from Cooper Wildey at 50-49 with 49 seconds left but it would be short-lived. Senior, Cav Carlgren closed out the Cowboys with a basket and a pair of free-throws. He finished with a game-high 28 points. He entered the game averaging 22.5 points. The Nex-Tech Wireless POG for Abilene was Kaleb Becker, who finished with 17.
The Cowboy fell to 3-2, 0-1 with the loss while #9 Concordia improved to 5-0, 2-0. The Panthers snapped a 15-game losing streak to Abilene. It was their first victory over the Cowbosy since 2014. Abilene will travel to Chapman on Tuesday. The Chapman boys did not play Friday
