Sigourney Secures 13th Straight Win, then Fall to Martensdale’s St Mary

LIBERTY CENTER/MARTENSDALE—The Sigourney Savages girls basketball continued their postseason play with a road matchup against the Melcher-Dallas Saints at Southeast Warren high school on February 13. After defeating the Saints 60-42, the Savages then traveled to Martensdale's St. Mary for the regional semifinals on February 16. The Savages fell in the regional semifinal by a final score of 76-35.

In the quarterfinals against Melcher-Dallas, the Savages stormed out to a 42-12 halftime lead, before eventually pushing to the 60-42 victory.

“We talked a lot about playing with confidence, and getting off to a strong start to neutralize their home crowd. Any time you can knock down a few early shots that definitely helps your momentum,” explained Sigourney Head Coach Schay Moore on her team’s hot start.

Senior Carly Goodwin was lights out from behind the arc with 15 of her 18 points coming from the three ball. Goodwin also had a team high five assists.

Senior forward Erin Dawson tallied a double double that consisted of 14 points and 11 rebounds. Junior center Josephine Moore also had a double double of 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Coach Moore spoke on her team’s performance by, “We did a very good job of attacking, and sharing the ball.  We were also able to manufacture some turnovers off of our press that led to some early baskets, and limited their offensive possessions.”

Lastly, Coach Moore described the message she shared with the team as, “We need to continue playing hard, and playing as a team.  Our defense has been a huge key to our success this season, we're going to have to continue that and do the little things.  We're one of the last 32 teams left playing in the state, be proud of that, but not satisfied!”

The Savages extended their win streak to 13 straight games, which is the second longest streak since the 18 straight games won in the 2008-2009 season. “13 straight wins is unbelievable. That is what happens when a group of athletes come together for a common goal, and put the team ahead of everything else,” explained Coach Moore.

In the regional semifinal against Martensdale’s St Mary, the Savages ran into a team that could not miss. The Blue Devils finished their night with 14 made three points on a shooting percentage of 48.3%. 42 of the 76 total offensive points from the Blue Devils came from the three point line Martindale's St Mary scored 55% of their points from behind the arc.

The lights out shooting led to the Savages quickly being in a 41-21 hole by the half. The Blue Devils did not let up, as they cruised to the 76-35 victory to end the Savages 13 game win streak.

Coach Schay Moore encapsulated the season from her team with, “ I am so proud of this team. What they accomplished the second half of the season is unmatched. These seniors have dedicated so much time and energy into this program over the last four years, I’m so glad they had the season they did.”

Coach Moore went on to say, “This team is obviously very special to me. I’ve coached a lot of them for the past 10 years. We’ve shared a lot of highs and lows, and I wouldn’t want to do it with any other group of kids.”

The Savages wrap up their season with a final record of 20-5. They earned a SICL-East division title with a conference record of 11-4.