ST. PAUL – A disastrous second-quarter left little doubt about the fate of the Altoona-Midway High School Jets in their Class 1A-II Sub-State game here Monday night.
The St. Paul Indians outscored the Jets 23-4 in the second stanza and went on to post a 77-40 victory to advance in postseason play. Meanwhile, the AMHS boys saw their season come to an end.
Altoona-Midway winds up the 2025-26 campaign with a 5-19 overall record. The Jets dropped their final nine games of the year.
St. Paul (7-15), advances in Class 1A-II action and will square off against top-seeded Hartford (18-3). That sub-state semifinal is slated for 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at Hartford.
“This game was the story of our season this year – too many turnovers and not good enough shooting percentages,” said AMHS head coach Dave Vance. “We had 10 turnovers in the second quarter alone.”
The Jets were still within striking distance at the end of the first quarter, trailing 18-12. But the second-period disaster gave St. Paul a 41-16 spread at intermission.
The Indians benefitted from a strong one-two scoring punch in McRay and Norris. McRay poured in 25 points in the first two stanzas, finishing with 28 points for game-high honors. Norris took over after halftime, swishing four three-pointers in the third quarter alone. Norris ended the night with 20 points, including six treys.
As a team, the Indians connected 10 times from behind the arc.
“We ran into a hot-shooting St. Paul team. You have to give them credit,” Vance noted. “(McRay and Norris) did most of the damage – but they have a whole team full of snipers. Once they get going, they are tough to stop.
“We actually played a good game with the exception of the second quarter,” he added. “We had 18 turnovers for the game, which is high, but 10 of those came in the second period.”
Sophomore Chance Carter led the Jets with 12 points, while sophomore Chance Mustain and senior Kage Beck, playing his final game for the Blue and Gold, each reached double figures with 10.
Kenny Smith, also a senior, closed out his career with five points, and junior Nolan Lampe finished with three.
Beck and Carter claimed seven rebounds apiece and Mustain grabbed six. Beck also dished out five assists.
“Our shot selection as a whole was not bad, but our percentages were (33 percent from two, 25 percent from three; and 50 percent from the line),” Vance said. “We just really need to get a lot of work in shooting during the off-season.
“But we still were able to see a lot of improvement in our players this season,” he continued. “We had little experience, but they all have been diligent about improving – as players, and as people.”