As the basketball season approaches the midseason, the Wellsville-Middletown boys and girls teams are looking to finish strong in the second half.

So far, both teams are suffering losing records. The boys team has just one win, while the girls team has five.
“Hopefully, we can continue to get better on the boys side and continue to play like we do on the girls side,” W-M boys and girls coach Steve Lasman said. “Our girls are playing great right now and hopefully, our boys will keep improving.”

The W-M Tigers ended their first half of play on Jan. 16 by getting swept by the Mark Twain Tigers in an Eastern Missouri Conference home doubleheader on Jan. 16. W-M lost 64-25 in the boys game and 58-16 in the girls contest.

Both teams played three home games in a span of five days and were swept by all of them. They were also swept by Marion County on Jan. 12 and Paris on Jan. 15.

The Tigers were scheduled to play another home doubleheader on Jan. 20 against North Callaway. They will play a road doubleheader against New Haven on Jan. 23.

Both W-M teams have 10 games and a tournament left in their seasons. They both play in the Keytesville Tournament, which is scheduled for Jan. 26-31. They also have Elsberry, Sturgeon, Louisiana, Clopton, Van-Far, Bowling Green, Silex and Wright City left in their schedule.

W-M will have its senior night game on Feb. 10 against Van-Far. Helanea McKenzie, who plays for the girls team, is the Tigers’ only senior.

The W-M boys dropped to 1-13 with the loss to Mark Twain. The night before, they scored just 17 points in the 45-point loss to Paris.

“It was a tough game (against Paris),” Lasman said. “They’re good. I’m not trying to give excuses, but you’re asking kids to play two games in a 24-hour period. That’s a lot to ask for kids.”

Sophomore Garrett Poage turned in a strong effort in the losing cause, scoring a team-high 12 points.

“Garrett Poage played really well tonight,” Lasman said. “He hustles and he plays hard. I’m really proud of Garrett.”

Mark Twain picked up its first win of the season with the victory over W-M.  

“They played well,” Lasman said. “They can shoot. I know their record, but they’re a 3A school and people forget that they have more people in one grade than we have in our entire high school. I’m not giving excuses, but it’s the truth.”

The Tigers lost their first nine games before beating Keytesville at the Madison Tournament on Jan. 8.

The W-M girls dropped to 5-7 after losing to Mark Twain. They lost five of their last six games.

Still, Lasman is thrilled with the way they are performing.

“Our girls play so hard all of the time,” the W-M coach said.

The Tigers drew the No. 1 seed in the Keytesville Tournament, which is scheduled for Jan. 26-31. W-M got a first-round bye and will play either the North Missouri Knights or Madison in the semifinals on Jan. 29. The Tigers were 4-2 going into the seeding meeting several weeks ago. 

W-M averaged 16 points a game in the three contests against Marion County, Paris and Mark Twain. The Tigers were hit by injuries and illness during that stretch. Sophomore Mia Romecka suffered a leg injury against Paris and junior Elly Cash had been ill.

“Our girls can play better when they’re healthy,” Lasman said.

Both boys and girls teams will play in the Class 1, District 10 tournaments at Madison High School in the postseason.