Oklahoma Men's High School Basketball: Week Eight Rankings and Predictions

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The last of the undefeated teams have fallen, leaving Union as the indisputable top-dog in 6A basketball. 

No. 1 Union (Last week No. 1)

Union (9-0) pulled in 28 first-place votes after winning the Putnam City Invitational last week. They defeated No. 20 Mustang (4-4) 49-37, 4A No. 7 Heritage Hall (5-4) 84-77, and No. 7 Putnam City West (8-5) 58-50. The Redskins hold the No. 15 offense, No. 7 defense, and No. 7 margin of victory in 6A, while playing one of the toughest schedules. They will return to action Tuesday when they host 5A No. 13 Bishop Kelley (4-3), then they will host unranked Owasso (5-4) on Friday. 

The picks:
Union 57 BK 45
Union 59 Owasso 47

No. 2 Edmond North (2)

Edmond North (8-1) pulled in two first-place votes and held on to their second-place spot after a bye week. The Huskies hold the No. 3 offense, No. 13 defense, and No. 3 margin of victory in 6A and will travel to unranked Southmoore (1-8) on Tuesday and No. 13 Norman (6-3) on Friday. 

The picks:
EDN 65 Southmoore 52
EDN 62 Norman 59

No. 3 Midwest City (3)

Midwest City (9-2) picked up a dominating 83-54 win over No. 16 Lawton (5-3) last week. The Bombers hold the No. 2 offense and No. 4 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action when they host 5A No. 6 Eisenhower (4-2) on Tuesday. 

The pick: MWC 73 Ike 64.

No. 4 Putnam City West (7)

Putnam West (8-5) leapfrogged over the competition after a pair of quality wins at the Putnam City Invitational. They topped Putnam City (4-6) 65-56 and No. 6 Putnam City North (7-4) 91-88 in overtime before falling 58-50 to No. 1 Union (9-0). The Patriots hold the No. 10 offense and No. 17 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host No. 15 Lawton (5-3). 

The pick: PCW 66 Lawton 63.

No. 5 Putnam City North (6)

Putnam North (7-4) moved up a spot in the rankings despite losing two out of three games last week. They defeated the OKC Storm (16-14) 77-55 in the first round of the Putnam City Invitational, but fell 91-88 to Putnam West (8-5) and 71-55 to 4A No. 7 Heritage Hall (5-4). The Panthers hold the No. 5 offense and No. 11 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action at No. 20 Putnam City (4-6) on Monday, then will host unranked Choctaw (4-4) on Friday. 

The picks:
PCN 64 Putnam 61
PCN 63 Choctaw 61

No. 6 Westmoore (5)

Westmoore (10-1) slipped a spot in the rankings after giving up a 78-63 upset to No. 8 Norman North (6-2). The Jaguars hold the No. 9 offense, No. 4 defense, and No. 1 margin of victory in 6A. They will return to action Thursday when they host No. 17 Edmond Memorial (4-6). 

The pick: Westmoore 59 EDM 51.

No. 7 Norman North (8)

Norman North (6-2) is coming off a big week as they swept the Bishop McGuinness Tournament and upset No. 5 Westmoore (10-1) 78-63. They topped No. 12 Norman (6-3) 70-68, the OKC Knights (4-12) 120-42, and No. 14 Yukon (7-4) 72-51. The Timberwolves hold the No. 1 offense and No. 2 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday with a rematch at No. 12 Yukon. 

The pick: NN 80 Yukon 68.

No. 8 Booker T. Washington (9)

Booker T. Washington (7-3) moved up a spot in the rankings after taking second place at the Skiatook Invitational, despite suffering an overtime upset to an unranked team. They defeated 5A No. 20 Pryor (4-5) 67-49 and No. 11 Broken Arrow (7-3) 62-50, but fell 72-71 to Owasso (5-4). The Hornets hold the No. 8 offense and No. 13 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday against Will Rogers (5-7), then will travel to 4A No. 2 Tulsa Central (8-3) on Friday.

The picks:
BTW 68 Rogers 60
Central 70 BTW 67

No. 9 Muskogee (10)

Muskogee (6-1) finally lost their first game of the season, 77-69 to Life Prep Academy (2-6) at the Muskogee Shrine Tournament, but they're still undefeated against Oklahoma teams and in conference. The Roughers hold the No. 6 offense, No. 19 defense, and No. 9 margin of victory in 6A and will host No. 18 Sand Springs (5-4) on Monday before traveling to unranked Jenks (1-6) on Friday. 

The picks: 
Muskogee 59 CPHS 57
Muskogee 68 Jenks 56

No. 10 Edmond Santa Fe (4)

Edmond Santa Fe (7-3) dropped hard in the rankings after a stunning 47-45 upset by 5A No. 17 Bishop McGuinness (3-8), whom they were expected to throttle. They also lost a close 44-39 matchup to unranked Deer Creek (5-6) before finally snapping out of it with a 103-41 victory over the OKC Knights (4-12). The Wolves hold the No. 13 offense, No. 5 defense, and No. 5 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday when they get a home court rematch against Deer Creek. 

The pick: ESF 60 DC 50

No. 11 Broken Arrow (11)

Broken Arrow (7-3) won two of three games at the Skiatook Invitational, hammering Daniel Webster (2-9) 72-42, falling 62-50 to No. 9 Booker T. Washington (7-3), then topping 5A No. 5 East Central (7-4) 59-45. Caleb Huffman averaged 16.3 points per game, followed by Tony Hall with 14.3 and Braden Boyer with 12. The Tigers hold the No. 19 offense, No. 3 defense, and No. 10 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at No. 14 Sapulpa (5-2). 

