Quincy, Camp Point eighth grade boys basketball teams to play for state titles, Southeastern to play for third

Comets use strong second half to reach title game

TAYLORVILLE, Ill. — The Quincy Junior High School eighth grade boys basketball team will play for an Illinois Elementary School Association Class 4A state championship Thursday after winning a pair of games Saturday at Taylorville High School.

The Comets beat O’Fallon Carriel 33-20 in the quarterfinals Saturday afternoon and turned around to beat previously undefeated Rockford Eisenhower 43-40 in the semifinals Saturday night.

Against O’Fallon Carriel, QJHS built an 11-6 lead in the first quarter and closed the game by going on a 10-2 run in the fourth quarter. Brennan Lepper led the Comets with 11 points, while Aiden Finney added eight.

Against Rockford Eisenhower, the Comets trailed 22-18 at halftime before outscoring the Eagles 17-7 in the third quarter. Tim Griffith led QJHS with 12 points, while Lepper finished with nine and Finney had seven.

Quincy (25-1) will face Park Ridge Michelle Obama Technology and Science (27-3) at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the title game.

Overtime victory puts Panthers in state championship game

KANKAKEE, Ill. — The trip north proved fruitful for the Camp Point Central eighth grade boys basketball team.

The Panthers won a pair of games Saturday in the Illinois Elementary School Association Class 2A state tournament at Kankakee Bishop McNamara and will play for a state championship against Effingham St. Anthony at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

Camp Point Central (23-3) opened Saturday by beating Winchester 48-33 in the quarterfinals, using an 11-4 run in the third quarter to gain separation. Braxton Kestner led the Panthers with 24 points, and Noah Aeilts added nine. 

In the semifinals, Camp Point Central beat Green Valley Midwest Central 43-38 in overtime. Midwest Central outscored Camp Point Central 14-5 in the fourth quarter to force the extra frame, but the Panthers outscored the Raiders 5-0 in overtime. Wes Homan led the Panthers with 14 points, while Kestner added 12 points and Aeilts had 11.

Suns to play for third place in Class 1A state tourney

WARRENSBURG, Ill. — The Augusta Southeastern eighth grade boys basketball team fought its way into the Illinois Elementary School Association Class 1A state semifinals before running into a buzzsaw known as Lincoln West Lincoln-Broadwell.

The Suns beat Sigel St. Michael’s 39-36 in Saturday morning’s quarterfinals at Warrensburg-Latham Middle School before suffering a 45-27 loss to West Lincoln-Broadwell in the semifinals.

Southeastern (20-7) will play Cambridge (21-7) for third place at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Against Sigel St. Michael’s, the Suns trailed by five going to the fourth quarter but outscored the Sharpshooters 11-3 to earn the victory. Nolan Stephens led Southeastern with 17 points and Hudson Ramsey added 14.

Against West Lincoln-Broadwell, the Suns were outscored 11-2 in the first quarter and 17-5 in the fourth quarter. Ramsey finished with 12 points and Kash Lantz added nine.