The Montgomery County boys and girls basketball teams were setting their sights on capturing consolation championship trophies at the Hermann Invitational Tournament.

But, in a span of 24 hours, both teams left Hermann empty-handed.

The Wildcats lost to New Haven and St. Clair in the girls and boys consolation championship games, respectively. The MCHS girls fell to New Haven 37-30 on Jan. 30 and the MCHS boys dropped to St. Clair 51-47 the following night.

Both teams finished 1-2 at the eight-team tournament. The MCHS girls lost to Hermann in the first round and beat Gateway Legacy in the consolation semifinals. The MCHS boys dropped to Warrenton in the first round and knocked off Wright City in the consolation semifinals.

Both squads are looking to finish with winning records as they approach the final month of the season. The girls are 12-8 with six regular season games remaining, while the boys are 10-8 with seven regular season contests to go.

Wyatt March and Emma Rodgers were the Wildcats’ representatives on the boys and girls all-tournament teams, respectively. Rodgers was also named all-tournament at Montgomery County and South Callaway, while March earned all-tournament honors at South Callaway.

The MCHS boys, who won last year’s Hermann tournament championship, couldn’t pull off their seventh consolation championship and their first since 2012. They led St. Clair by seven points with 1:26 left in the third quarter before the Bulldogs rallied in the fourth quarter to capture their third consolation title.

With St. Clair leading 49-47, the Wildcats had two chances in the final seconds to tie the game, but committed turnovers in both possessions. 

Carson Roemer scored 33 points to lead St. Clair. He went 14 for 15 from the free-throw line, including six technical free throws.

“They just got the ball in the right kid’s hands and he made some shots in some big situations,” MCHS boys coach Dustin Figg said.

Senior Chase Queathem scored 17 points, including 13 in the first half, and seniors Adrian Combs and Cooper Sellenriek each had eight points to lead the Wildcats, who won the South Callaway tournament title two weeks ago,

The Wildcats were seeded fourth in the tournament. They began tournament play on Jan. 28 with a 52-35 loss to Warrenton in a first-round game, the first matchup between both teams since 2018. 

The next night, MCHS defeated Wright City 50-45 in the consolation semifinals. March scored a team-high 20 points to lead the Wildcats to their second win of the season over Wright City.

MCHS was scheduled to play an Eastern Missouri Conference home game against Van-Far on Feb. 3. It will play a non-conference road game against Harrisburg on Feb. 5.

Figg said his team is looking forward to taking on a Harrisburg squad that won Class 2 district titles in each of the last two years.

“We played them in the summer over the years,” Figg said. “They’re a small, physical team that is in Class 2.” 

The Wildcats are shooting for their seventh straight winning season. Last year, they won 28 games.

“I think we’re doing just fine,” said Figg, who is in his first year as boys head coach. “We set ourselves up with only one conference loss, so the conference is still intact. I still believe we can contend for a district championship. So, we’ll continue working hard and get ready for those games.”

The MCHS girls, who were seeded fifth, played three games in three days at Hermann. They started tournament play on Jan. 28. with a 39-38 loss to Hermann in the first round. They bounced back the next night with a 54-26 win over Gateway Legacy. In the consolation finals, the Wildcats led by 11 points midway in the third quarter before New Haven rallied with a 21-1 run that carried into the fourth quarter to pick up the win and its fourth consolation title.

Emma Rodgers scored 15 points and Aubrey Janes finished with 11 against New Haven. Rodgers scored 55 points in three games.

MCHS’ 30 points against the Shamrocks marked a season-low. The Wildcats lost to New Haven at the Hermann tournament for the second year in a row.

In their win over Gateway Legacy, the Wildcats tied a tournament record for most 3-pointers made with 11.

MCHS was scheduled to play a home game against Van-Far on Feb. 2. The Wildcats will play a road game against Clopton on Feb. 5.