The pick: BAHS 60 Sapulpa 57

No. 12 Yukon (14)

Yukon (7-4) won two of three games at the Bishop McGuinness Tournament and took second place last week. They topped Deer Creek (5-6) 64-57 and 5A No. 17 Bishop McGuinness (3-8) 65-58 before falling 72-51 to No. 8 Norman North (6-2) in the finals. The Millers hold the No. 11 offense, No. 18 defense, and No. 14 margin of victory in 6A and will get a rematch against Norman North on their home court Friday. 

The pick: Norman North 68 Yukon 65

No. 13 Norman (12)

Norman (6-3) took a slight dip in the rankings after winning two of three games at the Bishop McGuinness Tournament. They topped No. 15 Edmond Memorial (4-6) 41-38 and 5A No. 17 Bishop McGuinness (3-8) 50-48, but fell 70-68 to No. 8 Norman North (6-2). The Tigers hold the No. 14 offense, No. 10 defense, and No. 8 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at Mustang (4-4), then will host No. 2 Edmond North (8-1 on Thursday).

The pick: Norman 57 Mustang 52

No. 14 Sapulpa (13) 

Sapulpa (5-2) dropped a spot despite a 78-66 win over Newcastle (2-6) in the first round of the Ada Tournament, which was cancelled on day two. The Chieftains hold the No. 6 offense and No. 16 margin of victory in 6A and will host No. 11 Broken Arrow (7-3) Tuesday before traveling to No. 16 Bartlesville (5-4) on Friday. 

The pick: Sapulpa 58 Bartlesville 56

No. 15 Lawton (16)

Lawton (5-3) moved up a spot in the rankings despite getting hammered 83-54 by No. 3 Midwest City (9-2). The Wolverines hold the No. 12 offense in 6A and will travel to No. 4 Putnam City West (8-5) Tuesday, then will host No. 20 Putnam City (4-6) on Thursday. 

The pick: Putnam City 62 Lawton 60.

No. 16 Bartlesville (17)

Bartlesville (5-4) moved up a spot in the rankings after a second place performance at their home tournament. They defeated Enid (3-10) 63-57 and Southmoore (1-8) 44-36, but fell 63-44 to 5A No. 1 Carl Albert (11-0). Barron Tanner led the team with 14 points per game, followed by A.J. Archambo with 13.3. The Bruins hold the No. 6 defense in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at No. 19 Bixby (4-5) before hosting No. 14 Sapulpa (5-2) on Friday. 

The pick: Bartlesville 52 Bixby 51.

No. 17 Edmond Memorial (15)

Edmond Memorial (4-6) had a rough go at the Bishop McGuinness tournament, defeating the OKC Knights (4-12) 79-27, but falling 41-38 to No. 12 Norman (6-3) and 52-51 to unranked Deer Creek (5-6). The Bulldogs hold the No. 2 defense and No. 19 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host unranked Stillwater (4-6). They will travel to No. 6 Westmoore (10-1) on Thursday.

The pick: EDM 53 Stillwater 49.

No. 18 Sand Springs (19)

Sand Springs (5-4) moved up a spot in the rankings after a bye week. The Sandites hold the No. 16 offense, No. 1 defense, and No. 6 margin of victory in 6A and will travel to No. 9 Muskogee (6-1) on Tuesday, then will host No. 19 Bixby (4-5) on Friday. 

The pick: CPHS 58 Bixby 50

No. 19 Bixby (18)

Bixby (4-5) dropped a spot in the rankings after winning only one of three games at the Bartlesville Tournament last week. They fell 79-61 to 5A No. 1 Carl Albert (11-0) and 52-51 to 5A No. 15 Del City (4-6) before topping unranked Enid (3-10) 62-60 in overtime. The Spartans hold the No. 14 defense in 6A and will host No. 16 Bartlesville (5-4) on Tuesday before traveling to No. 18 Sand Springs (5-4) on Friday. 

No. 20 Putnam City (unranked)

Putnam City (4-6) entered the rankings after winning one of two games at the Putnam City Invitational last week. They fell 65-56 to No. 7 Putnam West (8-5) and 54-48 to No. 20 Mustang (4-4), but defeated the OKC Storm (16-14) 64-53. 

Conference Strength

1. Big Ten (52.5)
2. Central Oklahoma (46)
3. Green Country (45.33)
4. Frontier Valley (45.3)
5. All-City (31.5)

No. 1 Sandites remain undefeated with 46-21 victory at No. 3 Broken Arrow

Delvin Jordan and Zach Marcheselli are both ranked No. 1 in their weight classes. Marcheselli moved up a division and lost a 4-3 decision to Jordan Thursday night in Broken Arrow.

