BUFFALO - Home Sweet Home.
The Altoona-Midway High School boys’ basketball team has now played four games this season. Two of the games went into overtime and the other two were decided in the closing seconds … and the Jets have come out victorious in all four contests.
AMHS sophomore Kage Beck was the hero of the latest barn-burner, swishing a three-pointer from the corner with 12 seconds to play to lift the Jets to a pulsating 45-42 win over the Tyro Christian Academy Eagles.
The seesaw thriller capped off Thursday’s second-round action of the Milburn G. Apt Memorial Tournament being held at Milo Peterson Gymnasium on the AMHS campus.
Earlier in the evening, the Altoona-Midway girls turned in an outstanding performance against Tyro, but came up a little short as the Lady Eagles claimed a 48-41 triumph.
In other tournament action Thursday, Liberty Home School Alliance posted a pair of victories against Chetopa. Liberty won the boys’ matchup 43-24 while the Lady Arrows notched a 40-25 win.
The tournament was slated to conclude Friday with doubleheaders between Altoona-Midway and Chetopa; and Tyro vs. Liberty.
AMHS BOYS
Kage Beck’s dramatic trey capped another breathtaking rally by the electrifying Jets, who tallied the final nine points of the game to erase a 42-36 lead by Tyro.
“The Cardiac Kids strike again,” said a happy AMHS head coach Dave Vance. “These young men have shown so much growth as far as handling pressure and keeping their emotions in check when things aren’t going well, and playing with poise at the end of close games.
“This was a big victory against a very good Tyro team, and we couldn’t be prouder of our guys,” Vance exclaimed.
After a nip-and-tuck first half that saw TCA hold a narrow 23-21 lead, it became a game of streaks in the final two periods.
The Eagles jumped out to a 34-26 advantage, but the Jets tallied to score the final five points of the third quarter and the first five of the fourth quarter, grabbing a 36-34 lead after Kieran Foster’s fifth three-pointer of the game.
Tyro regrouped and rattled off eight unanswered points – a two-pointer by Collier Harp to tie the game and then back-to-back treys from Luke Pyle and Harp – to rebuild a 42-36 cushion. However, that eight-point string proved to be Tyro’s only points of the final quarter, as Altoona-Midway shut out the Eagles the rest of the way. Meanwhile, William Stackhouse hit a three-pointer, a deuce, and a free throw to knot the game at 42-42, setting up Beck’s emotional game-winner.
“It was a night where we relied on our defense at the end of the game to keep Tyro from scoring during the last couple of minutes,” Vance said. “Kieran helped keep us in the game with some timely three-point shots while William drove the lane and scored by attacking the basket.
“We shared the ball very well, and the rebounds were pretty evenly spread out with most all of the guys contributing,” the coach added. “Our turnovers were a little high with 14, but we did have 12 steals to counteract some of them.
“In the end, it was another hard-earned home victory, and we get to play for the championship of the tournament tomorrow (Friday) evening.”
Foster connected on five three-pointers and finished with 19 points to take game-high scoring honors. Stackhouse fired in 17 points, while Jacob Meigs collected five points. In addition to Beck’s big three, Blaine Collins hit a free throw to round out the Jet scoring.
Pyle led a balanced Tyro attack with 10 points, while Josh Eaton netted nine points, all in the second quarter. Jacob Tucker added seven points, while Jordy Curtis finished with six points, and Harp and Tyge Brown each scored five.
The loss snapped an eight-game win streak for Tyro (8-3). Altoona-Midway, winners of five of its last six games, enter Friday night’s contest with a 7-4 overall record.
AMHS GIRLS
A big second-quarter advantage for Tyro Christian Academy proved to be the difference as the Eagles held off a valiant effort from the Altoona-Midway Lady Jets to post a hard-earned 48-41 tournament victory.
Unofficially, it was most likely the title-deciding game of the girls’ bracket, as both squads entered the contest having posted lopsided victories in their first-round matchups.
“I was very pleased with the way the girls played,” said AMHS girls’ head coach Jessica Porter. “They gave it 100 percent until the very end. We came back twice from being down quite a bit, but in the end, we just ran out of time.” Both teams were red-hot in the opening period, as the quarter ended with Tyro holding a slim 15-14 advantage. But the Lady Eagles stayed hot in the second period while AMHS cooled off after experiencing some foul trouble with its starters. Tyro outscored Altoona-Midway 19-8 in the second period to go up 34-22 at halftime. The Lady Jets won both the third and fourth quarters, but it was not enough as the Eagles held on for the 48-41 conquest.
“Foul trouble definitely hurt us too,” Porter noted. “I had to get creative to find ways and keep the starters in for offense and pull them for defense. But honestly, I think the girls had fun switching in and out throughout the game. “All in all, it was a fun game, and despite the loss, I’m very happy with how we played.”
AMHS junior Emmalynn Pupanek had another outstanding game for the Jets, pouring in 20 points for team-high honors. Pupanek also hauled down 17 rebounds and added six steals.
Altoona-Midway (2-8 overall) also got seven points from Ava Hufford, six points from Chantal Morales, and four points apiece from Summer Raymond and Ava Tindle. Raymond collected five rebounds and Tindle notched three steals.
Tyro benefitted from a strong one-two offensive punch from a pair of juniors, Grace Cosgrove and Abigail Scott. Cosgrove riddled the nets for 22 points and Scott fired in 20.20 as they pair combined for 42 of Tyro’s 48 points. The Eagles also got three points from Abby Hunt and single free throws from Lenae Ivie, Lydia Heady, and Jolee Scott.