The North Central Missouri College women and men both grabbed victories on Saturday afternoon at the Ketcham Community Center, celebrating Sophomore Day with a sweep of Region XVI rival St. Louis.
The Lady Pirates had one of their poorer shooting games of the season, but had plenty of punch in disposing of the Archers, 72-39. North Central led 12-11 after the first quarter and 29-19 at the half, before dominating the final 20 minutes.
Getting the start on “Sophomore Day”, Angel Wiggins led a balanced NCMC attack with 13 points. Jordan Hibner hit four three-point shots in a 12 point effort, with Maci Moore adding 12 points and 10 rebounds, with Jasmine Taylor scoring 10. Kennedie Kieffer had seven points and nine rebounds.
The men’s game saw the Pirates open up a seemingly comfortable halftime lead of 40-25, before holding off a furious Archer comeback in the second half to gain a 72-68 victory.
Kolten Griffin had one of the finest games of his young Pirate career with 21 points, with Jeramy Shaw adding 15. Atavian Butler turned an ankle late in the game and sat out the final 2 1/2 minutes of regulation, finishing with 12 points.
STLCC had four players in double figures, with Ahian Barnett scoring 19, Doreante Tucker 12, David Jones 11, and Kameryn Hubbard 10.
NCMC will travel to St. Louis for a rematch with the Archers on Saturday, March 20th. The Pirate men won at State Fair Community College on Monday night 73-67. The Lady Pirates and Pirates travel to Beatrice, Nebraska to play Southeast Community College on Saturday afternoon, March 13th.