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

CPHS 46 BAHS 21

106 #3 Riley Weir t.f. #7 Jackson Cockrell 16-1
113 #3 Tanner Ward t.f. #4 Andrew Police 15-0
120 #4 Michael Ritchey d. Blake Gonzalez 1-0
126 #5 Blake Sargent p. James Phares 0:55
132 #1 Daton Fix p. Matt Police 1:33
138 #3 Jack Karstetter d. #5 TaJuan Daniels 5-2
145 #2 Beau Bratcher p. #7 Bryce Mattioda 1:15
152 #1 Payton Scott p. Aedan Cottle 3:20
160 #10 Brady Mattioda d. #8 Noah Almy 7-3
170 #2 Zane Basma d. #3 Caleb Wise 4-2
182 #1 Gavin Potter inj. Luke Bratcher
195 Noah Cortes p. #10 Gage Fain 5:59
220 #1 Delvin Jordan d. #1 Zach Marcheselli 4-3
285 #3 Trenton Lieurance p. Dominique Pipes 2:28

The No. 1 ranked Charles Page High School varsity wrestling team (5-0) traveled to No. 3 Broken Arrow (2-2) Thursday night and won ten out of fourteen matches to continue their undefeated start to the season. Only two other undefeated teams remain and Sand Springs won't meet either in the regular season.

Sand Springs has held the No. 1 spot in the tournament rankings since winning the Perry Tournament a month ago, and they have been tied for first in the dual rankings with Choctaw (3-0) for two weeks now. Both teams received nine first-place votes this past week and neither will get the chance to knock each other off till Dual State. No. 4 Edmond North (5-0) is also undefeated, but they will end their regular season at Choctaw in early February. 

The Sandites will return to action Friday and Saturday at Sapulpa High School for the Jerry Billings Invitational against a tough field that includes No. 3 Broken Arrow, No. 6 Union, No. 8 Ponca City, 4A No. 6 Cascia Hall, 5A No. 3 Collinsville, and 3A No. 4 Plainview.

The dual started off at 106 with State Qualifier Riley Weir (16-6 season, 37-18 career) versus freshman Jackson Cockrell. It took Weir less than twenty seconds to take down his opponent and he worked him over for back points with half a minute left in the period. Weir started the second period neutral with a 5-0 lead and doubled it going into the final stretch. He start the third period on bottom and quickly reversed for nearfall points before cutting his opponent loose. He ended things with a takedown for a 16-1 tech fall in 5:20.

Senior State-placer Tanner Ward (14-7, 90-19) and Andrew Police came out fast and aggressive, and it was the Sandite who took the early 5-0 lead with nearfall points. He added two more back points soon after and started the second period on bottom with a 7-0 advantage. A quick reversal and nearfall points finished it off 15-0 in 3:44. 

Senior State-placer Michael Ritchey (16-7, 45-31) met Blake Gonzalez in a well-matched bout that ended the first period 0-0. Ritchey got the first and only point after escaping to start the second period, and once again neither contender could secure a takedown. Ritchey never allowed his opponent to break free and secured the 1-0 decision for a 13-0 team lead.

Junior State-placer Blake Sargent (16-6, 68-20) came out jacked for the Sandites and phinned James Phares in 0:55 after taking an early 2-0 lead. Senior three-time State Champion Daton Fix (21-0, 139-0) worked his typical mayhem against Matt Police at 132 pounds and built an 8-3 lead before getting the pin in 1:33 to give his team a 25-0 advantage. 

State Qualifier TaJuan Daniels put up a tough match against State Runner-Up Jack Karstetter (7-1, 80-16), but the Sandite was resilient despite having wrestled only one match in the last month. The match was tied 2-2 going into the third period when Karstetter took the lead with an escape. His Broken Arrow counterpart was looking desperately for an open shot, but the Sandite came out on top to end things 5-2.

State Runner-Up Beau Bratcher (18-5, 109-28) wasted no time in taking down Bryce Mattioda and pinned his foe in 1:15. State-placer Payton Scott (20-1, 41-8) wrestled a page out of the Daton Fix playbook, working up a quick 8-4 lead by taking down his opponent just to cut him loose repeatedly. He eventually pinned Aedan Cottle in 3:20 to officially secure the dual as a Sandite victory with a 40-0 lead.

Sophomore Noah Almy (9-10) was equally matched against State-qualifier Brady Mattioda throughout the first period and started the second 0-0. Almy scored first on an escape, then gave up a takedown, but escaped again to tie it up at 2-2. Mattioda started the third period down, escaped, scored, and led 5-2. Almy escaped, but Mattioda came out on top once again to end things 7-3 and officially put points on the board for Broken Arrow. 

Zane Basma (6-1, 64-25) and Caleb Wise both took third in State last year and were very close for the entirety of their match. Wise struck first, but Basma didn't stay under for long. He trailed 2-1 starting the second on top, but never let his opponent loose and added nearfall points to make it 3-2. He cushioned his lead with a third period escape and stayed up through the remainder for a 4-2 decision.

Luke Bratcher (3-1) suffered an unfortunate loss after a great start to a tough match. The Sophomore took on top-ranked Gavin Potter at 182 and the two were all knotted up early on, leaving a literal blood trail in their wake. After a timeout for cleanup, Bratcher quickly put points on the board for a 2-0 lead before giving up the match on an injury default. 

Gage Fain (13-7, 26-29) wrestled against Noah Cortes and suffered a literal last-second pin. The Tiger scored first, but Fain reversed almost immediately before letting Cortes out with seconds to go in the first period. Cortes started the second with another escape, gave up a point on an illegal hold, then added a takedown with twenty seconds to go. Trailing 6-3 to start the third, Fain scored an escape and picked up another caution point to cut it to a one point deficit before giving up another takedown. This time Cortes added nearfall points before Fain was saved by yet another illegal hold to make it 11-7. Cortes added another takedown, cut Fain loose, took him down again, cut him loose again, then got the pin with a single second left.

