Sidney Splits Road Games at Chadron

Disastrous Third Quarter Dooms Lady Raiders

CHADRON — It was the tale of two halves for the Sidney Lady Raiders in Chadron on Friday night. After a big second period sent Sidney into halftime with an 8-point lead, the Chadron Cardinals exploded in the third quarter for a 54-46 Western Conference win. Of Sidney’s 5 losses on the season, two have now come at the hands of the Cardinals.

Both teams got off to tepid starts, with the Cardinals holding an 8-7 advantage after the first quarter of play. But Sidney warmed up in the second period, behind a pair of three-pointers from freshman Katie Ramsey and 6 points in the paint from senior Karly Sylvester, to outscore the Cardinals 19-10 and take a 26-18 lead into intermission.

 Chadron started the second half with an 8-0 run to even the score at 26. Sidney’s last lead of the game came when sophomore Gabby Fortner put back a miss by Reece Riddle for a 30-29 lead. The Cardinals finished the third period on an 11-2 run, capped off by a Jacey Garrett three pointer at the buzzer, to head into the final stanza with a 40-32 advantage.

The Cardinals expanded the lead to 46-34 before the Lady Raiders started their rally. A pair of free throws from Karly Sylvester followed by back-to back steals and scores by Morgan Jaggers cut the Chadron lead to 46-40. Sidney narrowed the gap when Sophomore Rheagan Stanley scored on a fast-break layup after a missed Jacey Garrett free throw, and junior Alecca Campbell drove the ball down the lane for another score on Sidney’s next possession to force a Chadron timeout with the Lady Raiders trailing 46-44. But the Cardinals iced the game at the line in the final minutes to secure the win.

Sidney was led by Morgan Jaggers with 11 points. Karly Sylvester finished the night with a double-double, 10 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman Demi Ferguson had 15 points to pace the Cardinals. Macey Daniels added a dozen while Anika Burke chipped in 10 points.

Burke’s Six 3s Spur Raiders over Cardinals

Zack Burke nailed a trio of three-pointers in the first quarter to jump-start the Red Raider offense, then held on at the end of the game for a 61-58 road win on Friday night over Chadron in the “Bird Cage.” The win evened the season series at a game apiece, with the rubber match coming in two weeks at the Cabela’s Athletic Facility.

Micah Schneider added a pair of field goals to Burke’s three pointers to give Sidney a 17-12 lead at the first break. Sidney continued their long-range assault by hitting five additional threes in the second quarter. Burke recorded two more as well as a pair from Jaeden Dillehay and one from Sawyer Dickman to give the Red Raiders a 34-28 lead at intermission.

Sidney maintained their lead after the break, taking a 48-42 advantage into the final period. Sidney’s biggest lead of the game came on a Zack Burke drive to the basket with under 3:00 remaining to give Sidney a 57-47 lead. But the Cardinals fought their way back and cut the lead to four at 59-55 with 23 seconds left in the game. Then a steal and a layup by junior Collin Brennan closed the margin to 59-57. Micah Schneider was fouled and made the first of a one-and one to extend Sidney’s lead to 60-57. Schneider missed the second free throw and Dylan Gunkel fouled Xander Provance on the rebound with 10.8 remaining. Provance made one of two and Sawyer Dickman was fouled with 9.3 seconds on the clock. Dickman missed the free throw, but Wyatt Hickenlively  grabbed the rebound and was immediately fouled. He made the first free throw to extend the lead to 61-58. Gaurav Chima missed a wide-open three to tie the game, and Sidney secured the rebound to survive and pick up their nineth win of the season.

Zack Burhe led the Red Raiders with a game-high 22 points. Micah Schneider contributed 14 points, including 8 points in the fourth quarter, while Sawyer Dickman added 12 points on the night.