Josh Rowan
C-H sports writer
ELWOOD – The Elwood basketball teams and their seniors got one last chance to entertain the crowd Friday night, as they hosted a tough Axtell team.
The Lady Pirates took it to the conference champs early and shot the ball well as the Lady Pirates put an exclamation point to their senior’s final home game, taming Axtell 58-49.
Elwood shot out of the gates quickly, taking a 17-13 lead after the first quarter. The Pirates kept the foot on the accelerator for much of the second quarter, outscoring the Cats 15-6 in the second quarter to take a comfortable 32-19 advantage into the locker room.
Axtell attempted to creep back into the ball game, cutting the lead to 11 at the end of the quarter, trailing the Pirates 48-37 heading into the final quarter. The Pirates were able to sink the buckets needed to coast along the rest of the game, as Elwood sealed the upset.
Bailey Mahlberg led all scorers on the night with 19 points, while Taylor Summer capped off a great season, scoring 12 points. Summer looks to be a key leader going into next season.
Rachel Mahlberg, Molly Weissert and Sami Ferguson also contributed nicely, scoring eight points each.
The Wildcats were led by Mariah Popple and Krystal Ericson, each pouring in 10 points. Alyssa Becker and Gabby Knoble both scored seven points.
Elwood improves to 10-8 on the year going into a tough sub-district tournament, while Axtell falls to 10-8 overall.
The boys faced a tall order in the second half of the double-header as they hosted and Axtell team with one loss on the season and rated third in Class C-2.
The Wildcats took it to the Pirates early, however Elwood crept back into the ball game by halftime, but couldn’t run with Axtell, as the Wildcats pulled away, routing Elwood 67-40.
The first quarter Axtell put on a clinic shooting the ball, outscoring Elwood 19-9. The Pirates rallied the troops, pulling within five points of the ranked Wildcats at 24-19, but that was as close as they could get.  Axtell came out in the second half on a mission, outscoring Elwood 20-11 in the third quarter.
The Pirates looked as if they ran out of gas in the final quarter, only managing 10 points in the final period as Axtell coasted for the win.
Elwood finished the game shooting 31 percent (13 of 42) from the field, while Axtell shot an amazing 55 percent (26-47). Elwood did shoot well from the charity stripe, sinking 11 of 17 (65 percent), with Axtell only going 5 of 10 (50 percent).
Axtell dominated the glass, grabbing 38 rebounds to Elwood’s 14.
Senior Jesse Roberts led the scoring for Elwood with 15 points. Jonathan Weber contributed nicely with 13 points. The Banzhaf brother were held to a total of six points, while Tanner Nelson struggled for four points.
Spencer Fecht led the attack for the Wildcats, scoring 21 points. Bryce Runge played well all night, as the big man contributed for 12 points.
Elwood falls to 9-8 overall, while Axtell continues their winning ways, moving to 17-1.
The girls prepare for their sub-district opener against Arapahoe on Tuesday to continue their season. The boys travel to Elm Creek on Friday before their sub-district tournament.

• Elwood Boys Basketball
• Elwood Girls Basketball
• Elwood Pirates

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