The marquee match-up of the evening was State Qualifier Delvin Jordan (20-2, 51-14) against State Champion Zach Marcheselli. Jordan is ranked first in the State in 220 after winning the Perry and Geary Championships, while Marcheselli is ranked first in 195 with Geary, Cascia Hall, and Gardner-Edgerton Championships this season. The two top-dogs of their divisions put on one of the most intense matches of the night. Jordan led 2-0 after a wild first period and added an escape to start the second. Marcheselli tied it up immediately to start the third with an escape and a takedown, but Jordan cut loose to make it 4-3, which he held till the end.

Sophomore Dominique Pipes (0-2, 0-4) wrestled his second dual of his career, and for the second time was pitted against a State-qualifier. He took on Senior Trenton Lieurance and trailed 8-1 before getting pinned in 2:28.

Oklahoma Girls High School Basketball: Week Eight Rankings and Predictions

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

There were a lot of tournaments scheduled for this past weekend, and there were a lot of games cancelled due to the blanket of ice and snow that covered the state. For the first time this season there is a new number one team, but not due to head to head matchup.

No. 1 Edmond Santa Fe (Previously No. 2)

Edmond Santa Fe (10-0) picked up sixteen first-place votes to claim the top spot, despite not playing a game since the new year. The Lady Wolves hold the No. 6 offense, No. 3 defense, and No. 5 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday when they host their toughest opponent yet, No. 5 Deer Creek (9-1), who is also undefeated within the conference.

The pick: Deer Creek 48 ESF 47.

No. 2 Choctaw (1)

Choctaw (10-1) brought in eleven first-place votes and slipped from the number-one spot for the first time this season, despite a dominating 85-17 performance over Northwest Classen (3-4) in the first round of the Ada Tournament. Their only loss this season was 52-45 to 4A No. 1 Ft. Gibson (9-0) at the Tournament of Champions.

The Yellowjackets hold the No. 2 offense, No. 1 defense, and No. 1 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at 5A No. 13 Del City (4-6). They will also take on unranked Putnam City North (1-9) Friday. 

The picks:
Choctaw 70 Del 41
Choctaw 75 PCN 34

No. 3 Sand Springs (3)

Sand Springs (7-0) didn't get to play the whole Muskogee tournament, but they got in a 60-46 victory over Providence Academy before the ice storm hit and received two first-place votes. As always, the scoring was spread out with seven Lady Sandites on the scoreboard and three in double digits, led by sophomore Holly Kersgieter with a career-best 16. 

The Lady Sandites hold the No. 5 offense, No. 2 defense, and No. 3 margin of victory in 6A. They will return to action Tuesday at unranked Muskogee (3-4), then will host unranked Bixby (3-7) on Friday. 

The picks:
CPHS 55 Muskogee 42
CPHS 55 Bixby 43

No. 4 Putnam City West (4)

Putnam West (10-1) handily swept the Putnam City Invitational last week with two blowouts and received one first-place vote. They dominated the OKC Storm (11-2) 70-49, topped in-town rival Putnam City (4-5) 81-72, then stomped No. 15 Union (6-3) 67-41. The Patriots hold the No. 1 offense, No. 14 defense, and No. 2 margin of victory in 6A. They will return to action Tuesday when they host unranked Lawton (3-4). 

The pick: PCW 60 Lawton 43

No. 5 Deer Creek (5) 

Deer Creek (9-1) is still undefeated in 6A with their only loss coming to 5A No. 1 Collinsville (9-1). Last week they topped Class A No. 12 Ft. Cobb-Broxton (11-5) 71-36, 4A No. 10 Blanchard (8-3) 59-40, and 4A No. 8 Anadarko (7-3) 46-40 in the Anadarko Tourrnament. 

The Antlers hold the No. 7 offense, No. 9 defense, and No. 7 margin of victory in 6A. They will return to action Friday at No. 1 Edmond Santa Fe (10-0). 

No. 6 Westmoore (6)

Westmoore (8-3) dropped a 51-48 upset to No. 9 Norman North (7-2) last week, then came in second at their home tournament, defeating the OKC Knights (3-8) 78-26 and No. 18 Sapulpa (5-4) 72-38 before falling 68-52 in the finals to 4A No. 2 Harrah (10-1). Junior Jessi Murcer led the team with 24.3 points per game, followed by freshman sister Kristen with 13.6. 

The Jaguars hold the No. 3 offense, No. 10 defense, and No. 6 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday when they host No. 13 Edmond Memorial (5-4).

The pick: Westmoore 54 EDM 41.

No. 7 Booker T. Washington (7)

Booker T. Washington (9-3) had a rough time at the Westmoore Tournament last week, dropping two games by a single point. They dominated unranked Enid (4-9) 69-38 in the first round before falling 44-43 to 4A No. 2 Harrah (10-1) and 53-52 to No. 18 Sapulpa (5-4). 

The Lady Hornets hold the No. 4 offense, No. 4 defense, and No. 4 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host unranked 4A Will Rogers (8-4). On Friday they will travel to another unranked 4A opponent in Tulsa Central (2-6). 

The picks:
BTW 61 Rogers 46
BTW 61 Central 32

No. 8 Norman North (9)

Norman North (7-2) bumped up a spot in the rankings after topping No. 6 Westmoore (8-3) at home last week. The Timberwolves hold the No. 8 offense, No. 12 defense, and No. 9 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday when they travel to No. 18 Yukon (7-4). 

