In what has turned into a rivalry series, the Sully Buttes Charger girls held on against the Warner Monarchs and escaped with a 52-51 victory while the Charger boys kept the pedal to the metal and rolled to a 77-51 victory in game two Saturday afternoon in Onida.
The Charger girls led 22-15 at the half against the stumbling Monarchs, but Warner came alive in the second half, only to have Sully Buttes hold off the surge to snatch the victory. With time expiring, Payge Bakker hit a free throw to put Sully Buttes up by one, and the Monarchs couldn’t get a shot to fall as time expired. Bakker once again showed her scoring ability, leading both teams, finishing with 25 points. Bakker was the only player in double figures for Sully Buttes, while Warner had Stacia Carda come alive in the second half to score 24 points while Courtney Leidholt added 13. The Chargers had two starters foul out in the fourth quarter and relied on their bench to hold on. The Chargers record ups to 7-7, while Warner slips to 9-6.
In the second game, the Charger boys lead 18-11 after one, and again had a big second quarter, scoring 25 to take a 43-26 halftime lead. Both teams played wide open with the Chargers equaling the Monarchs pace. Sully Buttes outscored Warner in every quarter. Wesley Wittler led in scoring with 30 points while Eli Mercer added 21 and freshman Jett Yackley also finished in double figures with 15 for 9-3 Sully Buttes. The 7-6 Monarchs were led by Jesiah Baum with 13 and Brennan Wolf-Donat adding 10.
The Charger girls and boys will travel to Murdo Tuesday to take on the Jones County Coyotes at Harold Thune Auditorium, with the girls starting at 6:15 and the boys game to follow. You can hear both games on Country 95.3FM, pierrecountry.com and on YouTube at Country 95.3 Sports with DT Meyer on the call.