The pick: NN 50 Yukon 45.

No. 9 Norman (8)

Norman (7-2) slipped a spot in the rankings after a bye week, but will get the chance to make up for it Tuesday when they travel to No. 14 Mustang (4-4) and Thursday when they host No. 17 Edmond North (5-4). The Tigers hold the No. 9 offense, No. 8 defense, and No. 8 margin of victory in 6A.

The picks:
Norman 50 Mustang 43
Norman 49 EDN 46. 

No. 10 Owasso (10)

Owasso (7-5) won two of three games last week at the Skiatook Tournament, defeating the 5A No. 11 host team (6-3) 53-42 before falling 52-47 to 5A No. 12 Pryor (6-4). In the consolations they topped No. 16 Mustang (4-4) 46-42. Terryn Milton led the team with 14 points per game, closely followed by Mya Bhinhar with 13.6.

The Lady Rams hold the No. 19 offense and No. 19 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host unranked Jenks (2-5). They will travel to No. 12 Union (6-3) Friday).

The picks:
Owasso 52 Jenks 46
Union 48 Owasso 44

No. 11 Midwest City (13)

Midwest City (7-4) made a statement last week with a 65-32 blowout over Lawton (3-4). The Bombers hold the No. 15 offense, No. 16 defense, and No. 14 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host 5A unranked Lawton Eisenhower (2-7). 

The pick: MWC 50 Ike 42.

No. 12 Union (15)

Union (6-3) received a bump in the rankings after winning two of three games at the Putnam City Invitational. They dominated Putnam City North (1-9) 62-31 and No. 11 Edmond Memorial (6-4) 52-29 before falling 67-41 to No. 4 Putnam City West (10-1). The Redskins hold the No. 16 offense, No. 4 defense, and No. 12 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host 5A No. 15 Bishop Kelley (3-4), then will host No. 10 Owasso (7-5) on Friday. 

The pick: Union 49 BK 39.

No. 13 Edmond Memorial (11)

Edmond Memorial (6-4) won two out of three games at last week's Putnam City Invitational, but dropped a 52-29 upset to No. 15 Union (6-3). They defeated Southmoore (2-7) 47-28 and Putnam City (4-6) 51-47. The Bulldogs hold the No. 17 defense in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host unranked Stillwater (2-8), then will travel to No. 6 Westmoore (8-3) on Friday. 

The pick: EDM 47 Stillwater 42

No. 14 Mustang (16)

Mustang (4-4) got a nice bump in the rankings after a 46-43 overtime win over No. 12 Bartlesville (4-5) in the first round of the Skiatook Tournament, despite falling 52-45 to 4A No. 1 Ft. Gibson (9-0) and 46-42 to No. 10 Owasso (7-5). Senior Abby Niehues led in two out of three games with an average score of 12. The girls hold the No. 18 defense and No. 17 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host No. 9 Norman (7-2) and unranked Southmoore (2-7) on Friday. 

The pick: Mustang 50 Southmoore 41.

No. 15 Bartlesville (12)

Bartlesville (4-5) took a drop in the rankings after winning only one of two games at the Skiatook Tournament. They fell 46-43 to No. 16 Mustang, hammered 4A McLain (2-7) 52-18, then lost 56-50 to 5A No. 11 Skiatook (6-3). The Bruins hold the No. 6 defense and No. 15 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at unranked Bixby (5-7), then will host No. 18 Sapulpa (5-4) on Friday. 

The picks:
Bartlesville 48 Bixby 45
Bartlesville 43 Sapulpa 38.

No. 16 Broken Arrow (14)

Broken Arrow (5-5) fell a few spots in the rankings after winning only one of two games at the Skiatook Tournament. They fell 38-35 to 5A No. 12 Pryor (6-4) and 52-48 to 5A No. 11 Skiatook (6-3) in overtime before getting a 48-40 win over 4A unranked McLain (2-7). Kinsey Callen led the team with an average of 13 points per game, followed by Jalise Smallwood with 9.6. The Tigers hold the No. 11 defense in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at No. 19 Sapulpa (5-4).

The pick: BA 45 Sapulpa 44. 

No. 17 Edmond North (17)

Edmond North (5-4) held on to their position in the rankings after a bye week. The Huskies hold the No. 13 offense, No. 15 defense, and No. 13 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Tuesday at unranked Southmoore (2-7), then will travel to No. 9 Norman (7-2) on Thursday.

The pick: EDN 52 Southmoore 41.

No. 18 Yukon (19)

Yukon (7-4) moved up a notch after sweeping the Chickasha Tournament with three solid wins. They defeated unranked 3A Douglass (2-7) 66-51, 5A No. 16 MacArthur (5-5) 59-47, and 5A No. 17 Duncan (6-8) 69-39. The Millers hold the No. 18 offense, No. 20 defense, and No. 18 margin of victory in 6A and will return to action Friday when they host No. 8 Norman North (7-2).

No. 19 Sapulpa (18)

Sapulpa (5-4) slipped a spot in the rankings despite a pair of impressive top-ten upsets at the Westmoore Tournament this past weekend. They defeated 5A No. 10 Carl Albert (6-5) 58-48, fell 72-38 to No. 6 Westmoore (8-3), then topped No. 7 Booker T. Washington (9-3) 53-52. Kiarra Brooks led the team with 13 points per game, followed by Taylor Dement with 9.6. The Chieftains hold the No. 20 offense in 6A and will return to action Tuesday when they host No. 16 Broken Arrow (5-5). On Friday they will travel to No. 15 Bartlesville (4-5). 

No. 20 Ponca City (20)

Ponca City (6-2) held on to their spot in the rankings after dominating unranked 5A Guthrie (3-6) 57-31 and unranked Jenks (2-5) 60-44 last week. Julissa Garcia scored 18 against Jenks, followed by Baylee Fincher with 14. The Wildcats hold the No. 12 offense, No. 7 defense, and No. 10 margin of victory in 6A. They will return to action Tuesday when they host 5A No. 9 El Reno (6-4). 

The pick: Ponca 46 El Reno 45.

Conference Strength

1. Central Oklahoma (55)
2. Frontier Valley (39.5)
3. Big Ten (37.8)
4. Green Country (25.8)
5. All-City (9.9)

No. 3 Lady Sandites remain undefeated with 62-43 victory over Muskogee

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

CPHS 62 Muskogee 43

1Q Sand Springs 14-13
2Q Sand Springs 12-5
3Q Muskogee 15-11
4Q Sand Springs 25-10

Scoring: (Sand Springs) Kersgieter 14, Johnson 13, Mutiri 13, Pennington 12, McGee 7, Regalado 3. (Muskogee) Mims 20, Virgin 11, Patterson 8, Nash 1.

(Sand Springs only)
Offensive Rebounds: Mutiri 5, Pennington 1, Regalado 1. 
Defensive Rebounds: Pennington 8, Kersgieter 5, Regalado 3, Johnson 2, McGee 2, Mutiri 2. 
Steals: Johnson 2, Regalado 2, Kersgieter 1, Mutiri 1.
Assists: Pennington 5, Kersgieter 4, Regalado 3, McGee 2, Johnson 1.
Blocks: Mutiri 3, Johnson 1.
Fouls: Kersgieter 5, Johnson 3, McGee 2, Regalado 1, Grant 1.

CPHS 60 Providence 46

1Q Sand Springs 16-9
2Q Sand Springs 16-13
3Q Sand Springs 12-8
4Q Sand Springs 16-16

Scoring: (Sand Springs) Kersgieter 16, Mutiri 12, Johnson 11, McGee 7, Pennington 7, Regalado 5, Collins 2. (Providence) Webb 18, Curry 11, Buivydiate 11, Siemans 3, Kash 3.

The No. 3 ranked Charles Page High School varsity girls basketball team (8-0 overall, 4-0 conference) traveled to unranked Muskogee (3-5, 2-2) and secured their eighth-straight double-digit win Tuesday evening.

Four Lady Sandites doubled in the affair and sophomore Holly Kersgieter led with 14 points and five rebounds. Destiney Johnson and Gloria Mutiri both scored 13 and Sydney Pennington had 12 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. 

It was a slow starter for the Lady Sandites, who average a 30-15 lead at the half thus far this season. The girls were only ahead by a single point after the first quarter and were only four points ahead by the fourth. 

The Lady Roughers should have been a breeze considering the Sandites' past performances this season, but Trena Mims was unstoppable to start the game, scoring the first nine points for the Roughers to lead the Sandites 9-4. The Sandites finally found their feet late in the first quarter to regain the lead, and pushed it as high as 26-18 in the second before being outscored 15-11 in the third. 

Kersgieter went to work in the fourth quarter, scoring nine straight points, followed by six from Gloria Mutiri. The Lady Sandites dominated 25-10 for a final score more closely resembling the rest of their games.

This was Kersgieter's second team-high in a row as she also scored a career-high 16 points this past weekend. The Lady Sandites won their first round game in the Muskogee Shriner Tournament 60-46 over Providence Academy. The rest of the tournament was cancelled due to weather.

Sand Springs will return to action Friday when they host unranked Bixby (2-4, 0-3). 

No. 1 Sandite Wrestling thrashes No. 6 Union 68-9, wins 10 of 12 matches

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The No. 1 ranked Charles Page High School varsity wrestling team (4-0) continued their dominating undefeated streak with their biggest blowout of the season, and it was over their highest-ranked competitor yet. 

CPHS 68 Union 9

106 #3 Riley Weir forfeit.
113 #2 TJ Long d. #3 Tanner Ward 11-10
120 #4 Michael Ritchey d. #2 Caron Watson 5-0
126 #5 Blake Sargent p. Verdell Schoats 1:07
132 #1 Daton Fix p. Moises Davalos 1:02
138 #3 Jack Karstetter p. Ashad Rufia 1:42
145 #2 Beau Bratcher p. Cameron Traylor 5:38
152 #1 Payton Scott forfeit.
160 #8 Noah Almy t.f. Bryce Burdick 17-2
170 #2 Zane Basma p. Elijah Tomlin 1:22
182 Luke Bratcher p. Darius Boone 1:16
195 #10 Gage Fain p. John Bolton 1:40
220 #1 Delvin Jordan p. David Sandoval 0:21
285 #5 Elwood Tomlin p. Dominique Pipes 2:27

The Sandites traveled to No. 6 Union (2-2) and secured a 68-9 victory Tuesday evening. They received two forfeits and won ten out of twelve matches, including eight pins. Three of the Sandites' four duals this season were won by fifty points or more, but they can expect a far tougher opponent Thursday when they travel to No. 3 Broken Arrow (2-1).

Broken Arrow took third at the Geary Invitational while the Sandites placed fourth, but the Sandites forfeited two weight classes at Geary and were without Jack Karstetter and Zane Basma. Both wrestlers returned to the Sandite lineup Tuesday at Union. The Tigers fell 38-22 to No. 1 Choctaw (2-0) last Thursday.

Sophomore State Qualifier Riley Weir (15-6 season, 36-18 career) received a forfeit at 106 pounds and the Sandites had the lead for the duration of the dual.

Senior State-placer Tanner Ward (13-7, 89-19) had one of the toughest opponents in the State in TJ Long, a sophomore who recently upset a nationally ranked wrestler to win the Geary Championship. Ward struck first with an early takedown, but he couldn't hold Long more than a few seconds as the Union wrestler escaped and stayed on his feet throughout the first. Long started the second period down and immediately tied things up. He took the lead with 0:50 left in the second, but Ward escaped ten seconds later and scored a takedown of his own. Long reversed with four seconds left and added a trio of nearfall points as time expired. Ward started the third period down, escaped, scored a takedown, cut Long loose, then took him down again. He tied it up 10-10, but cut Long loose to look for more points. He didn't find any, and fell 11-10.

Senior State-qualifier Michael Ritchey (15-7, 44-31) had a tough opponent in Caron Watson, but didn't give up a single point in his win by decision. Ritchey scored first on a shot taken by Watson and utilized strong legwork to keep control of his opponent through the first period. He started the second period down and this time it was Watson who rode for the duration. Watson bottomed to start the third and this time Ritchey rolled him for three nearfall points early into the period. Watson avoided the pin, but fell by 5-0 decision.

Junior State-placer Blake Sargent (15-6, 67-20) had no difficulty with his opponent, scoring a takedown in five seconds and nearfall points on two separate occasions. He led Verdell Schoats 8-0 before finally getting the pin in 1:07. Oklahoma State University-signed senior Daton Fix (20-0, 138-0) was equally commanding in his victory. He led Moises Davalos 7-0 before getting his pin in 1:02.

Senior State Runner-Up Jack Karstetter (6-1, 79-16) made his first appearance on the mat since the Perry Tournament a month ago. He manhandled Ashad Rufia for a 6-0 lead before giving up a point on an illegal hold. He scored back-to-back nearfall points to make it 10-1 before pinning the Redskin in 1:42.

Senior State Runner-Up Beau Bratcher (17-5, 108-28) posted a quick two again Cameron Traylor, then added nearfall points for a 5-0 lead after the first. The second period started neutral and Traylor went on the offensive, but once more it was Bratcher with the only points of the period. The Sandite took a 7-0 lead into the third and started on bottom. He push it into major decision territory with an escape halfway through the period, but ended instead with a pin at 5:38.

Sophomore Noah Almy (9-9) quickly went to work on Bryce Burdick at 160 and led 6-0 with nearfall points before giving up an escape. Burdick nearly had a takedown of his own, but he was out of bounds and the young Sandite didn't give him another shot. Almy led 10-1 after the first, started the second neutral and quickly got a takedown. Burdick escaped, briefly, but was reeled right back in for back-to-back nearfalls and a 17-2 tech fall in only 2:56. 

Senior State-placer Zane Basma (5-1, 63-25) made his return at 170 after taking a month off to recover from Perry. He quickly worked over Elijah Tomlin for a 4-0 lead before pinning him in 1:22. Sophomore Luke Bratcher (3-0) took on Darius Boone at 182 and quickly ended the match. The two took half a dozen shots each before Bratcher got on top of his opponent and pinned him in 1:16. Junior Gage Fain (13-6, 26-28) took a 3-2 lead over John Bolton before getting the pin in 1:40.

Senior State Qualifier Delvin Jordan (19-2, 50-14) scored a huge takedown early into his match against David Sandoval before getting the pin in 0:21. Jordan leads the team with fifteen pins this season.

Sophomore Dominique Pipes (0-1, 0-3) made his season debut at heavyweight against State-qualifier Elwood Tomlin and put up a tough effort. He only trailed 2-0 after the first period, but Tomlin eventually worked up a 5-0 lead before pinning the Sandite in 2:27 to conclude the dual.

Eight Sandites take first place at Gage Underwood Memorial Wrestling Tournament

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Thirty-one members of the Sand Springs elementary and junior high wrestling teams competed at the Gage Underwood Memorial Tournament recently in Pryor. Twenty-nine placed in the top four in their divisions and eight took first place. 

Dariuz Black (17-12) competed in both Division Three and Division Four Open at 73 pounds. He took first in Division Three and second in the older division. In Division three he pinned Aidan Wolfe (Pryor) in 2:06, received a forfeit from Kenyon Encinas (Pryor), then scored a 23-8 technical fall over Andrew Haynes (Glenpool). In Division Four he pinned Riley Kuder (Broken Arrow) in 0:40 and scored a 22-7 tech fall over Encinas, but was pinned in 1:06 by Corban Zugelder (Catoosa). 

Jaxon Trotter (18-15) competed in both Division Three and Division Four Open at 85 pounds. He took first place in Division three, majoring Jaxon Turner (Vinita) 10-1 and defeating Jake Miller (Threestyle) 4-2. In Division Four he majored Dakota Allphin (Glenpool) 12-0, but was pinned in 2:23 by Lane Wheeler (Glenpool). 

Jaxon Grigsby (18-3) competed in Division Two Open at 49 pounds and took first place. He received a forfeit from Ethan Boyd (Claremore) then pinned his next three opponents. He pinned Tommy Parker (Pryor) in 0:36, Malaki Venetoff (Berryhill) in 3:55, and Parker Lapham (Owasso) in 0:45.

Grady Mittasch (32-7) competed in Division Three Open at 70 pounds and took first place. He defeated Jaxson Humphries (Catoosa) 4-0 and Logan Hargrove (Catoosa) 6-0, then pinned teammate Hunter Jewell in 0:36. 

Clayton Giddens (27-1) competed in Division Four Open at 67 pounds and took first place. He pinned Andrew Havens (Sperry) in 1:11, Caydon Miller (Sapulpa) in 1:06, and Jackson Willingham (Glenpool) in 3:28. 

Abraham Flores (13-7) competed in Division Four Open at 96 pounds and took first place. He defeated Chad Herbert (Owasso) 12-7 in sudden victory overtime, then teched Kevin Lund (Glenpool) 16-0.

London McGinnis (14-7) competed in both Division One Novice and Division One Open at 46 pounds and took second place in each. In Novice he defeated Corde Williams (Bristow) 12-5 and pinned Cash Pope (Glenpool) in 0:56 before falling 5-4 to Blake Ketcher (Pryor). In Open he lost his opening match 7-4 to Braylon Freeman (Cleveland), but rebounded with a 9-0 major decision over Ketcher, then topped Aiyden Robertson (Claremore) 8-2.

Hunter Spencer (13-6) competed in Division Two Open at 61 pounds and took second. He lost his opening match 9-2 to Javon Freeman (Cleveland), but won his next two handily. He majored Gunner Murray (Claremore) 10-0 and Seth Kysar (Cleveland) 9-0.

Zander Grigsby (18-5) competed in Division Three Open at 61 pounds and took second. He defeated Isaiah Jones (Glenpool) 11-1 and Jagen Jones (Sperry) 4-0 before falling 1-0 to Gage Walker (Jay) in the finals. 

Adrian Flores (14-11) competed in Division Three Open at 100 pounds and took second place. He pinned Kole Lamont (Broken Arrow) in 2:31, but was pinned in 1:06 by Bryson Kelley (Cushing). 

Carter Wood (11-5) competed in Division Two Open at 70 pounds and took third place. He lost his opening match 0-0 to Jake Wassom (Pryor), but scored a 20-4 tech fall over Eli Warer (Pryor) and received a forfeit from Jackson Vaught (Threestyle).

Robert Burke (15-5) competed in Division Three Open at 67 pounds and took third place. He was pinned in 1:20 by Bryson Humphries (Catoosa), but received a forfeit from teammate David Ritchey and defeated Elijah Green (Broken Arrow) 9-7. 

Asher Giddens (8-7) competed in Division One Open at 43 pounds and took fourth place. He defeated Daxen Delacerda (Bristow) 9-7 in the opening round, but was pinned in 0:28 by Roman Tyler (Berryhill). In the consolations he pinned Camden Reid (Pryor) in 0:19, but lost a rematch in the final 6-4 to Delacerda in sudden victory overtime. 

Matthew Moore (14-3) competed in Division Three Novice at 61 pounds and took first place. He scored a 10-2 major decision over Wiley Welch (Glenpool), pinned Justin Kendall (Sapulpa) in 0:28, and teched Jarrett Graves (Pryor) 16-0.

Skyler Wood (10-1) competed in Division Two Novice at 64 pounds and took first place. He scored a 1-0 decision over Jase Loftis (Pryor) and a 10-2 major decision over Ethan Oglesbee (Coweta). 

Jesse Moore (9-5) competed in Division Three Novice at 76 pounds and took second place. He pinned Eli Phemister (Glenpool) in 1:56 and Teryn Kegley (Pryor) in 1:59, but lost a close 5-4 decision to Clay McKiddy (Cushing). 

Jeziah Boatman (4-5) competed in Division Four Novice at 76 pounds and took second place. He was pinned in 1:51 in his first match by Xavier Wolfe (Pryor), but snapped back with a 6-4 sudden victory decision over Hudson Sams (Collinsville) and decisioned Jacob Taylor (Cleveland) 5-2.

Samuel Moore (18-8) competed in Division One Novice at 49 pounds and took third place. He pinned Jordyn Garrett (Owasso) in 0:21 and Isaiah Wilkerson (Claremore) in 1:59, and received a forfeit from Karson Johnson (Berryhill). He was pinned in 2:35 by Bentley Mefford (Pryor), but majored Ryker Eichelberger (Pryor) 15-2 in the consolation finals.

Dayne Ficken (8-5) competed in Division Two Novice at 55 pounds and took third place. He defeated Jameson Allen (Sperry) 6-0, but was sent to the consolation bracket after an 18-2 tech fall loss to Josiah Hall (Oologah). He bounced back with a pin of Hayden Smith (Blackwell) in 0:42 and majored Carter Williams (Pryor) 10-1.

Jareb Boatman (9-2) competed in Division Two Novice at 52 pounds and took third place. He pinned Dylan Cook (Coweta) in 0:15 and scored a 1-0 decision over Slade Theriot (Berryhill), but was pinned in 1:50 by Jonas Howell (Oologah) and in 2:23 by Caleb Kendall (Sapulpa).